Science

Class Time(s):

Option A: Tuesday, 4:00 - 4:40 PM PT

Option B: Friday, 4:00 - 4:40 PM PT

Grades: 1 to 8

Program Leaders: Mia Hsu, Pallavi Shankar, Rithika Sharma

Program Description: Welcome to the YAPA science classroom, dear people! Get ready to take an in-depth journey discovering the wonders of science. There will be lots of fun videos, notes, and experiments involved, so get out your PPE! (Or not, as it’s also an option to just watch the instructors do it. No pressure either way.) In 40 minutes a week, you will receive a hands-on education teaching you about basic biology, chemistry, physics, and other specialized fields of science. Experiments range from candy chromatography to making bouncy balls out of eggs. Bring lots of questions about STEM as well. We will make sure to find time to answer them all to the best of our ability!

Program Teachers: Betty Gao, Nabiya Chaudhry, Michelle Chen, Calista Adler, Anika Chandwani, Mayra Olazo, Kayu Narayanan, Janelle Cai, Nikhil Jagota, Srutika Sureshbabu, Princess Santillan, Ramya Palani, Stuti Shah, Jash-Piam Parekh, Julia Yee, Henry Kam, Alivia Zhang, Archita Srinivasa, Sheza Saiyed, Erin Wang, Erin Yang, Maggie Lee, Aishwarya Vadivelu, Tiana Zhou, Aditi Aswin, Ethan Liu, Tanvi Waghela, Vivan Waghela, Aditi Venkatraman, Shriya Shankar, Divya Ramaswamy, Clara Hinds, Sonya Surapaneni, Taylor Hu, Meghana Indukuri, Kate Jelfs, Elizabeth Wang, Camelia Siadat, Isaias Martinez, Medha Trisal, Joel Elangovan, Misha Bandi, Abby Melton, Jay Wang, Tejas Polu, Kristin Siri Pintu, Riya Ravuri, Krittika Iyengar, Shruti Nene, Anushka Saran, Rajasi Laddha, Harshitha Marepally, Sofia Vitale, Dia Ganesh Kumar, Veda Vudathala, Patrick Li, Swetha Upadrasta, Olivia Song, Anurag Paudel, Avinash Saripalli, Catherine Park, Avni Gandhi, Jayanti Singla, Samiya Akram, Polly Ren, Sophia Wu, Shreshtha Raj, Levina La, Charly Ng, Bridget Wong, Jocelyn Ramirez, Kaitlyn Nguyen, Reva Mahto, Katherine De Paz, Sarah Schroeder, Laura Espuna, Marianne Doss, Duaa Jamaluddin, Jessica Martino, Emily Katz

Teacher Bios

Betty Gao

Hey Everyone! My name is Betty, and I teach science! I enjoy learning about science, and am on my schools science olympiad varsity team! I hope you all have fun learning with me :)

Nabiya Chaudhry

Hi everyone! My name's Nabiya and I'm a senior at Somerset County Vo-tech. I've always been interested in science, and that's actually what I'm majoring in! Also, most of the courses I'm taking are science-based. :) In my free time, I like to paint/draw, but I also love watching TV. I also know how to do calligraphy!

Michelle Chen

Hello! My name is Michelle Chen, and I'm so excited to meet everyone! I'm extremely passionate about science and biology in particular; I'm a USABO semifinalist and I've scored a 5 on the AP Biology exam! I'm quite experienced in a lab setting, seeing as I worked in a lab at COSMOS in UC Davis last summer. I can't wait to work with you all, and please feel free to reach out anytime!

Calista Adler

Hello! My name is Calista Adler, and I’m a senior in high school. Having taken AP Chemistry, AP Biology, physics, and other science courses, I am excited to share all of my experiences! I love exploring new scientific concepts that challenge me to adopt new problem-solving mindsets and perspectives. I look forward to sharing my passion for science with you!

Anika Chandwani

Hi everyone! I’m Anika and I’m a rising junior at Fremont High School. Science has been a huge part of my life since elementary school. I have taken chemistry over the summer to move on to Advanced Placement Chemistry, I am currently enrolled for AP Biology, and have experiences in physical and life sciences. I have completed many laboratory experiments and am currently preparing for the AP Chemistry exam. I hope to take my experience in science and help your kids discover their passion for science at a young age!

Mayra Olazo

Hi! My name's Mayra and I'm a senior at Oceanside High School. I have taken Honors Chemistry, Honors Biology, AP Physics, and I am currently taking AP Environmental Science. I have always loved science and enjoyed every class I've taken. I look forward to working with all of you!!

Kayu Narayanan

Hi! My name is Kay and I'm a sophomore at Fremont High School. This past year, I have taken AP Chemistry and biology during my freshman year. I love science and am looking forward to working with you all!

Janelle Cai

Hi! I'm Janelle and I'm a rising sophomore at Monta Vista High School. This year I'm taking biology, and I enjoy learning new things about science. Outside of science, I'm also heavily involved in coding, robotics, competition math, and music. Looking forward to meeting all of you in the classroom!

Nikhil Jagota

Hi everyone! My name is Nikhil, and I'm a rising junior attending Fremont High School. The science classes I'm currently taking are Ap chemistry and physics honors. Over the years, I've taken many many science classes, inside and outside of school, and I'm extremely passionate about science. It seems amazing how we can know so many things about the world just by doing experiments and recording observations. I can't wait to teach you all all about science!

Srutika Sureshbabu

Hi everyone! My name is Shruti Suresh Babu and I am a rising junior at Cupertino High School. I have always been fascinated with science and have done quite a few experiments at home just for fun. in school, I have taken biology and chemistry honor courses, which allowed me to gain lots of insight into the field of science as well as gain experimental experience.

