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The USC-OSA Student Chapter has been constituted in March 2013 by members of the University of Santiago de
Compostela (USC) in Spain and sponsored by The Optical Society of America (OSA). It is formed by five graduate and
one undergraduate students with the common interest in Optics and Photonics research and a professor of the USC is
also involved as a faculty advisor. We decided to start this group with the aim of involving kids, precollege and
undergraduate students in the world of Optics and Photonics. The activities that the USC-OSA Student Chapter members
intend to realize are mainly educational tasks for the spreading of knowledge in Photonics by means of basic
experiments, demonstrations and lectures by leading researchers and teachers. Most of the needed resources to
accomplish these activities are provided by the OSA, such as educational posters and a portable kit for demonstrating
Optics to students. At this moment the USC-OSA Student Chapter is carrying out several activities, as educational
journeys at the Santiago de Compostela University Hospital Complex (CHUS), where hospitalized children can approach
to Optics through some simple experiments and games. A teaching program is also being organized in collaboration with
Galician secondary schools in order to show students the importance and uses of Optics and Photonics and to arouse
their interest in this field, as well as encouraging them to develop their scientific thinking. Another activity will take
place in November during the Science Week, which includes a program of lectures targeted to undergraduate students
and an exposition of several demonstrations
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