Programming and science can be intimidating if you haven’t been exposed to it.

That’s why alumnus Steve Nunn, adjunct faculty in physics, astronomy and material sciences, is working to raise awareness by teaching Matlab, a well-known programming language. By teaching students this, they can learn a new skill and see infinitely better job opportunities.

Nunn says there are three goals of the class:

• Introduce and teach students Matlab, which is the standard language for scientific development.
• Teach students about speech and signal processing. Its implications deal with many technologies like medical systems and wireless communication.
• Show students opportunities in the STEM fields.

“My favorite part of the class is when students reach the point of understanding the concepts of programming and can see the huge possibilities in programming and applications in a career,” Nunn, a 1978 graduate of engineering physics, said.

The program, which is in its second year, has five high school students participating through GO CAPS and two through homeschool.

“In addition to learning the MatLab language and all of the associated skills such as logic, critical thinking and creativity, the students are able to take that knowledge and apply it to problem solving in the many projects that they work on throughout the year,” Barbie Kolb, from GO CAPS, said.