Science Fairs
My outreach work started in 2018 with UC Berkeley’s RadWatch project — visiting science fairs, presenting at public meetings, and talking with students, families, and teachers about radiation, air quality, and environmental health. I use hands-on tools like Geiger counters, semiconductor detectors, and UV demos to make abstract concepts real, connecting everyday examples like dental x-rays or sunscreen to how radiation actually behaves and what it means for health. More recently I’ve developed and led soil sample collection workshops for residents in communities facing environmental harm, including outreach tied to the Hunters Point Shipyard Superfund site. We collect and analyze samples together, talk through what the results mean, and build shared understanding of things like background radiation versus contamination of concern. The goal is trust as much as information.
Add science fair images here.
Add classroom visit images here.
Teaching in Classrooms
As a Program Assistant for Community Resources for Science, I supported middle schoolers in Berkeley public schools through the Be A Scientist program, following NGSS/STEM curricula. Students designed and ran their own experiments over a six-week period with UC Berkeley student volunteers as mentors — I recruited, trained, and guided those volunteers while keeping the classroom environment focused, safe, and genuinely fun. I care a lot about harm-reduction teaching: making sure students feel like science belongs to them, that asking questions is the point, and that the process makes sense even when results are messy.
Radwatch Summer Internship Program
Through RadWatch, I co-led summer internships mentoring 5–10 high school and undergraduate students each cycle in data pipeline development, radiation detection, 3D modeling, coding, and science communication. I help students get up to speed with our codebase and tools — Git, SSH, Python, Jupyter notebooks — and work through the fundamentals of gamma spectroscopy and neutron activation analysis together. Depending on their interests, students build interactive data apps with Dash, integrate GPS or Bluetooth for mobile sensor projects, or focus on writing and visualization. I also help them write and publish blog posts about their work, which many use for college applications or portfolios. I want every student to leave with something tangible they’re proud of and skills they can actually use.
Add internship images here.
What ties all of this together is my belief that science doesn’t need to be mysterious or gatekept, or used to divide us. Whether I’m debugging a student’s first Python script, digging a soil sample hole alongside a community elder, or guiding a middle schooler through their first real experiment, the goal is the same: make the knowledge theirs. I want people to leave with something real! Whether it is a skill, a result, an understanding that bridges gaps; I LOVE to connect the dots. Science is most powerful when it’s collaborative, transparent, and serving people’s actual lives and needs. Otherwise.. why waste the water? 😉
Dani Solakian 