Thermo Fisher Scientific is committed to inspiring a new generation of innovators that will allow us to continue to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. We believe that any opportunity to work with students is an opportunity to ignite that spark in the next great scientists, engineers, thinkers and leaders. Through educational programming and partnerships, we provide opportunities for our colleagues to engage with the communities
in which they live and work and share their knowledge and experience.
Our signature STEM education programs connect students and colleagues through hands-on and team-based activities that highlight our technologies, make connections to careers in STEM and demonstrate how our company impacts the world.
Learn more about how we support STEM education through volunteerism, early talent and workforce development, in-kind support and through our STEM scholarship program.
Supporting STEM Education at home
We realize that in these unprecedented times educators are being asked to provide curriculum to students like never before – virtually. We have customized several of our Innovation Nation activities to allow them to be conducted in the home environment. In addition to activity instructions, our worksheets also include a look at the science behind the activity, discussion questions, and connections to careers. To request a live demonstration of one of the activities below or career discussion for your students by one of our scientists, contact responsibility@thermofisher.com.
- Strawberry DNA Extraction: worksheet, instructional video
- UpCycle a Garden: worksheet
- Chemistry of Slime: worksheet, instructional video
- Paper Chromatography: worksheet, instructional video
- Bubbling Lava: worksheet, instructional video
2019 STEM impact
8,500+
Educators
830+
STEM events
178K+
Participating students
24
Participating countries
Our signature STEM Programs have been developed to leverage the talent of our colleagues and company resources. Our three programs are available to our colleagues to implement in their local communities through individual efforts or through team events planned through our Community Action Councils and Employee Resource Groups.
Program Overview
The Innovation Nation program provides our colleagues presentations, lab materials and instructions to guide students through a variety of different hands-on and digital activities exploring concepts in life science, physics, chemistry and computer science. Through this program students are exposed to our technologies as well as the different types of careers found within our industry.
2019 highlights
11
Lesson topics
348
Hands-on workshops
83,000
Participating students
15
Participating countries
Program overview
The STEM Design Challenge provides our colleagues a framework for hosting an engineering design competition at a local school or non-profit organization. Through the competition students work in teams to design solutions to a specific challenge utilizing K’Nex™. Challenges range from creating a nano-robot to treat cancer to designing a machine that can remove trash from the ocean. Throughout the Challenge students learn the importance of teamwork and good communication while presenting their designs to a panel of Thermo Fisher colleagues who serve as judges during the final competition.
2019 highlights
85+
Winning teams
16,000+
Participating students
9
Participating countries
Program overview
At Thermo Fisher Scientific we recognize the importance of personal protective equipment (PPE) in the science classroom. Our STEM-credible Kit program provides our colleagues an opportunity to utilize our Practical Process Improvement (PPI) Business System principles to optimize the packing of safety kits during this meaningful teambuilding activity. The PPE packed into the kits include reusable lab aprons, chemical splash safety goggles and gloves, as well as lab notebooks. The kits are then donated to local schools and nonprofit organizations
2019 highlights
35,600
Safety kits donated
56
Impacted science classes
4
Participating countries
We look for non-profit partners that align with our strategy of inspiring a new generation of innovators through STEM education involvement and help extend our reach. Learn more about how we partner with STEM education nonprofits and universities through our early talent development programs and through our giving.
Boys and Girls Club of America
Our approach to promoting STEM education leverages our colleagues and exposes primary and secondary learners to our technologies and careers. In 2016, we formed a national partnership with the Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) to support the organization in expanding its STEM curriculum to thousands of youth across the country. As part of our partnership, we provide funding to support the distribution of DIY STEM learning kits that equip clubs in select areas with hands-on activities covering the topics of engineering and the biological, chemical and physical sciences in order to help connect BGCA youth to the science themes they encounter regularly. We also provide in-kind support through donation of our STEM-credible safety kits to ensure the young learners can safely experiment and explore. Our partnership with nonprofit organizations that promote STEM enable us to not only support successful programs, but also to provide employees with exciting volunteer opportunities.
China Youth Development Foundation
Our award-winning partnership with the China Youth Development Foundation (CYDF) inspires interest in scientific careers and cultivates China’s future innovative talents by bringing hands-on lab activities to school children across the country. Through these activity kits sponsored by Thermo Fisher Scientific, students learn about the science behind the ripening of bananas, the properties of rainwater, the spoiling of cooked rice and more.
Our partnership with nonprofit organizations that promote STEM enable us to not only support successful programs, but also to provide employees with additional volunteer opportunities. Since its launch in 2015, thousands of employees have volunteered to strengthen our partnership with CYDF by packing the kits, visiting the schools to conduct science experiments and providing home delivery of the kits to students in rural areas of China.
Special recognition
In 2018, Thermo Fisher was recognized with the 2018 Project Hope Contribution Award and as Best Partner of Project Hope by the China Youth Development Foundation. Last year, 4,000 kits were distributed across 11 Chinese regions. Since its establishment, the partnership has resulted in the distribution of more than 10,000 kits, giving more than 50,000 students a chance to cultivate their scientific curiosity.
