Skip to main content

Academic camps make summer a hot time for K-12 learning on campus

Janel Shoun-Smith | 

Nissan and HCA/TriStar provide funds to bring hands-on engineering and health sciences experiences to kids of all ages

 

Summer Programs and Camps

Lipscomb University offers a wide variety of summer academic programs and camps for kids of all ages. Many of the academic or career-oriented programs are reserved for high school or middle school students. We offer summer programs and camps in the areas listed below:

Programs for High School and Middle School Students

Programs for Middle School Students

  • David Lipscomb Campus School Summer Academy
    • Offers short courses for students to pursue their academic interests and strengthen skills relevant to their educational pursuits. Courses include both enrichment and review/preparation opportunities taught by experienced middle school teachers and college professors.

 Programs for Elementary School Students

 

HCA/TriStar grant helps Lipscomb offer health care experience for students

Lipscomb University and HCA/TriStar have partnered to offer the Lipscomb-HCA/TriStar Healthcare Academy, June 11-15, introducing rising 10th- through 12th-grade high school students to a variety of health science professions. The academy is funded by a $10,000 grant from HCA/TriStar.

“Reports published by the Bureau of Labor and Statistics show health care workers will continue to have more job growth than any other industry over the next decade. Ten of the 20 fastest-growing occupations are health care related. It is generally known that hospitals and other health care agencies struggle to fill positions as the number of elderly patients with increasing health needs continues to increase while a number of experienced health care professionals are reaching retirement,” said Roger Davis, dean of the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences.

To help address this growing shortage of workers, Lipscomb University and HCA/TriStar have partnered for the last five years to offer a health care academy.

“We view this academy as an opportunity to make a difference in the lives of others by exposing them to these careers. We hope to motivate students to start early planning to equip themselves for a health care career,” said Davis.

The Lipscomb-HCA/TriStar Healthcare Academy is in its fifth year of providing middle and high school students an opportunity to experience a variety of health science professions.  The camp is presented by Lipscomb University’s College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences and the College of Arts and Sciences and builds on the long tradition of excellence in health sciences education in those colleges.

The Lipscomb-HCA/TriStar Healthcare Academy is designed to provide hands-on experiences related to pharmacy, nursing, nutrition and exercise science. The goal is to cultivate interest in the nursing and health professions and to create a desire for pursuing education, which would lead to a health care career. More than 30 students from Tennessee and surrounding states are participating in this year’s weeklong residential academy.

Students will visit Summit Medical Center and other healthcare operations in the city. They will have hands-on experiences and participate in science labs, including a dissection lab, a pharmaceutical compounding lab and an Integrated Biomedical Sciences drug dissolution lab, as well as instruction in CPR, basic first aid, EKG, AED and non-invasive measurements such as blood pressure and pulse. They will also have the opportunity to make “patient rounds” in the Lipscomb College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences patient simulation lab, where they can “treat” high-tech, lifesize manikins displaying symptoms of various illnesses and injuries.

 

 

Robotics Camp Summer 2011
Robotics Camp Summer 2011 3
Robotics Camp Summer 2011 4
 

Nissan awards $70,000 to Raymond B. Jones College of Engineering for robotics programs

Lipscomb University’s Raymond B. Jones College of Engineering has been awarded two grants totaling $70,000 from Nissan North America, Inc., to fund its annual summer robotics camp and regional BEST robotics competition in the fall.

A $50,000 Nissan grant will be used to expand the reach of the Lipscomb/Nissan BisonBot Robotics Camps, which are designed to nurture kids who like to tinker and take things apart and encourage them to become robotics engineers in the future.

Thanks to the Nissan grants in the past three years, the BisonBot camps have expanded from 50 to 125 participants. A Junior BisonBots program for children as young as second grade was added last year, and this year that popular program has doubled in size.

This year’s camps are taking place May 29-June 29, involving children from second grade to high school age. The Junior BisonBots (age 8-11) will hold a show-and-tell of their mechanical creations on Friday at 1 p.m. in the Hughes Center. Robots and machines on display include: The Buzz Wire game, Woody the walking robot with blinking eyes; a mechanical hand and the Doodler robot.

A $20,000 Nissan grant will be used to support the Music City BEST (Boosting Engineering, Science and Technology) robotics competition to be held in the fall. The competition involves students from the midstate and beyond, with school groups coming from as far away as Illinois to pit their custom-built robot against the others in a competition for mechanical pride and glory.

“We are pleased to partner with Lipscomb to present these programs, which may motivate more young men and women to pursue careers in science and engineering,” says Susan Brennan, Nissan vice president, manufacturing. “These teaching tools align with Nissan’s commitment to STEM education and make learning fun for all the students who participate.”

“Nissan’s partnership with Lipscomb University enables children of all ages and backgrounds to participate in exciting and challenging robotics programs, giving them an opportunity to develop interests and talents that will last a lifetime,” said Greg Nordstrom, interim dean of engineering at Lipscomb’s Raymond B. Jones College of Engineering. “Our country needs engineers, and this is an excellent way to help satisfy that need. We are extremely grateful to Nissan for making this possible.”

Nissan engineers will visit the Lipscomb BisonBot camps throughout the next month to describe their jobs at Nissan to the campers, to work one-on-one with campers on their robotics projects and to see the final products displayed and demonstrated on each Friday. BisonBot campers will also tour Nissan’s vehicle assembly plant in Smyrna.

 

Robotics Camp Summer 2011 2

About Lipscomb University’s Raymond B. Jones College of Engineering

Lipscomb University’s Raymond B. Jones College of Engineering offers undergraduate majors in electrical and computer engineering, civil and environmental engineering, and mechanical engineering. As of fall 2012, the college will also offer its first graduate program in engineering management. Two majors -- engineering mechanics and computer engineering -- are accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission (EAC) of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET).

About Nissan Americas

In the Americas, Nissan’s operations include automotive styling, engineering, consumer and corporate financing, sales and marketing, distribution and manufacturing.  Nissan is dedicated to improving the environment under the Nissan Green Program and was recognized as an ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year by the U.S Environmental Protection Agency in 2010 and 2011. More information on Nissan in North America, the Nissan LEAF and zero emissions can be found at www.nissanusa.com.

About Nissan

Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., Japan’s second largest Japanese automotive company by volume, is headquartered in Yokohama, Japan, and is an integral pillar of the Renault-Nissan Alliance. Operating with more than 150,000 employees globally, Nissan provided customers with more than four million vehicles in 2010. With a strong commitment to developing exciting and innovative products for all, Nissan delivers a comprehensive range of fuel-efficient and low-emissions vehicles under the Nissan and Infiniti brands. A pioneer in zero emission mobility, Nissan made history with the introduction of the Nissan LEAF, the first affordable, mass-market, pure-electric vehicle and winner of numerous international accolades including the prestigious 2011 European Car of the Year award.