Students from Trenton, NJ participated in PCCM's Princeton University Materials Academy (PUMA), learning about materials science and engineering related to energy sustainability. Working with PCCM faculty Wole Soboyejo and Craig Arnold and their graduate students, the PUMA high school students built their own solar ovens and solar cells from readily available materials, while a guest speaker shared her firsthand experience of the impact of solar cookers in economically and politically devastated regions of the world. PUMA students learned about the engineering design process and what it means to ask scientific questions. They leave PUMA with a sense of accomplishment and a new understanding of research and its process. Trenton Central High School is 97% minority, with 49% of its students eligible for free or reduced price lunch. 100% of PUMA students are members of underrepresented minority groups.
