Claire Kunkle: Be A Scientist Volunteer, Inspired & Inspiring
June 2016
Meet 2nd year Mechanical Engineering Ph.D. student Claire Kunkle, a volunteer in CRS’s Be a Scientist program. We’re excited to share Claire’s story of her early inspirations in STEM, and her passion to give back to the next generation.
Inspiration is the process of being mentally stimulated to do or feel something. It’s also something that Claire Kunkle has provided for many young scientists. Behind Claire’s science inspiration, is a fantastic story of getting introduced to STEM.
Claire grew up in Olympia, Washington, and her excitement for STEM was first sparked by her Calculus teacher at Olympia High School, Jan Stuckey. As a woman who had formerly worked as an engineer, Jan inspired Claire with her story and experiences. It was important to Claire that she could see someone similar to her who had been successful in the world of engineering.
Claire was later inspired by neurobiotics pioneer Yoky Matsuoka, whom she heard speak at a Women in Science and Engineering conference. Yoky shared about how the prosthetics she was developing could help people live better lives. The talk encouraged Claire to see that engineering helps people and that women should be involved with it. Yoky’s story of human connection through engineering encouraged Claire to head to Santa Clara University and study Mechanical Engineering.
One of Claire’s many wonderful characteristics is her heart for outreach. As a student at Santa Clara University, she served as Outreach Coordinator for the Society of Women Engineers. She worked on a program called One Step Ahead that coordinated Saturday workshops to teach students about engineering at Santa Clara, Wilcox, and Wilson high schools. One of her favorite experiences in One Step Ahead was helping her students engineer a prosthetic hand, which showed the direct connection to helping people.
Currently, Claire is in her 2nd year of her Mechanical Engineering Ph.D. program at UC Berkeley studying heat transfer. As she would explain her field of study to a 7th grader, Claire says that she makes sure that electronics don’t get too hot. She believes that working with younger students has helped her ability to communicate her research with a general audience.
At Berkeley, Claire is was part of the inaugural CRS “Be A Scientist” program where scientists mentors guide 7th grade students through science experiments. The program, now in its 4th semester, allows students to test their own scientific questions and run trials and collect data over the span of six weeks. Claire has helped the “Be A Scientist” program grow by recruiting her colleagues to be mentors as well. One of the reasons that Claire loves working with middle school students are the “a-ha” moments when students connect the science they are doing to their real lives.
This year, Claire has also been involved in other projects inspiring young scientists. She has judged science fairs, brought hands-on science to family STEM nights, and is editing a text book for middle school scientists through the Lawrence Hall of Science. These continued efforts to make a difference in the lives of the next generation of STEM professionals are so important for raising the next generation of thinkers, makers, problem solvers, and leaders!
Scientists and engineers often need to speak in front of audiences, large and small. Claire credits her love of musical theater, tap dancing, and singing at weddings with helping her develop the ability to easily get up in front of any group of people with confidence. Her other outside-the-lab interests include cooking, baking, and trying new foods. She especially enjoys California cuisine pioneer and Berkeley classic, Chez Panisse. Claire is an amazing role model for young students. Wherever you are in your STEM journey, we hope that Claire’s story has encouraged you as much as she has encouraged us at CRS.