Gauri finds hope in the STEM lab

The St. Jude School Program’s STEM lab fills Family Commons with the joyful sound of patients, families, and staff learning science together. STEM stands for science, technology, engineering, and math. The lab helps students get excited about science, using fun, hands-on projects to explore the world around them with greater understanding. 

For St. Jude patient Gauri Patel, the STEM lab is where she comes fully alive with a deep love for learning science. 

STEM lab changes a life

Sixteen-year-old Gauri came to St. Jude from India for treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Her mom, Seema, says Gauri was withdrawn before discovering the STEM lab. As Gauri coped with her medical struggles, she stopped interacting and speaking. She needed something to restore her sense of hope and belonging. 

Today, Gauri still faces medical challenges that impact her speech and her daily life. But they do not stop her from doing one of the things she loves the most: studying science.

When asked if she likes science, Gauri flashes a smile that lights up the room. The STEM lab is a place where she can explore the world with a sense of wonder and awe. Here, she can learn science at her own pace, while surrounded by friends. 

Patients and staff share the joy of learning

In the STEM lab, Gauri met Randy Thompson, or “Mr. Randy,” who leads patients and families in creative projects that teach basic scientific principles. 

The science activities draw in other patients, siblings, and parents, who might not be interested in school at first. Thompson is joined by 122 St. Jude employees who volunteer for time slots in the lab. The volunteers—many of them scientists in St. Jude labs—help patients and families complete projects and learn more about science. 

Thompson has a special place in his heart for Gauri and how she has matured. 

“She is smart and intuitive,” he says. “To see her grow over time and her accomplishments in every aspect of her life has been meaningful to me, the volunteers, and the staff.” 

Thompson says the school and lab provide a sense of normalcy for kids when their life is turned upside down. Patients get a chance to interact and discover new things together. They also have the comfort of knowing that St. Jude is there to support many parts of their journey. Patients also get to learn what staff members do for work and how they help the St. Jude mission.

A typical day in the STEM lab

In one lab session, Thompson teaches Gauri how to make a circuit. She builds a “vibrobot,” a small creature of yarn and circuit, which skitters about like a bug. Thompson asks Gauri questions about insects to test her knowledge. 

Meanwhile, the brother of another patient tests a sailboat he made with volunteer Makenly Smith. 

“It’s easy to lose sight of the mission when you come to work every day and are at your desk or the bench,” says Smith, who is a St. Jude researcher. “I was able to go in and be refreshed in my purpose and why I come to work every day.” 

Smith encourages other staff to get involved with STEM lab. She says it offers a chance for everyone to find their “inner kid.” Who doesn’t like being in a place where you can build your own volcano or make elephant toothpaste?

Hands-on events in the lab are more than just fun projects. They are based on science standards used in schools nationwide. Projects cover topics like biology, chemistry, and physics. Patients, families, and staff discover new things, solve problems as a team, overcome challenges, and share their ideas with confidence. These are skills that can help kids in future science careers and remind staff of St. Jude values. 

Since the lab is in a hospital, it can impact patients and families who know the struggle of coping with an illness. This even includes “STEM to go” kits that parents can do with their children, either in hospital housing or mailed to their homes. 

Because of their personal experience, some kids aspire to science-related careers like medicine or engineering. 

The STEM lab inspires a dream

Gauri’s choice to come to the STEM lab helped turn the corner in her journey. She began speaking more and interacting with others in the lab. Her activities in the lab gave her hope and something to share with others. 

When asked about her favorite subjects, Gauri confidently says, “math and science,” and adds that her favorite subject is biology. 

Gauri says she would like to become a doctor someday, perhaps at St. Jude. She can recite the types of blood cells from memory and knows all about blood typing, things she learned from STEM lab sessions. 

She says she is grateful for every moment that she spent in the lab and for every person she met there. She often says, “I love them.” 

“This is holy ground,” says Seema, reflecting on her daughter’s experience at St. Jude. For Gauri, the chance to learn and discover in the St. Jude STEM lab has renewed her hope, and helped shape her into a beautiful, intelligent young woman.