For the first time since the start of the global pandemic, STEM Day is returning to the campus of Wayne State University.

Nearly 2,500 students, teachers and chaperones from more than 20 middle and high schools throughout southeastern Michigan will descend on the Midtown campus to experience 70 different STEM sessions on April 25.

STEM Day combines learning and experimentation in all areas of science, technology, engineering and math, which is essential to the pursuit of truth, knowledge and the development of solutions that improve the human condition.

For Julie Hasse, associate director of marketing and communications, STEM Day also offers an exciting time for young teens to learn about and explore Wayne State.

“We will have students doing a ton of stuff,” she said. “These kids will be working on physics experiments, and eating liquid nitrogen ice cream. They will be in the planetarium, in the nutrition and food science labs, and in the nursing lab working with the simulation experiences. They will literally be everywhere on campus. It’s really an amazing event.”

While working in groups of 30 or fewer, students will have the chance to experience hands-on and interactive experiments. They will also have an opportunity to learn about different academic programs on campus as well as future career pathways.

Among the presenters at this year’s STEM Day will be Wayne State President M. Roy Wilson, a renowned ophthalmologist, who will interact with a group of lucky students and discuss his career pathway and field of expertise during a presentation titled, “Wonders of the Human Eye.” Wilson’s presentation will be held at the Damon J. Keith Center for Civil Rights in the law school.

Not only will students have the chance to attend the educational sessions with Wayne State staff, faculty and students, but they will also have the opportunity to tour campus and enjoy lunch in the dining halls and other campus locations. STEM Day, which runs from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., is free and open to teachers and their classes, as well as individual and home-schooled students.

“A lot of these students will have never stepped foot on Wayne State’s campus before,” Hasse said, “so that will be really cool for them to do.”

STEM Day is so popular that this year’s registration filled up in days. According to Hasse, the university has nearly 4,000 names on a waiting list.

“The demand for STEM careers continues to grow, and it is vital to educate and inspire kids when they are young so they envision themselves with what they can be when they grow up,” Hasse said. “I hope, like previous years, the students will walk away having experienced ah-ha moments about the potential future they can have.”