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As we approach the end to another successful school year, the summer months ahead bring great anticipation to The Harris Foundation. I am pleased to announce one of our latest endeavors in education under our STEM Centers of Academic Excellence (STEM-CAE). We are on a mission to launch our first Girls Summer STEM Academy (GSSA) in the Houston area this month. The GSSA will be a two-week non-residential academy that will provide 36 rising sixth-grade girls with an opportunity to learn more about Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).
GSSA will serve to increase STEM literacy for girls through engaging, student-centered, hands-on projects and activities, which will aid in increasing the representation of girls in STEM education and career-fields.
Our 2016 ExxonMobil Bernard Harris Summer Science Camp (EMBHSSC) season begins this month as well. Thanks to our partnership with the ExxonMobil Foundation, we have been able to provide rising sixth, seventh and eighth grade students with quality summer programming in STEM education for the past eleven years. Our EMBHSSCs are hosted on university and college campuses across the nation during the months of June through August. These two-week residential camps provide our middle school students the opportunity to engage in hands-on collaborative learning, interact with ExxonMobil RockStars of STEM, enjoy numerous field excursions and build lasting bonds with other students interested in STEM all while receiving a glimpse into the "college campus life" experience. We truly enjoy being able to provide our youth such memorable moments and opportunities to expand their horizons in life.
For twenty-one years our Dare to Dream (DTD) program has been working within schools in the Greater Houston Area through a partnership with Communities in Schools, the Harris County Juvenile Probation Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation to help boost self-esteem and provide positive role models for children in elementary and middle schools. Our students attended their end of the year field trip and closing ceremony that took place on the campus of the University of Houston. For many of these students, this was an experience that may have sparked their desire and determination to continue their pursuit of higher education. Anytime you can be a part of igniting that positive spark in a young child's mind, you play a role in helping to shape their future. We look forward to being able to expand this program in the near future.
Our RockIt! financial literacy program continues its rise with another successful school year under our belt. In May, our RockIt! students enjoyed an end of semester celebration at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas - Houston Branch that was out of this world. RockIt! has made such an impact that we will be conducting the program beyond the regular school year and into the summer once again. We have partnered with some of our local area Boys & Girls Clubs, YMCAs and Neighborhood Centers, Inc. to offer RockIt! as part of to their summer learning enrichment program.
Lastly, the Innovative Medical Missions (IMM), our health initiative that promotes the innovative use of medical technologies in support of philanthropic healthcare missions worldwide, is currently in Haiti. IMM provides much needed primary care and disease screening for individuals living in some of the most remote regions of the world with the use of the LifeBot 5, a groundbreaking telemedicine device designed to provide technological support to healthcare teams in challenging environments. Since the inaugural deployment of IMM in June 2015, the missions continue to be successful and plans for expansion into more countries looks promising.
As you can see, we have a busy summer ahead, but the services we are providing our youth makes the work well worth it. As always, I appreciate you and thank you for your continued support.
Bernard A. Harris, Jr.
President and Founder
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