Racing the Sun

SARSEF Gains New Solar Go-Kart Program

After eight years of incubating Racing the Sun, Tech Parks Arizona is transitioning the program to ensure a greater impact

Tech Parks Arizona developed Racing the Sun, a hands-on STEM program for high school students, eight years ago to promote workforce development. After incubating the program and establishing good momentum, Racing the Sun is transitioning over to SARSEF-Southern Arizona Research, Science, and Engineering Foundation in order to grow the program and best serve the region. 

Racing the Sun is a perfect fit for SARSEF, an organization that strives to teach every young person in the region the importance and the reasoning behind science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) concepts. The foundation focuses on giving students the resources to become an effective employee by teaching them how to solve real-world problems and think critically. SARSEF centers their attention and effort on underrepresented student populations, like minorities and females as well as schools located in rural settings that tend to be underserved.

“Racing the Sun is more than just a solar-powered go-kart race. Students are engaged in several facets, not only learning technical concepts by applying knowledge but through building, testing and evaluating their prototype. Equally important, students learn directly from industry and university mentors. This unique connection helps students pioneer a path to several career options. We saw first-hand how engaged students are through the process and jumped at the opportunity to amplify the reach of the program,” stated, Liz Bowman, Deputy Director, SARSEF.

Carol Stewart, Associate Vice President of Tech Parks Arizona, added, “In today’s knowledge-based economy, this type of program is instrumental in preparing students for the workforce. SARSEF is the ideal organization to move Racing the Sun from incubation stage and scaling it up to magnify its ability to build Arizona’s future leaders.”