CURIE: PHASOR California’s Future Science Leaders (CURIE): Physics & Astronomy For Everyone (PHASOR)

On May 19, 2022, Professors Christopher Gutiérrez and Smadar Naoz organized the first of many outreach events aimed at broadening participation in the sciences by students from historically underrepresented groups. Named California’s fUtuRe scIence lEaders (CURIE) — after trailblazing physics Nobel Prize laureate Marie Curie — they hosted 25 freshmen from Huntington Park High School, a Title 1 school in Southeast LA and Professor Gutierrez’s alma mater. During their visit, the high schoolers met faculty and student researchers from a wide variety of backgrounds who described overcoming challenges in the pursuit of their scientific careers. They additionally enjoyed a campus tour and a planetarium show, and they participated in fun and exciting physics demonstrations. As a send-off, students learned about exciting black hole research from UCLA’s own physics Nobel Prize laureate, Professor Andrea Ghez.