Pathways to STEM

My 4th grade son, Joseph,  was nominated by his classroom teacher to attend a National Youth Leadership Forum (NYLF): Pathways to STEM held at Loyola University in Chicago, IL this summer.  He will have the opportunity to explore a future career in STEM pathways: engineering, medicine, and detective work. This is a week long residential program that costs $2200.00. The deadline for this is April 1st.

Joseph has always said he wants to be a Scientists/Inventor when he grows up. He has had an"Inventions Notebook" since he was 4 years old.  He is a caring, gifted child who has a phenomenal  memory.

Joseph goes to a small private school that has a small class size of 17 children - only 5 of which are boys. While academics are a breeze for him, making friends is a constant struggle.  He has been bullied by other students and feels he doesn't fit in. He attended a gifted summer program 2 summers ago and told us (his parents) "I finally fit in!"

In addition to being bright, Joseph also has ADHD. If you know anything about this disability, it can be debilitating. My wife and I tell him that his ADHD is really a superpower. God has great plans for him and one day he will figure out how to use it to its fullest potential.

My wife just had our fourth child. Her maternity leave is unpaid. We moved into a larger house and still have not sold our previous home and are paying utilities on both properties. Right now our finances are extremely tight!

It is my hope that with your help, Joseph can attend this summer program.  Thus giving his confidence a boost and making new friends. I appreciate your willingness to help us to allow Joseph this opportunity!