SMASH

Fundraise

The Summer Math and Science Honors (SMASH) Academy was launched at UC Berkeley in 2004 under the Level Playing Field Institute (LPFI) as their flagship program to provide underserved high school students, including students of color, low-income students, girls, and first-generation college students, with a free, holistic five-week STEM summer enrichment program over three summers. The program immerses them in college life, with access to intensive academic courses, hands-on group projects, and social-emotional learning on a university campus. Scholars continue their STEM education throughout the academic year with Saturday workshops on Computer Science and College Success. Over the following years, SMASH Academy has expanded to nine additional sites, including UC Davis in 2016. LPFI officially rebranded as SMASH in 2018, and the SMASH Alumni Program was added to supplement our Academy program. The Alumni Program includes SMASH Admit, where all SMASH high school seniors receive individualized coaching, college visits, financial education, and invitations to tech-related conferences, as well as alumni events. The hub of the Alumni Program is SMASH Rising, which provides our alumni in their first, second, and third years of college with access to their first paid internship.

Mission

SMASH's mission is to build a strong, diverse, and socially conscious tech workforce by leveling the playing field through academic learning and experiential engagement for high school and college students.

SMASH empowers dedicated students of color with an intensive science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education, culturally-relevant coursework, and access to resources and social capital that allow them to be successful in college and in their careers.

Needs

As a global leader in research and education in agricultural and environmental studies, our partnership with UC Davis enables SMASH to impact and empower students from remote and rural communities in the greater Sacramento region. Support to this program will allow us to offer unique STEM programming to prepare these Scholars for leadership roles in fields such as environmental sustainability and agricultural science. SMASH UC Davis Scholars have the opportunity to take Veterinary Medicine, Medicine, and Environmental Engineering elective courses during SMASH Academy taught by current UC Davis faculty and staff.

Unrestricted funding to SMASH allows for the growth of our program without any limitations, allowing for the greatest impact on our scholars. These funds will be used on resources for our Scholars, including purchasing laptops for their use, supporting seasonal staff to provide instruction on various STEM classes, Academic Year Programming, and our SMASH Alumni program.

SMASH offers a number of opportunities for community members to engage with SMASH scholars. These opportunities include:

SMASH Speaker Series: STEM professionals share their personal and professional journey, highlighting barriers and triumphs along the way, to an audience of SMASH scholars

SMASH Networking Nights: 20 STEM professionals participate in a networking event with SMASH scholars, exposing them to the importance of strategies to build social capital and presentation skills

SMASH Saturday Academy: At Saturday Academy, scholars will have the opportunity to engage with STEM professionals by participating in CS/ tech driven activities and listening to them speak about their trajectories. Other Saturday Academy workshops will focus on a variety of themes, including fundamental math skills, test taking strategies, and wellness.