The St. Croix Community is invited to attend the Sixth Annual Spring Research Symposium, which will be hosted on the St. Croix campus by the Emerging Caribbean Scientists (ECS) Program, an honors program administered by the Division of Science and Mathematics, at the University of the Virgin Islands. The two-hour special event will take place on Saturday, March 15, from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. in the UVI Cafetorium.

This year, the symposium is expected to be the biggest and best ever to be held on the St. Croix Campus. Close to 30 STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) students from six ECS Programs will showcase their summer and academic year research experiences. Those experiences were undertaken here at the University of the Virgin Islands as well as at several other universities and centers such as Carnegie Mellon University, Emory University, Rutgers University and The National Institutes of Health laboratories.

ECS scholars are required to engage in research or other scholarly activities. The ECS Program focuses on fostering excellence in its students, who are highly competitive nationwide. Over the years, and as recently as this academic year, ECS scholars have won awards for their research when competing against top students from hundreds of universities at national conventions. The program encourages and prepares students to aspire to earn doctorates in the STEM areas. The quality of these students is so highly regarded that it is not unusual for them to be selected for Ph.D. programs upon the completion of their undergraduate programs of study at UVI.

Only three weeks ago an ECS scholar from UVI received confirmation of acceptance into a Ph.D. program after being flown to a highly recognized university for an interview, with all expenses paid. Several ECS scholars are presently pursuing doctorates while many have already attained that goal.

During Saturday's symposium, the student presenters will be judged on their visual material, content, presentation, and ability to answer questions. A diversified combination of professionals including high school science and mathematics teachers, research scientists, engineers, and UVI faculty have been invited to serve as judges. The symposium and ECS Programs are made possible largely through grant awards that are directed by Drs. Robert Stolz, Camille McKayle, and Teresa Turner, UVI faculty who are currently away from the territory. In their absence the grant awards are managed by Drs. Marc Boumedine, Rosalie Dance, Omar Christian and Alice Stanford.

Teachers and parents are strongly urged to encourage students, particularly at the junior high and high school levels, not to miss the opportunity of experiencing this academically stimulating event. The UVI Saturday Academy students will be in attendance, and all UVI students, as well as the entire VI community, are cordially invited to attend. Abstract booklets will be available for attendees.

For more information, contact Dr. Velma Tyson on the St.Croix campus, at 692-4157 or visit the ECS website at http://ecs.uvi.edu.