The Dinah Whipple STEAM Academy is an immersive online educational program that explores science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics (STEAM), as well as the Black experience. The program takes place live in real-time, so students can connect and collaborate with one another and their teachers. It is offered through the UNH Tech Camp, which has been providing dynamic, experiential summer programs for middle and high school students for more than a decade. The program is free and open to all levels of experience.
The academy is named after Dinah Whipple, a significant figure in New Hampshire history best known for founding the state’s first school for Black children in Portsmouth circa 1806. The former enslaved New Hampshire native became a leader in the community, advocate for education and an inspiration for future generations.
Participants in this program will learn about engineering principles, disciplines and practices by designing and building a boat or submarine along with a crane and sustainable docking system. The project involves a variety of creative, collaborative, hands-on activities. Each student will receive an engineering kit that includes all necessary supplies. Engineering professionals will also visit and share real-word design challenges that they have faced and the solutions they found.
The program will also take a deep dive into the Black experience and explore the unknown figures that have helped shape history. Students will connect with a panel of Black professionals in the engineering field and learn from their experiences. Student conversations will encompass accomplishments of Black people across a myriad of genres.
An important component of the Dinah Whipple Academy and UNH Tech Camp mission is to foster a diverse and inclusive community, providing pre-engineering education to students from all ethnic, cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds. All are encouraged to apply.
This program is made possible by Appledore Marine Engineering, LLC’s choosing to dedicate resources to create more of a balance within a system filled with inequities.
