By Kimberly Paulk, SHARECharlotte.com, a free, easy and local website that makes it easy to learn about and engage with our local nonprofits
“In my day I was told women didn’t go into chemistry. I saw no reason why we couldn’t.” – Gertrude B. Elion, American chemist, Nobel Prize winner
When I was a kid, I wanted to be an architect. I didn’t follow that path for a number of reasons. For one thing, my mom told me it wouldn’t be a good fit because it would mean “lots of math.” Let me say first and foremost, my mom was an amazing mother. But in her life experience, women weren’t destined for careers that required math. Things like engineering and science were, in her mind, simply out of reach for women.
Fast forward to today, and things have changed dramatically. I’m very content with the path my own life has taken, but also grateful that my two nieces will have opportunities that were less plentiful when I was their age. But there’s still work to be done, and that’s one reason the work of Project Scientist is so important.
The premise for Project Scientist is based on research that shows girls with a high skill, aptitude, and talent for the STEM fields are not currently served or identified at a young age. They are not provided STEM opportunities at a pace, depth, and breadth commensurate with their talents and interests. In response, Project Scientist established a model for a STEM pipeline for girls and women ages 4-35.
Their core program, Project Scientist Academy, is focused on girls ages 4-14. Over the course of five weeks students are immersed in STEM, learning from a tailored curriculum facilitated by highly skilled and credentialed educators. It’s filled with exciting hands-on experiments and field trips, and daily interactions with female STEM role models from a variety of professional fields.
Sound interesting? You can get involved right now (see the cool opportunity below) or visit SHARE Charlotte for more information.
Celebrate the Science of Winter! – Join the Project Scientist team on December 15th as they package up some holiday STEM fun and mail winter themed experiment kits to Project Scientist alumni.
