Contact: Lisa Kinney,
219-713-3245 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Jillian Fleming, 214-636-3018
February 9, 2010
DR. BERNARD HARRIS ANNOUNCES 2010
SUMMER SCIENCE CAMPS
·
More than 1,500
disadvantaged students to receive two-week science experience
·
ExxonMobil
sponsors for fifth consecutive year
·
Announcement
coincides with 15th anniversary of historic space walk
HOUSTON, February 9 - Dr. Bernard A. Harris, Jr., the first
African American to walk in space, and ExxonMobil announced today that
more than 1,500 middle school students will participate in free science
camps this summer.
The ExxonMobil
Bernard Harris Summer Science Camps will be hosted in 30 universities
across the country. The announcement came on the 15th anniversary of
Dr. Harris’ historic space walk on Feb. 9, 1995 while aboard the Space
Shuttle Discovery.
“Much in my life
has changed since that historic day, but one constant is my passion to
make a difference with today’s students, especially kids who have
similar backgrounds to mine,” Harris said. “This year’s summer science
camps will give students a chance to learn about mathematics and
science, more about themselves and about life on a college campus. Most
importantly, campers learn that they have the power to achieve their
dreams whatever they may be.”
The ExxonMobil
Bernard Harris Summer Science Camp program is the largest of its kind in
the nation and offers a two-week, free-of-charge experience. Students
typically come from urban districts around the country and are
recommended by their teachers based on leadership skills and science and
mathematics aptitude.
“ExxonMobil
shares Dr. Harris’s passion for math and science education,” said Rex W.
Tillerson, chairman and chief executive officer of Exxon Mobil
Corporation. “These camps help students explore beyond their horizons to
encourage a life-long love of math and science and a better future.”
Since 2006, almost 4,000 students from across the country have attended
ExxonMobil Bernard Harris Summer Science Camps.
At camp, students
attend daily classes in the natural sciences, engineering, mathematics
and technology, taught by faculty of participating universities and
secondary classroom teachers, who receive professional development
training. Activities include classroom study, experiments, individual,
team and group projects, weekly field excursions and motivational guest
speakers.
More information
about student eligibility and selection criteria can be found at the
ExxonMobil Bernard Harris Summer Science Camp Web site:
www.theharrisfoundation.org.
Camps will be held for the first time
this year at Florida A&M University (Tallahassee, FL), University of
Alaska Anchorage (Anchorage, AK), University of South Alabama (Mobile,
AL), Texas Tech University (Lubbock, TX) and University of Wyoming
(Laramie, WY). Camps will return to the following locations:
AISES/University
of New Mexico (Albuquerque, NM)
Arizona
State University (Tempe, AZ)
Central
State University (Wilberforce, OH)
Delaware
State University (Dover, DE)
Indiana
University (Bloomington, IN)
Lamar
University (Beaumont, TX)
New Jersey
Institute of Technology (Newark, NJ)
Northeastern University (Boston, MA)
Northern
Illinois University (DeKalb, IL)
Oregon
State University (Corvallis, OR)
Prairie
View A&M University (Prairie View, TX)
Rensselaer
Polytechnic Institute (Troy, NY)
Southern
University (Baton Rouge, LA)
Southwestern Oklahoma State University (Weatherford, OK)
Temple
University (Philadelphia, PA)
Trine
University (Angola, IN)
University
of Arkansas at Little Rock (Little Rock, AR)
University
of Houston (Houston, TX)
University
of Nebraska-Lincoln (Lincoln, NE)
University
of Oklahoma (Norman, OK)
University
of Southern California (Los Angeles, CA)
University
of Texas at Arlington (Arlington, TX)
University
of Texas-Pan American (Edinburg, TX)
University
of Virginia (Charlottesville, VA)
Washington
University at St. Louis (St. Louis, MO)
# # #
About
ExxonMobil Foundation
ExxonMobil Foundation is the primary philanthropic arm of
Exxon
Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) in the United States. The Foundation and the
Corporation engage in a range of philanthropic activities that advance
education, health and science in the communities where ExxonMobil has
significant operations. In the United States, ExxonMobil supports
initiatives to improve math and science education at the K-12 and higher
education levels. Globally, ExxonMobil provides funding to
improve basic education,
promote
women as catalysts
for development, and
combat malaria and other infectious diseases in developing
countries. Additional information on ExxonMobil’s community partnerships
and contributions programs is available at
www.exxonmobil.com/community.
About The
Harris Foundation
Founded in 1998, The Harris Foundation is a 501 (c) (3), non-profit
organization based in Houston, Texas, whose overall mission is to invest
in community-based initiatives to support education, health and wealth.
The foundation supports programs that empower individuals, in particular
minorities and economically and/or socially disadvantaged, to recognize
their potential and pursue their dreams.
The Education Mission of the Harris Foundation is to enable youth to
develop and achieve their full potential through the support of social,
recreational, and educational programs. The Harris Foundation believes
that students can be prepared now for the careers of the future through
a structured education program and the use of positive role models. To
date, more than 10,000 K-12 students have participated and benefited
from THF programs.
www.theharrisfoundation.org.
