Kerstin Reese appointed as “MINT Ambassador”

The newly appointed "MINT-Ambassador" Kerstin Reese. Photo: Private

Kerstin Reese, scientific staff member at Saarland University’s computer science student lab, was named a STEM ambassador by the “MINT Zukunft schaffen!” initiative for her years of commitment in the field of computer science. The appointment took place in November 2023 as part of the award ceremony for STEM-friendly schools at the Saarland Ministry of Education and Culture.

Back in 2016, computer scientist Kerstin Reese founded the “CoderDojo Saar”. The aim of the internationally active volunteer initiative of the “CoderDojos” is to provide as many children and young people as possible with accessible and free opportunities to learn programming. The 50th meeting of Coderdojo Saar will take place in January 2024.

Kerstin Reese joined Saarland University in 2019 and is responsible for the “Infolab Saar” computer science laboratory for school students. The computer science student laboratory is part of Saarland University’s computer science didactics and offers a variety of workshops and training opportunities for pupils and teachers that are tailored to the respective target groups: Programming courses in various programming languages as well as courses on robot and drone programming are offered for pupils of all ages. The program also includes a hardware set, in which a functional computer can be dismantled into its individual parts and reassembled, and an introduction to 3D printing. In addition, more complex topics such as machine learning, artificial intelligence and ethical issues in computer science can be covered at the InfoLab. Laptops, minicomputers, robots and drones are available in classroom sets and can be used both directly on site in the lab and during school visits by the InfoLab team. Kerstin Reese also worked to ensure that the InfoLab remained open during the coronavirus pandemic and, together with her colleagues, moved many of the program elements to a digital format. Around 1000 pupils took part in the 60 online courses that followed.

Through the involvement of the Student Lab in the “Qualifizierungsmaßnahme Informatik in der Sekundarstufe 1”, the team also makes an important contribution to teacher training, particularly in the context of the introduction of computer science as a compulsory subject at Saarland schools.

With the award as a MINT ambassador, Kerstin Reese’s work is now being recognized accordingly and she can join the Germany-wide network of STEM ambassadors to further support computer science in Saarland.

Background Saarland Informatics Campus:
900 scientists (including 400 PhD students) and approx. 2500 students from more than 80 nations make the Saarland Informatics Campus (SIC) one of the leading locations for computer science in Germany and Europe. Four world-renowned research institutes, namely the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI), the Max Planck Institute for Informatics, the Max Planck Institute for Software Systems,  and the Center for Bioinformatics along with  Saarland University and its three departments and 24 degree programs, together  cover the entire spectrum of computer science.

Editor:
Philipp Zapf-Schramm
Saarland Informatics Campus
Phone: +49 681 302-70741
E-Mail: pzapf@cs.uni-saarland.de