Ladislav to spread STEM word to pupils in Scotland

An Edinburgh College HND Electrical Engineering student has been awarded a new scholarship which will see him working alongside staff to inspire thousands of pupils to consider STEM careers.

Ladislav Horvath, second left, with Kerry Dempsey, Scott Fraser and Grzegorz Dwojak

Ladislav Horvath has been named the first ever David Doig Foundation STEM scholar following a successful interview.

He will now help deliver the College’s STEM Inspiration Experience programme to P7, S1 and S2 pupils in 2019.

The Edinburgh College Development Trust, the independent charity which supports students at the College, received funding from the David Doig Foundation to run the scholarship for the remainder of the academic year and for two years following.

Ladislav will work with College staff each week to deliver STEM Inspiration Experience Days at Midlothian Campus where pupils from Edinburgh and the Lothians take part in a range of activities covering each STEM branch:

– Science: exploring gravity and g-force. Students launch eggs attached to parachutes from height. This uses everyday objects to make the science tangible, accessible, interactive and fun.

– Technology: the Bloodhound Rocket Car Challenge. This is part of the national engagement project around the Bloodhound land-speed record attempt, giving pupils the opportunity to design, build and race their own rocket cars. They learn about physics, aerodynamics, design and the mechanisms of speed, using microchip sensor technology to record and analyse data.

– Engineering: pupils design and build a two-foot cardboard bridge, then test it using a heavy car model.

– Maths: a classroom-based problem-solving challenge centred on how the real Bloodhound reaches 1000mph.

Ladislav said: “I’m so pleased to have been awarded the STEM scholarship by the Edinburgh College Development Trust and I’m looking forward to getting started. There were not many opportunities to come on STEM days when I was in school, and I know I would have loved them, so it’s exciting to be involved in teaching young people about the importance of STEM subjects and careers.”

Gillian Doig, widow of David Doig – alumnus of Telford College – founder of the David Doig Foundation said: “Congratulations to Ladislav on becoming the first STEM scholar, we’re thrilled to be funding a programme that will benefit so many young people.

“Both engineering and education were vitally important to my late husband, so it is fitting that this scholarship will help a young engineer gain experience in working in classroom environments as well as help to inspire the next generation of STEM professionals from primary schools, high schools and academies across Edinburgh and the Lothians. Good luck to everyone involved.”

Ladislav’s scholarship will run until the end of the academic term, June 2019, with a new scholar being selected at the start of term 2019/20.