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.