Princess Santillan

Hi everyone! My name is Princess Hannah Santillan, and I am an junior at Mark Keppel High School. I am currently taking AP Chemistry and have taken Chemistry and Biology Honors. As for my experience, I have had past experiences in Science Olympiad and my school’s Science Field Day. I am also heavily involved in the Science National Honors Society, which gave me an opportunity to reach out to younger students and have experience in showcasing experiments to them. Although my experiences might not be as great compared to others, I hope to be able to still provide a great learning experience to teach younger students a positive and knowledgeable outlook on the fundamentals of science.

Ramya Palani

Hi! My name is Ramya Palani and I am a rising junior at Cupertino High School! I am very passionate about science and have taken rigorous summer courses as well as biology and chemistry honors at school. I also enjoy performing science experiments at home and learning new things in science!

Stuti Shah

Heyy! My name is Stuti and I am a junior at Mission San Jose High School. I have always loved science ever since I was young and am extremely passionate about Biology and Chemistry. I have been taking Honors science classes since 7th grade and am planning to take AP Biology, Psychology, Chemistry and Anatomy and Physiology. I can't wait to teach you guys the miracles of the scientific method.

Jash-Piam Parekh

Hi my name is Jash-Piam Parekh, science has always been a favorite subject of mine, and I would love to be able to help out in this program. I have always loved editing using Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator. I have made designs, memes, and so much more.

Julia Yee

Hi! My name is Julia and I currently attend Cupertino High School as a rising junior. Right now I'm taking chemistry honors, which has really made me interested in science. I'm super excited to be a part of this amazing program because I love learning about science (especially chemistry) and I hope to inspire a love of learning in all of our students.

Henry Kam

Hi, my name is Henry Kam and I am currently a junior at Monta Vista. From a young age I have always been intrigued by the endless possibilities of science and I dream of becoming a Materials Science Engineer. From the tiny cells in our bodies to the frameworks of String Theory, I have always wanted to apply my knowledge from school to helping others. I am currently taking Physics, having taken Chemistry and Biology in my former high school years. I have also prepared for the F=ma and the USNCO. I look forward to meeting all of you sometime in the future as together we explore our full potential!

Alivia Zhang

Hello everyone! My name is Alivia Zhang, and I am a rising junior at American High School! I always had a big passion when it comes to science, especially when it comes to biology and chemistry. I am currently taking Chemistry Honors, and took Biology last year (we had no honors for biology, unfortunately) I am planning to take AP Chem and APE next year, and AP Bio in my senior year. I am in multiple clubs relating to science, such as Science Eco Club and Biology Club. I also participated in a research program called ASDRP last year during summer, and is doing the same this year. I hope to be able to inspire you all to have fun and share the same passion as I do for science!

Archita Srinivasa

Hi everyone! My name is Archita Srinivasa and I'm currently a sophomore at Lynbrook High School. Science has always been one of my favorite subjects and I'm truly passionate about STEM. Currently, I'm taking Chemistry Honors and I'm heavily involved in the Women In Stem club at my school. I'm looking forward to sharing my passion for science with you and I hope you gain lots of insight and experience into this field!

Sheza Saiyed

Hi! My name is Sheza Saiyed and I am a sophomore at American High School. Science is one of my favorite subjects as it teaches complex theories about life, and also because I get to do fun experiments! I have taken Biology, Physics, and am currently finishing Chemistry. I look forward to working with you and teaching you this fun subject!

Erin Wang

Hi guys! My name is Erin Wang, and I find science to be one of the most interesting subjects. So many processes in our everyday lives can be explained through science. Even the natural curiosity that causes us to question these processes can be explained by science. I love how there are endless things to learn when it comes to learning science.

Erin Yang

Hey! My name's Erin Yang and I'm a rising junior at Mission San Jose HS. I've done physics and honors biology at school, and I really like bio/ecology! I've also done this really cool research program called ASDRP where you do college-level research in a team over the summer. Last year I did my research report on the conservation and management of Mexican Free-Tail bats' habitats. It was super exciting, I built some bat boxes (which are like birdhouses for bats) and I learned a lot about research. All in all, I truly enjoy researching, specifically in nature and am super excited to be teaching!

Maggie Lee

Heyo! My name is Maggie Lee and I am a rising junior at Moreau Catholic High School. In school, I have taken Honors Biology and am currently in Honors Chemistry. In middle school, I was a part of Science Olympiad, however my current school doesn't have a team. Instead, I go back to old middle school to coach their Science Olympiad team. Science is one of my favorite subjects, but we often don't realize how much more about science there is to learn beyond the usual school curriculum. I'm excited to have the opportunity to share my passion with all of you through this program!

Aishwarya Vadivelu

Hi everyone! My name is Aishwarya Vadivelu, and I am a rising junior at Cupertino High School. I have always been passionate about STEM and have actively participated in several STEM related clubs at school. I am currently taking Chemistry Honors, where I've had the opportunity to perform various experiments with laboratory equipment. I am excited to work with you and help improve your science skills!

Tiana Zhou

Hello everyone! My name is Tiana Zhou and I am a sophomore at Mission San Jose High School. I have taken Honors science courses for many years, and last year I helped tutor elementary school students for Science Olympiad. This year, I am taking Honors Chemistry in school, and I am self studying AP Biology. Looking forward to seeing you in class!

Aditi Aswin

Hey guys! My name is Aditi Aswin, and I'm a freshman at Cupertino High School. Science has always been my favorite subject at school because there's so much you can learn by exploring and doing hands-on activities rather than just reading and taking notes from textbook. I'm really excited to help you guys along your scientific journey and hope that by the end of our class, you will have grown to appreciate science he way I have!