PHOTO COURTESY OF LANETTE MACKEY A young student visits the UA as part of "Daughters on Campus Day" in 1997. Today's event will bring 400 kids to campus, allowing them to participate in field trips with their parents and other local children.

The UA will open its doors today for the annual Daughters on Campus Day, inviting children of staff, faculty and students to participate in field-related events while spending time with Mom or Dad.

Zelda Harris, chair of the commission on the status of women and one of the event organizers, said the goal of the day is to show children how they can grow up to be leaders in their fields.

"Children can understand that they can achieve in areas where they may have thought were inaccessible to them," Harris said.

The day was celebrated nationwide yesterday as "Bring your daughters and sons to work day," but Harris said the UA holds it today because of lighter class loads and more space availability.

Although the UA titles the day for daughters, boys are not excluded, and the name will most likely change in the future to better include them, Harris said.

"It's just a trademark, that's what everyone is familiar with, and we never had a problem with boys being turned away," Harris said.

Harris said it is beneficial for girls to see how they can become a scientist, as many of the program coordinators are women in leadership roles.

Events such as "The Physics of Star Trek," "Why do Worms Wiggle?" and the "McKale Center Tour" are being offered on the main campus and the Arizona Health Sciences Center.

"In my opinion, Daughters on Campus Day is a singular unifying event where every one is encouraged to participate," Harris said.

The office of community relations is also inviting children from underserved parts of Tucson, such as Baboquivari High School from the Tohono O'odham reservation and six Tucson high schools.

"It's important to reach out to our underserved community so that the kids know they have an opportunity to come here," Harris said.

But even though the main purpose of the day is meant to be educational, Harris said the events are also fun. The children will also be offered a lunchtime program with pizza, a raffle and free balloons.

The more than 100 events were organized and designed by the individual departments hosting them for the 400 kids expected to attend this year, Harris said.

David Shropshire, a human resources analyst, said he has brought his 13-year-old daughter to work the last four years, and he is bringing her back today because she enjoys the experience, and he wants to further expose her to the university's different areas of interest.

Shropshire said although he thinks it is important for his daughter to see different areas of interest, especially science because she already likes the subject, the day is fun for parents too.

Marisol Flores-Aguirre, a public health junior, said she remembers going to both her parents' workplaces when she was eight years old and continuing every year until she was 12.

She said when she went with her dad, who worked at a radio station, she would help him pull out the music and she would get to say "dumb little things" on the radio. Her mom was a teacher and Flores-Aguirre went to class with her on the day as well.

Flores-Aguirre said looking back, it was a good experience and she was always happy to skip school. She said doing "adult stuff" and going to lunch with her parents was the most enjoyable experience.