MENTORSHIP

The Adirondack Sky Center is partnering with Terra Fairs to offer free mentorship to high school students competing in their annual STEM fair at Paul Smith’s. 

Interested? Please fill out this form, which can also be found on our website! For the full mentorship course, respond before December 6th. However, late registration for the fair is possible up until March 1st. 

About the Terra Northeast Regional STEM Fair:

This is an internationally recognized ISEF-affiliated science and engineering fair. It provides middle and high school students the opportunity to: 

• Conduct authentic scientific research or engineering projects

• Share their findings with the community

• Compete for medals, certificates, and advancement to larger fairs, including Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair, Genius Olympiad, and New York State Science Congress!

• And good news: You can present the same project at the Champlain Valley Regional Science Fair in April!

The next Terra Northeast Regional STEM Fair takes place on March 28, 2026 at Paul Smith’s College. Learn more at terrafairs.org/tnrsf.html. 

Adirondack Sky Center Mentorship: 

This mentorship will be led by our Associate Director of Astronomy Outreach, Simon Thill. Simon has professionally conducted and presented research on a variety of topics. Although he specializes in astronomy, he is happy to support any STEM project, so bring your own ideas or

find one at our workshops!

The Sky Center has many resources they are happy to let students use for their projects. These include four high-powered telescopes as well as expertise in coding and robotics. 

Eligibility:

Mentorship is available to any high school students (grades 9-12 or ages 14-18) from Saranac Lake, Lake Placid, Tupper Lake, Long Lake, and homeschooled students in those districts. 

We are offering this mentorship completely free of charge. Students are only responsible for their transportation to and from the Sky Center. The fair has a $25 registration fee, but fee waivers are available if needed. 

Timeline:

All in-person sessions will be held at the Adirondack Sky Center, 68 Park Street, Tupper Lake, NY.

Attendance at all sessions is highly encouraged but not required for mentorship.

December - We will host three workshops on choosing a topic and designing your experiment. These will take place on December 6, 13, and 20th from 2 - 3 PM. 

January & February - We will offer one on one guidance as needed as students complete their projects in teams of one to three. This will be a combination of virtual and in-person mentorship, as needed. 

February & March - Three workshops to help students create their poster and practice presenting. These will take place on February 21, February 28, and March 7th, from 2 - 3 PM. 

March 14: Non-competitive exhibition hosted by the Adirondack Sky Center

March 28: Official Terra Northeast Regional STEM Fair at Paul Smith’s College

Please fill out this form if you are interested! - https://forms.gle/xMBU12xhczWCpqTWA 

Safety Protocols:

• At least two adults with recent background checks will be present at all times. 

• Any virtual mentorship or communication is saved, shared with a parent or guardian, and locked so it can’t be modified. 

Questions?

Please reach out to Simon Thill at simont@adirondackskycenter.org.