Photo by Kelli WeldonMeria Carstarphen, Austin ISD superintendent, speaks to AISD students and other attendees at the SXSWedu 2014 Education Expo on March 4.
"Get out there and make your mark," Austin ISD Superintendent Meria Carstarphen told students and other SXSWedu 2014 Education Expo attendees on March 4.
Carstarphen said it is how students use the information they learn that will make the world a better place to live. She encouraged visitors to walk through the expo, a free public event displaying new concepts and education resources, many of which were related to science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM.
"The future of our local economy really depends on things like new ideas and creativity. This is a place where we can think about new approaches to energy and health care, technology and other STEM fields and particularly education," she said. "We're hoping that ... this is the place where the genesis of ideas can actually start and that people who would not normally come together and talk about these things do come together and create new ideas."
The Austin Energy Regional Science Festival ended two weeks ago, with more than 600 middle and high school students and more than 2,000 elementary school students participating. A representative from the science fair encouraged attendees to participate in the next fair and introduced Jack Andraka, a student scientist who won first place for his science fair project—a paper sensor that can detect pancreatic cancer in minutes—at the 2012 Intel International Science and Engineering Fair.
