This presentation will be helpful for universities wanting to develop or improve their service learning-based community partnerships while developing STEM awareness and knowledge in their elementary and middle school students (3rd-8th graders) as part of an interactive afterschool program. We will share experiences, lessons learned, challenges in building these relationships, highlights of the curriculum and resources used, and the impact this work has on the middle school students. We will also discuss the training and development of Merrimack student volunteers who work with the 3rd through 8th grade students in an urban setting for 10 weeks each semester. Lastly, we will examine the impact of curriculum enhancements on our middle school students’ attitudes, motivation and interest in Science and STEM related careers and the impact of curriculum enhancements on our middle school students’ attitudes, motivation and interest in Science and STEM related careers through our PEAR Common Instrument results.