Pathways to Science students being taught in a lab

Yale graduate student Victoria Puccini de Castro (center) instructs students in a Pathways to Science summer workshop.

“Today, we welcome you as the youngest members of Yale’s scientific community.” 

Experiencing this warm reception on September 15 were 450 middle-and-high schoolers who were accepted into this year’s Yale Pathways to Science cohort. The excited students who gathered in Woolsey Hall with their families hale from New Haven public schools. They had been nominated by their teachers to take part in STEM events and programs at Yale throughout the academic year and summer. 

These words are spoken annually by Yale Public Schools and Youth Engagement staff whose decades-long mission has been to share Yale’s academic treasures with its home-city neighbors. Claudia Merson, founder and director, Maria Parente, associate director, and Rick Crouse, program manager, conduct their work in the Office of New Haven Affairs (ONHA). 

“Pathways is Yale’s coordinated outreach infrastructure,” said Merson. “It was designed 15 years ago to share Yale’s rich resources in a deeply meaningful way with the New Haven community. We’re proud that there are currently more than 1,900 Pathways to Science Scholars, and over one thousand alumni enrolled in colleges throughout the country.” 

Last month, Yale President Maurie McInnis welcomed 21 New Haven public school students as Yale first years. Seventeen of them were in one or both Yale Pathways cohorts — Pathways to Science and Pathways to Arts and Humanities.

Staying with students over time 

One of the hallmarks of Pathways to Science is that Merson, Parente, and Crouse follow the students from their first event or program to college completion, paying attention to individuals whose repeat participation in programs speaks to keen interest. Sofia Galvan, a student at New Haven’s Engineering and Science University Magnet School, took part in her first Yale STEM activity “Girls Science Investigations” in middle school, and she continued to enjoy “Model Organisms in Biology: The Mighty Worm” this summer as a Pathways to Science Scholar.

“I don’t know yet what I want to do for a career,” she said. “But I was inspired by students who do know. It motivates me to push harder to try and figure it out.” 

Josh Burgess, a rising senior at Hill Regional Career High School, said that Pathways has helped shape his career aspirations. “I’ve always known that I wanted to pursue a career in medicine,” he said. “Pathways has expanded my understanding of the brain and how it functions. Now, I’ve pretty much decided that I want to be a neurosurgeon.” 

Reach out and teach someone 

Programs open to the public

While a student must be a New Haven, West Haven, or Orange Public School student in 6th-12th grade to be a Pathways to Science Scholar, there are numerous open-to-the-public events and programs that any K-12 student can attend. Check the calendar and sign up for the STEM event newsletter! 

The Pathways infrastructure is designed to maximize the support Pathways staff can provide Yale community members who are interested in sharing their expertise. “We are here to help individuals design and implement programming that will excite local students,” said Merson. 

Parente added, “There are so many people at Yale dedicated to these students, from the distinguished faculty and staff on the steering committee to the scientists who want to bring their passion projects to life in the classroom. With our logistical support, they can focus on their amazing content.” 

Crouse’s guidance includes everything from brainstorming to transforming highly scientific content so it is understood by middle-and high-school students, to making sure the students’ campus experience is welcoming and engaging.

When someone approaches the staff with an idea — or even an inkling of an idea — Crouse works with them on making it happen. “I’ll say, ‘How do we make that a reality? We think this format might work best, given the topic or activities you’re envisioning,’” he said. “We’re not telling them what to do; just suggesting what is going to best meet students where they are.” 

Nicole Lake, assistant professor of genetics and a Pathways to Science Summer Scholars instructor, noted how important the program is for fostering diversity in the next generation of scientists. “I value contributing to Yale Pathways because it can open doors into a career in science, like outreach programs did for me when I was a high school student,” she said. “These programs wouldn’t be possible without the amazing support of the Yale Pathways team. They made sure we had everything we needed for the workshop to be a great success.” 

Some paths run through and back 

Pathways to Science Scholars “are the students who say, ‘I want,’” said Merson. “They show us by signing up for multiple classes over time. Their teachers see the interest as do parents. We suggest to anyone who works in education to nominate students who would benefit from further programming, and then we do positive, persistent messaging.” 

“Pathways has expanded my understanding of the brain and how it functions. Now, I’ve pretty much decided that I want to be a neurosurgeon.”

Sometimes the level of engagement is so high that Merson and Parente have been with families for years. Merson fondly recalls that at one September assembly, she was greeted by a former Hill Regional Career student, now a father, who was bringing in his 12-year-old son.

Parente had a similar experience when Patricia Joseph, a rising junior at Yale, wanted to work as a teaching assistant in a workshop this summer after joining Pathways in sixth grade. “It’s definitely a full-circle moment for me,” said Joseph. “When I was in Pathways, I was taking astrophysics, physics, engineering, and coding classes. Pathways gave me that range of what to explore — not only by doing the activities, but by talking to instructors who were so passionate about what they were doing.” 

Once 1,000 flowers; now a garden 

The Office of New Haven Affairs (ONHA) was founded in 1996 (then the Office of New Haven and State Affairs). A short time before the office opened, Merson came to New Haven after training as a teacher in New York City and then living in Bangladesh and Europe for 23 years. She found a part-time job in the School of Medicine’s dean’s office helping them develop a partnership with Hill Regional Career High School while substitute teaching.

“I began to look at the public-school district and the university,” said Merson. “To make a relationship, I brokered a partnership with the high school. A great, early example of collaboration was when Yale anatomy professor Bill Stewart invited local students into his dissection class with first-year medical students once a month. Everybody learned more, and better.”

Soon, Merson was brought into ONHA as the inaugural director of public school partnerships. Ten years later, Parente joined, and Crouse took on his role in 2021. 

“It is really exciting to be part of this work,” said Parente. “I wasn’t trained in a hard science, so I learn about the frontiers of STEM research right along with the students. But I know building Pathways required hard work and dedication many years before my time.” 

“That I won’t deny,” added Merson. “But look where we are now! Early on we called the disparate, silo-ed offerings ‘a thousand flowers, but no garden.’ Today, we are proud to call those flowers a garden.”

Pathways to Science Scholars eligibility

New Haven, West Haven and Orange Public School middle-and-high-school students (6th – 12th grade) are invited to apply to become a Pathways to Science Scholar when they are nominated by their math or science teacher. Teachers receive nomination forms each spring. Please email yalepathways@yale.edu for more information. View Yale STEM events and programs, and sign up for the Yale STEM event newsletter, which is the best way to stay apprised of the deadlines for all Pathways programming.