Featured videos
Working Together
to Make a Difference
Inspiring Young Scientists
to Change the World
CSR STEM Design Challenge
Boston school receives STEMcredible kits
Students learn how to identify lost soldiers of the Korean War
Global STEM day
Encouraging and inspiring students in the primary and secondary grade levels to engage in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) activities is a core component of our community engagement strategy. In November 2018, we kicked off a month of STEM education outreach activities as part of Thermo Fisher’s inaugural Global STEM Day campaign (a nod to National STEM Day in the U.S. on November 8). The goal of the campaign was to encourage our global colleagues to reach out to their local communities and excite kids about STEM through one of our outreach programs.
2019 highlights
 |  |  | |
75+STEM events | 2,300+Participating colleagues | 6,400+Volunteer hours |
Our largest effort as part of STEM Day was made in China, where more than 1,000 colleagues worked together to deploy hands-on science activities to students across eight schools throughout China.
Science festival participation
As part of our strategy to inspire elementary and secondary learners in STEM subjects, Thermo Fisher supports multiple science and engineering festivals in cities where we have a large employee base including Boston, Mass., San Francisco, Calif., San Diego, Calif. and Washington D.C. These events are free to the public through the support of corporate sponsorships and feature hundreds of hands-on STEM education activities appropriate for the entire family. At the Thermo Fisher booth our colleagues provide festival attendees an opportunity to participate in hands-on science activities that are part of our Innovation Nation program.
Austin, Texas: Our site in Austin teamed up with the Girlstart organization to hold three workshops called “Watch Me DNA-Nay!” During those sessions, leaders used DNA sequence bracelets and candy to teach the kids all about DNA, including how to extract DNA from their own saliva, the four bases of DNA and basic DNA base pairing rules.
Buenos Aires, Argentina: Colleagues from different divisions and backgrounds came together on Children’s Celebration Day to lead STEM activities, such as extracting DNA from a strawberry, and making "slime" and lava lamps, for over two dozen children.
Brno, Czech Republic: Colleagues at our site in Brno introduced 47 children ages 6-12 years old to electron microscopes through an interactive workshop where students visited the training center on site and were challenged to identify images such as a nettle leaf at 3,000X magnification viewed through the microscope.
Lagunilla, Costa Rica: Thermo Fisher colleagues visited Escuela Finca Guarari, a primary school serving 1,400 students ranging from 6 to 12 years old, to teach the students about the different chemical compounds that go into making "slime".
High Point, N.C.: Our site in High Point hosted an open house for colleagues and their families to learn more about what the site does every day and how colleagues make an impact on our customers and community. In addition to site tours, our colleagues hosted several fun STEM activities for the kids attending the open house.
Singapore: Over 50 students paired up with colleagues at our site in Singapore to conduct six different science experiments as part of Global STEM Day. Activities offered included paper chromatography, strawberry DNA extraction, water analysis and pH testing, centrifugation and making DNA necklaces.
Tokyo, Japan: Middle school students worked alongside our colleagues to sequence samples of different meat proteins, and amplified the DNA using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). During their visit, they also observed induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS) through a microscope and used laboratory techniques to generate heart cells (cardiomyocytes) from them.
Our signature STEM Programs have been developed to leverage the talent of our colleagues and company resources. Our three programs are available to our colleagues to implement in their local communities through individual efforts or through team events planned through our Community Action Councils and Employee Resource Groups.
Program Overview
The Innovation Nation program provides our colleagues presentations, lab materials and instructions to guide students through a variety of different hands-on and digital activities exploring concepts in life science, physics, chemistry and computer science. Through this program students are exposed to our technologies as well as the different types of careers found within our industry.
2019 highlights
11
Lesson topics
348
Hands-on workshops
83,000
Participating students
15
Participating countries
Program overview
The STEM Design Challenge provides our colleagues a framework for hosting an engineering design competition at a local school or non-profit organization. Through the competition students work in teams to design solutions to a specific challenge utilizing K’Nex™. Challenges range from creating a nano-robot to treat cancer to designing a machine that can remove trash from the ocean. Throughout the Challenge students learn the importance of teamwork and good communication while presenting their designs to a panel of Thermo Fisher colleagues who serve as judges during the final competition.
2019 highlights
85+
Winning teams
16,000+
Participating students
9
Participating countries
Program overview
At Thermo Fisher Scientific we recognize the importance of personal protective equipment (PPE) in the science classroom. Our STEM-credible Kit program provides our colleagues an opportunity to utilize our Practical Process Improvement (PPI) Business System principles to optimize the packing of safety kits during this meaningful teambuilding activity. The PPE packed into the kits include reusable lab aprons, chemical splash safety goggles and gloves, as well as lab notebooks. The kits are then donated to local schools and nonprofit organizations
2019 highlights
35,600
Safety kits donated
56
Impacted science classes
4
Participating countries
We look for non-profit partners that align with our strategy of inspiring a new generation of innovators through STEM education involvement and help extend our reach. Learn more about how we partner with STEM education nonprofits and universities through our early talent development programs and through our giving.
