Community Programs

The department offers several educational outreach programs specially gears towards high schoolers, high school teachers and the community.

Laboratory for Laser Energetics (LLE) Summer High School Research Program

The LLE Summer High School Research Program provides a limited number of local high school students entering their senior year the opportunity to experience research in science and technology. The program, run by the University's Laboratory for Laser Energetics, is partially supported by the National Science Foundation. For more information see the LLE summer program page.


PARTICLE

The department hosts the PARTICLE (Physicists and Rochester Teachers Inventing Classroom Experiments) program, which is designed to engage high school students and teachers in forefront research that probes the basic mysteries of the structure of matter and fundamental forces of nature.


 

Astroflow Program

The Astroflow program is an integrated software environment which allows users to simulate and visualize their own astrophysical fluid experiments. Designed for classroom, planetaria and web-based applications, users can create their own supernovae, hypersonic jets and planetary nebulae. This project is ongoing and is funded via the NSF and NASA.


 

Pre-College Experience in Physics (PREP): To Encourage the Participation of Women in Science

 A summer program for selected 9th and 10th grade high school students in the Rochester area, PREP offers an introduction to physics through a sequence of “hands-on”, inquiry-driven laboratory activities with experienced instructors. Tours of University research facilities and presentations by researchers give PREP students exposure to a range of science and technology careers. For more information see the PREP page.


 

C.E.K. Mees Astronomical Observatory

The department offers free tours of the University's C.E.K. Mees Astronomical Observatory during the summer months of June, July, and August. An informative slide presentation is followed by the viewing of astronomical objects through the telescope. For more information see the observatory page.