Editing Summer Science Program (section)

==History==
The program was established in 1959 at [[The Thacher School]] in [[Ojai, California]], as a response to the launch of [[Sputnik 1]] and the start of the [[Space Race]]. The Headmaster at Thacher was concerned that the country's top high school students were not being adequately informed and inspired about careers in the physical sciences. He decided to create an intense summer program to challenge such students and give them a taste of "doing real science," with assistance from Caltech, [[UCLA]], [[Claremont Colleges]], and [[Stanford]]. Financial support came from [[Hughes Aircraft]].<ref name=SkyTel /><ref name=FirstSSP />

The first SSP was led by Dr. Paul Routly and Dr. Foster Strong. In 1960, Dr. [[George O. Abell|George Abell]] joined the program for his first of more than 20 summers at SSP.<ref name=SkyTel />

The first year, SSP had 26 students. The students used data from the "''Russian ephemeris''" (''Ephemyeredi Mahlikh Planyet'') to find asteroids to photograph, measured the positions, and submitted the data to the [[Minor Planet Center]] at the [[Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics|Center for Astrophysics {{!}} Harvard & Smithsonian]]. The students were excited to find that when they calculated the orbit of [[9 Metis]], their data resulted in a significant correction to the Russian ephemeris.<ref name=FirstSSP>{{cite news
 |newspaper   = [[Ventura County Star|Star-Free Press]]
 |title       = Students Spot 350,000-Mile Russ Error
 |url         = http://www.summerscience.org/program/russerror.php
 |date        = 1959
 |access-date  = February 9, 2012
 |url-status     = dead
 |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20120204081233/http://www.summerscience.org/program/russerror.php
 |archive-date = February 4, 2012
 }}</ref>

Women were admitted starting in 1969, and reached 50% of enrollment in 2010.

After 41 summers at Thacher, a significant threat to the continuation of SSP came in 2000, when Thacher School decided to use its entire campus for a different purpose.<ref name="SkyTel" /> SSP alumni incorporated Summer Science Program, Inc., solicited funding largely from the alumni community, and found a new host campus. Beginning in 2000, SSP was held at the Happy Valley School, located just across the Ojai Valley from The Thacher School.  In 2007, Happy Valley School was renamed [[Besant Hill School]].<ref name="SkyTel" />

With the alumni rescue complete, they soon began looking to expand the program. In 2003 a second campus opened at New Mexico Tech in Socorro with the support of New Mexico Tech, [[Los Alamos National Laboratory|Los Alamos]] and [[Sandia National Laboratory|Sandia]] national laboratories, and others.<ref name=NMTpr>{{cite web |url=http://www.nmt.edu/news/all-news/98-2003/2578-17june04g |title=New Mexico Tech News |publisher=New Mexico Tech |date=June 17, 2004 |access-date=November 29, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100528061126/http://www.nmt.edu/news/all-news/98-2003/2578-17june04g |archive-date=May 28, 2010 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref> In 2010, the California campus moved to [[Westmont College]] in [[Santa Barbara, California|Santa Barbara]], then in 2015 to [[University of Colorado Boulder]].<ref>{{cite news
|newspaper=Metro Denver
|title=Top teens to track potential 'killer asteroids' during Summer Science Program at CU-Boulder
|url=http://www.metrodenver.org/news/news-center/2014/10/top-teens-to-track-potential-%E2%80%98killer-asteroids-during-summer-science-program-at-cu-boulder/
|date=October 20, 2014
|accessdate=June 27, 2015
}}</ref>
In 2016, following three years of planning and preparation, a pilot of the first SSP in Biochemistry was held at [[Purdue University]] in West Lafayette, Indiana. Six alumni from the previous summer successfully ran through the new experiment. In 2017, the first SSP in Biochemistry was successfully held with 24 participants. In 2022, the first SSP in Genomics took place at Purdue University with 24 participants.

Through 2017, over 2,500 participants have attended 75 programs. All alumni and former faculty are "members" of the nonprofit for life, along with other members named by the Board. The Members elect Trustees annually, have access to an online database for networking, and are invited to an Annual Dinner held each fall.

In 2022, 1969 alum and co-founder of [[Qualcomm]], Franklin Antonio, donated $200 million to SSP in his will after his passing.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gasman |first=Marybeth |title=$200+ Million Bequest Will Support Science Research For High Schoolers |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/marybethgasman/2023/10/12/200-million-bequest-will-support-science-research-for-high-schoolers/ |access-date=2024-12-10 |website=Forbes |language=en}}</ref>