Boys and Girls Club of America
Our approach to promoting STEM education leverages our colleagues and exposes primary and secondary learners to our technologies and careers. In 2016, we formed a national partnership with the Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) to support the organization in expanding its STEM curriculum to thousands of youth across the country. As part of our partnership, we provide funding to support the distribution of DIY STEM learning kits that equip clubs in select areas with hands-on activities covering the topics of engineering and the biological, chemical and physical sciences in order to help connect BGCA youth to the science themes they encounter regularly. We also provide in-kind support through donation of our STEM-credible safety kits to ensure the young learners can safely experiment and explore. Our partnership with nonprofit organizations that promote STEM enable us to not only support successful programs, but also to provide employees with exciting volunteer opportunities.
China Youth Development Foundation
Our award-winning partnership with the China Youth Development Foundation (CYDF) inspires interest in scientific careers and cultivates China’s future innovative talents by bringing hands-on lab activities to school children across the country. Through these activity kits sponsored by Thermo Fisher Scientific, students learn about the science behind the ripening of bananas, the properties of rainwater, the spoiling of cooked rice and more.
Our partnership with nonprofit organizations that promote STEM enable us to not only support successful programs, but also to provide employees with additional volunteer opportunities. Since its launch in 2015, thousands of employees have volunteered to strengthen our partnership with CYDF by packing the kits, visiting the schools to conduct science experiments and providing home delivery of the kits to students in rural areas of China.
Special recognition
In 2018, Thermo Fisher was recognized with the 2018 Project Hope Contribution Award and as Best Partner of Project Hope by the China Youth Development Foundation. Last year, 4,000 kits were distributed across 11 Chinese regions. Since its establishment, the partnership has resulted in the distribution of more than 10,000 kits, giving more than 50,000 students a chance to cultivate their scientific curiosity.
Featured videos
Working Together
to Make a Difference
Inspiring Young Scientists
to Change the World
CSR STEM Design Challenge
Boston school receives STEMcredible kits
Students learn how to identify lost soldiers of the Korean War
Global STEM day
Encouraging and inspiring students in the primary and secondary grade levels to engage in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) activities is a core component of our community engagement strategy. In November 2018, we kicked off a month of STEM education outreach activities as part of Thermo Fisher’s inaugural Global STEM Day campaign (a nod to National STEM Day in the U.S. on November 8). The goal of the campaign was to encourage our global colleagues to reach out to their local communities and excite kids about STEM through one of our outreach programs.
2019 highlights
| | | |
75+STEM events | 2,300+Participating colleagues | 6,400+Volunteer hours |
Our largest effort as part of STEM Day was made in China, where more than 1,000 colleagues worked together to deploy hands-on science activities to students across eight schools throughout China.
Science festival participation
As part of our strategy to inspire elementary and secondary learners in STEM subjects, Thermo Fisher supports multiple science and engineering festivals in cities where we have a large employee base including Boston, Mass., San Francisco, Calif., San Diego, Calif. and Washington D.C. These events are free to the public through the support of corporate sponsorships and feature hundreds of hands-on STEM education activities appropriate for the entire family. At the Thermo Fisher booth our colleagues provide festival attendees an opportunity to participate in hands-on science activities that are part of our Innovation Nation program.
Austin, Texas: Our site in Austin teamed up with the Girlstart organization to hold three workshops called “Watch Me DNA-Nay!” During those sessions, leaders used DNA sequence bracelets and candy to teach the kids all about DNA, including how to extract DNA from their own saliva, the four bases of DNA and basic DNA base pairing rules.
Buenos Aires, Argentina: Colleagues from different divisions and backgrounds came together on Children’s Celebration Day to lead STEM activities, such as extracting DNA from a strawberry, and making "slime" and lava lamps, for over two dozen children.
Brno, Czech Republic: Colleagues at our site in Brno introduced 47 children ages 6-12 years old to electron microscopes through an interactive workshop where students visited the training center on site and were challenged to identify images such as a nettle leaf at 3,000X magnification viewed through the microscope.
Lagunilla, Costa Rica: Thermo Fisher colleagues visited Escuela Finca Guarari, a primary school serving 1,400 students ranging from 6 to 12 years old, to teach the students about the different chemical compounds that go into making "slime".
High Point, N.C.: Our site in High Point hosted an open house for colleagues and their families to learn more about what the site does every day and how colleagues make an impact on our customers and community. In addition to site tours, our colleagues hosted several fun STEM activities for the kids attending the open house.
Singapore: Over 50 students paired up with colleagues at our site in Singapore to conduct six different science experiments as part of Global STEM Day. Activities offered included paper chromatography, strawberry DNA extraction, water analysis and pH testing, centrifugation and making DNA necklaces.
Tokyo, Japan: Middle school students worked alongside our colleagues to sequence samples of different meat proteins, and amplified the DNA using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). During their visit, they also observed induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS) through a microscope and used laboratory techniques to generate heart cells (cardiomyocytes) from them.