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i-Trek’s New Look

You might have noticed, we are going through some changes! Please stay tuned as we revamp our website, making it easier for you to get to know us, donate, and find great STEM resources.

i-Trek’s Fundraising

If you have been able to check out our video on the homepage, you know that i-Trek has important ambitions for the underserved communities studying STEM. The money we raise is primarily targeted toward two components, the Trek research program and community outreach. The Trek is at minimum a two-week long opportunity for select undergraduates to participate in research they select and define, while receiving guidance to better understand what will be required of them in STEM professions or if they want to succeed in graduate school. The hands-on experience our “Trekkers” are given during the Trek  is invaluable experiential knowledge, an absolute must for acceptance into a good graduate school, and is often a hurdle for the underserved and underrepresented communities. The Trek aims to assist its students in closing the experience gap, and we need your support. Funds raised will help provide the necessities to execute a successful Trek, such as lodging, travel, meals, and research materials.

i-Trek is also proud of its work in the schools. Please see i-Trek In The Schools for more information about our work in the community. A generous grant we received from MIT allowed a purchase of various science kits that were used for Saturday sessions held in one of Boston’s charter schools. Students had the opportunity to spend an afternoon, under the instruction of our MIT student volunteers, learning hands-on about STEM in ways the schools cannot often provide on their own. This was such a success that we have been asked to bring this program to other schools. Your contributions towards this effort are vital to the community– especially its students.  

If you have any questions about i-Trek and donating, or if you’d like to volunteer to help with fundraising please contact: Fundraising [at] i-Trek [dot] org

Photos below are from our benefit dinner held at MIT on May 9th, 2014, where we raised twice our target amount! Thank you to those who attended. 

The 2016 Benefit Raffle is scheduled for April 15th. Great raffle items available! Details coming soon.

i-Trek’s Mission

 

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i-Trek’s Mission:

In order to address the lack of diversity among STEM degree recipients (science, technology, engineering and math), i-Trek (I Turn Research into Empowerment and Knowledge) has developed platform that aims to provide underserved and underrepresented students with the skills and resources necessary to succeed in STEM undergraduate and graduate degree programs. The underrepresented and underserved communities include students of lower income, women, and minorities who often face obstacles in obtaining equal support or access to the resources required for success in STEM. It is through community outreach and the Trek Mentorship Program that i-Trek aims to encourage a high level of interest in STEM and create a pipeline for increased participation in those areas of study.

Our Volunteers

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Nicholas W. Hatch, Ph.D. : Marketing Lead:

“The sun shines bright on my old Kentucky home,” we sing in the Bluegrass State where I was born, so perhaps that I now find myself in sunny California is no surprise. I often say that although I have a doctorate, those who know me understand why that’s funny. Indeed, I may have spent more time camping, climbing, and cycling, than actually writing my dissertation. As a volunteer with i-Trek, I assist as a subcommittee chair within Public Relations, and as a contributing writer, to promote the mission of our organization to empower under-served students in pursuing careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). My degree is in Nutritional Sciences, and my graduate and postdoctoral training has been focused on the metabolic and vascular consequences of obesity. I am finding meaning in that training by using the knowledge I have gained to reach out to my community, to be a voice of positive change, to ultimately improve the health of our population. My vision is that together with i-Trek, we may be a loud voice.

Adriana Hammond, Editorial Lead :

Adriana is a Master of Arts Candidate at Boston College in Russian literature, a marketing professional, and writer. With i-Trek she is the manages writers and editors to ensure the quality of all written materials associated with i-Trek. She believes that i-Trek’s mission of serving the underrepresented communities in STEM is necessary in a time when education for professional advancement is more important than ever .