The Alcoa Foundation recently awarded Clarkson University $120,000 in support of the “Mytholympic Games,” a K-12 outreach program that will engage local high school students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematic (STEM) related areas. Above, North Country high school students busting the can telephone myth, or not, as part of Clarkson’s Mytholympics program.

POTSDAM -- Clarkson University received a $120,000 grant from the Alcoa Foundation to support its "Mytholympic Games."

The grant will be dispersed over a three-year period in support of the K-12 outreach program designed to engage local high school students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematic (STEM) related areas.

The three-year project aims to engage at least 120 North Country high school students (40 students per year) in learning opportunities at the college level.

The project, “Mytholympic Games” is a competition based on the popular television show “MythBusters,” in which students work in teams of “Mythletes” to either bust or confirm a myth challenge designed by a team of Clarkson professors.

A different myth will be posed each year. Each team will prepare a video presentation explaining the results of their research, which will later be presented at Clarkson.

The $120,000 grant from Alcoa will be used to support Clarkson undergraduate student mentors who will work with each team.

Clarkson will make available to each K-12 team participant a four-year, $1,000-per-year scholarship. An additional four-year, $4,000-per-year scholarship will be made available to each member of the winning team.

“Clarkson is dedicated to further engaging and educating North Country high school students in STEM-related fields,” said Clarkson University President Tony Collins. “This generous grant from the Alcoa Foundation will allow Clarkson to provide talented and ambitious high school students with the tools and knowledge they need to apply their STEM skills to a project that explores real-life questions.”

For more information on the “Mytholympic Games,” please contact Shane Rogers, assistant professor of civil & environmental engineering, at 315-268-6501 or srogers@clarkson.edu