Hazlo History

The Hazlo Program was conceived by Jack Soules, an educator and inventor who served as a great mentor to the students that he taught at New Mexico State University and later at Cleveland State University, where he served as the dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.

Reflecting on his motivation to establish Hazlo, Jack recalled the days when mentors with the Boy Scouts of America helped him engage in projects that he chose. Looking back, he recognized that it was through these projects that he learned how to use his math, science, and language skills–skills that served Jack and society well through his career as a scientist, inventor, educator, and philosopher.

Before passing away in 2019 at the age of 91, Jack and his wife Shirl provided $10,000 in seed funding for Hazlo so that young people could benefit from the same sort of project-based mentoring that had such an impact on his own life.

In addition to startup funding from Jack Soules, the Hazlo program is supported through grant funding from the New Mexico State University STEM Outreach Center and The Stocker Foundation.