Weekly Media Roundup: December 1, 2016

Nutrition Fair Provides Dose of Education for All Kinds of Students (Centre Daily Times, Pennsylvania)

A partnership between Penn State University and the State College Area School District recently gave university students an opportunity to teach “nutrition at a community level” to afterschool students the Centre Daily Times reports. Some 55 Penn State students put together a Health and Nutrition Fair with a variety of interactive booths to teach kindergarten to fifth-graders from Ferguson Township Elementary School about what’s in their food and where it comes from. The fair also allowed college students to practice teaching in a real-world setting.

New After-School Program Offers Students and Their Families Free Tutoring, Meals (Santa Fe New Mexican, New Mexico)

The Boys & Girls Clubs of Santa Fe’s Homework Diner is working to nourish both the minds and bodies of vulnerable children throughout the south-side of the city. Some 80 students attend the afterschool program, where they receive a free meal and help from volunteer tutors to get their homework done. The program also invites family members to enjoy dinner with their children. “This way we make sure the kids are getting fed and learning,” Club director Roman Abeyta told the Santa Fe New Mexican. “We really don’t know the family situation, but this really can take a burden off of parents when it comes to both feeding their children and making sure they get their homework done.”

Muslim Teen Fights Stigma by Winning Robotics Competitions (Los Angeles Times, California)

Sixteen-year-old Zaina Siyed is determined to change the way Muslims are perceived in the United States by coaching an all-female, all-Muslim team of teens to victory in robotics competitions. According to the Los Angeles Times, the FemSTEM girls recently won the award for best overall performance at a First Lego League robotics competition, where young people between the ages of nine and 14 build and program robots to perform a variety of different functions. The competitions emphasize teamwork and problem-solving wrapped around math and science concepts. “As a woman in STEM… [I’m] proud, hopeful for the next generation,” judge Cindy Muñoz said as she presented the team with its award. “I’m just so excited to see women, minorities, Muslims just really challenge those views some people have.”

Afterschool Program Finds Cozy Home (Port Clinton News Herald, Ohio)

Port Clinton students can enjoy tasty snacks and a cozy atmosphere at a free afterschool program at Bistro 163. The philanthropic-minded restaurant, which encourages patrons to pay more than the menu price to cover the cost of food for someone less fortunate, gives students a space to work on homework with volunteer tutors, play tabletop games, do crafts and eat a substantial snack every Wednesday after school. “It’s just something I felt like we should do,” owner and chef Stacy Maple told the Port Clinton News Herald.