The Seth Bonder Camp (SBC) in Computational and Data Science for Engineering is designed to give high school students a better understanding of the careers and opportunities available in industrial engineering and operations research. The camp is offered in an online format and an on-campus summer camp at Georgia Tech.
The SBC is tailored for high school students who have little or no prior experience in computer programming or data science, but who are enthusiastic about engineering. The camp's sole requirement is that participants can use a browser and are eager to learn about computational and data science through practical and stimulating applications in machine learning, optimization, computational social science, and genomics. The program attracts a diverse range of participants, with a large proportion of minority students and young women.
The SBC is offered at three different levels that can be taken in subsequent years. Students who have completed a level can come back the next year for the next level, and can also serve as mentors for the level they already completed:
- Level 1: Introduction to Computing in Snap!
- Level 2: Introduction to Data Science in Python
- Level 3: Introduction to Deep Learning in Keras
More information
The SBC is organized around three education program pillars and the AI4OPT educational initiative’s six fundamental principles:
Pillars
- Partnerships with high schools in Georgia and California to offer dedicated, longitudinal training camps in data and computational sciences, and AI.
- Develop teacher versions of the camps to help high-school STEM teachers prepare the students and offer the material themselves in their schools, either as regular or as flipped classes.
- Deliver Massively Open Online (MOOC) versions of the camps, that can then be deployed in various institutions as flipped classes.
Fundamental Principles
- Get students interested early
- Keep students interested
- Teach the teachers
- Help the teachers create their own programs
- Organize mentorship programs
- Broaden participation
Guidebooks for Organizers & Teachers
The organizers guide offers general planning and organization tips when starting and running a level-1 SBC. When applicable, this guide needs to be complemented with other institution-specific requirements for running high-school camps which is beyond the scope of this document. To access and download organizers guidebook, click here.
The teacher’s guide offers general tips for teaching SBCs to students at an AI4OPT partnering institute. A teacher is anybody who helps instruct and grade the camp, including teaching assistants, faculty, high-school mentors, and postdocs. For general materials on camp organization, please refer to the organizer version of this manual.
Partnerships
The Seth Bonder Camps are in collaboration with Atlanta, Georgia high schools Banneker High School and Drew Charter High School, and Kids Teach Tech (a non-profit organization based in California).
About Seth Bonder Camp
The Seth Bonder Summer Camp in Computational and Data Science (SBC) has been successfully delivered over ten times in the past five years, benefiting hundreds of students. In 2022, a five-year plan was initiated to significantly increase the program's impact by expanding the training from hundreds of students to longitudinal education for thousands or even tens of thousands of high school students through multiple long-term partnerships and flipped classes. Simultaneously, a mentorship program was launched for the longitudinal camps, enabling students who complete the program to mentor subsequent years' participants. Each mentor will receive a stipend and academic benefits from gaining a deeper understanding of the material. The mentorship program is a crucial component of student retention and interest.
In addition to student programs, teacher professional development programs (known as "Teaching the Teachers") were introduced for each summer camp. The goal is to train high school teachers and non-profit organizations to run the camps themselves, either as summer camps or after-school programs, or integrate them into their curricula. The first camp in the Teacher Professional Development program was conducted in June 2022.
To provide a truly longitudinal program, the SBC is offered in three different "Levels." Historically, there was just one camp. In 2022, a new Level 3 camp on Deep Learning was developed and tested with a semester-long class at Drew Charter High School.
History
Seth Bonder (1932-2011) was an IOE faculty member at the University of Michigan as well as the founder and chairman/CEO of Vector Research, Inc. Much of his career was focused on improving the planning and operations of healthcare delivery enterprises. He was also an expert in national security and defense enterprises, with an international reputation for his work developing new procedures and directing analyses for planning and operations analysis of military forces. He was particularly passionate about supporting and mentoring students. Dr. Bonder generously endowed fellowships at the Ohio State University and the University of Michigan, and also established and funded two INFORMS scholarships to recognize and support Ph.D. students working on applied OR in military applications and in health services. Before his death he established The Seth Bonder Foundation which continues his legacy of supporting students and research. He said in the Military Operations Research Oral History Project, “I had ORSA, MORS, the Army Science Board, the National Academy of Engineering, Vector and the teaching part. They’ve all been pieces of an integrated career. I’m not sure how I did all of it, probably not well (Laughs). When I look back on my life and wonder if I’ve contributed something, I think: ‘Yes, I did.’”
Merrill Bonder is president of the Seth Bonder Foundation, which was created in memory of the late Seth Bonder. In addition to being a leader in his field, Seth Bonder was passionate about developing the next generation of data scientists and operations researchers. The foundation funds numerous scholarships and programs to support students in these fields.
Seth Bonder Camp Team
