For Release:          Immediate – March 16, 2017

Contact:                 Steve Ference, Associate Vice President For Marketing and Communications­

(518) 956-7319 | sference@sunypoly.edu

SUNY Poly ‘Pi Patrol’ Travels to Local School to Share Pi Day Activities

Pi Patrol vehicle brings Pi-themed math and science program, along with pizza ‘pi,’ to students at Lansingburgh High School

Albany, NY – As part of a Pi Day celebration, SUNY Polytechnic Institute (known one day a year as SUNY ‘Pi’) will dispatch its Pi Patrol vehicle today, enabling SUNY Pi faculty and staff volunteers to visit 50 high school students in the Capital Region and provide them with a special Pi-themed math and science educational program. Upon completion of the SUNY Pi-led hands-on activities, the event will be topped off with a pizza “pi” party for students who participate in the program.

“SUNY Poly’s Pi Day program offers an engaging avenue for students to become interested in the mathematical and scientific skills and concepts that can lead to the kinds of fulfilling educational and career opportunities that SUNY Poly is proudly committed to,” said SUNY Pi Interim President Dr. Bahgat Sammakia. “As our Pi Patrol reaches students in the Capital Region, we are proud to show these students that a wide variety of exciting STEM-focused opportunities are available to them.”

As part of SUNY Pi’s second annual celebration, the Pi Patrol will visit Lansingburgh High School in Troy at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, March 16. Students will learn that the mathematical constant Pi, commonly approximated as 3.14159, is the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter and is represented by the Greek symbol π. They will also better understand the many uses for Pi and its ability to help estimate measurements at the nano scale. For example, students will measure graphite arcs to learn about electrical resistance and conduct arc measurements with pi; explore the electrical conductivity of jello using materials that can control resistance and be measured using pi; and create origami designs based on the circle.

“We are thrilled to once again take to the road in our SUNY Pi Patrol vehicle to support an appreciation for the STEM sciences through this immersive educational outreach program,” said SUNY PI Public Education and Outreach Coordinator Elaine Garrett. “The Pi Patrol introduces students to the ways in which the knowledge they’re gaining in the classroom can be applied to ‘real world’ problems, and we hope that this will provide a glimpse into the exciting high-tech opportunities that students can one day choose to pursue.”

At the conclusion of the educational component of the program, the SUNY Pi student and staff volunteers will provide pizza to the high school students. Pi Day is celebrated around the world on March 14 because the date (3/14) reflects the ratio: 3.14. It is also the birthdate of Albert Einstein, who was born March 14, 1879; this year’s SUNY Pi-led Pi Day activities had to be rescheduled as a result of severe weather in the region on Pi Day.

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SUNY Polytechnic Institute. SUNY Polytechnic Institute (SUNY Poly) is New York’s globally recognized, high-tech educational ecosystem, formed from the merger of the SUNY College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering and SUNY Institute of Technology. SUNY Poly offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in the emerging disciplines of nanoscience and nanoengineering, as well as cutting-edge nanobioscience and nanoeconomics programs at its Albany location and undergraduate and graduate degrees in technology, including engineering, cybersecurity, computer science, and the engineering technologies; professional studies, including business, communication, and nursing; and arts and sciences, including natural sciences, mathematics, humanities, and social sciences at its Utica/Rome location. Thriving athletic, recreational, and cultural programs, events, and activities complement the campus experience. As the world’s most advanced, university-driven research enterprise, SUNY Poly boasts billions of dollars in high-tech investments and over 300 corporate partners. For information visit www.sunycnse.com and www.sunypoly.edu.