Support a Student
For over six decades, SSP International has offered motivated and scientifically curious teenagers collaboration and connection, rigor and challenge, trust and respect, and inclusivity and support. Your contributions make it possible.
Inspiring the Next Generation
SSP International creates opportunities for passionate young people to engage in hands-on scientific research, explore their passions, build lifelong connections, and grow as individuals.
We foster diversity and inclusivity by lowering barriers to access high-quality science education for young people from rural and under-resourced communities, identities underrepresented in the sciences, low-income households, and who would be the first in their families to attend college.
Join us in making high-quality science research programs more accessible.
Steve Cotler ’60 Fund
“The Summer Science Program found me when I was 16. We were high school juniors—future rocket scientists—sequestered for six weeks and intensely challenged with cosmology, astrophysics, spherical geometry, and the like. The Summer Science Program changed my life.”
Steve Cotler
In 1999, alumnus Steve Cotler led the transformation of Summer Science Program from a single program at Thacher School in Ojai, California, into an independent nonprofit, effectively saving it from extinction and launching the organization that it is today. He served as Board Chair for the first seven years of the nonprofit and remained actively involved thereafter.
Steve considered the Summer Science Program as one of his enduring legacies, and all participants since 1999 have had access to high-quality summer research programs thanks to Steve. In a very real sense, SSP is Steve’s Science Program.
Steve’s family generously donated $50,000 to establish the Steve Cotler ’60 Fund, and since then, others have more than matched that amount. Your gift will join this growing legacy, honoring Steve’s memory and supporting a cause that transforms lives.
The Fund, anchored in Steve’s enduring values, endows a Cotler Scholar each summer with full financial aid, ensuring that students who share his exuberance and passion for learning can thrive without financial barriers.
When you contribute, your name (but not donation amount) will be shared with the Cotler family as a testament to your partnership in honoring Steve’s legacy. Your generosity is not just a gift to these remarkable individuals—it’s an investment in a future filled with discovery, innovation, and hope. Learn more about Steve on his website.
