Galloway, NJ ― Sixty girls from throughout New Jersey will learn about Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields and meet female career role models in a hands-on residential camp here sponsored by the American Association of University Women (AAUW) and Stockton University from July 17-23.
“As AAUW New Jersey president, I believe in the power of projects like Tech Trek because they inspire our girls to dare to dream about the future and make it happen,” said Carol Cohen.
“I'm proud that Tech Trek continues our AAUW NJ tradition of encouraging girls' involvement in STEM through our programs such as Teentech and Tween Tech,” Cohen continued.
“New Jersey is the only state that hosts all three of these programs, and we keep the costs down to $50 per camper for the entire week, based on generous contributions,” Cohen said. “The more girls we can prepare for higher paying STEM jobs, the closer we will come to ending the pay equity gap.”
Studies have shown that girls initially interested in STEM fields tend not to pursue them after early adolescence. Yet there is a growing demand for jobs in those male-dominated fields, and the United States has a shortfall of qualified graduates to fill them.
“As AAUW New Jersey president, I believe in the power of projects like Tech Trek because they inspire our girls to dare to dream about the future and make it happen,” said Carol Cohen.
“I'm proud that Tech Trek continues our AAUW NJ tradition of encouraging girls' involvement in STEM through our programs such as Teentech and Tween Tech,” Cohen continued.
“New Jersey is the only state that hosts all three of these programs, and we keep the costs down to $50 per camper for the entire week, based on generous contributions,” Cohen said. “The more girls we can prepare for higher paying STEM jobs, the closer we will come to ending the pay equity gap.”
Studies have shown that girls initially interested in STEM fields tend not to pursue them after early adolescence. Yet there is a growing demand for jobs in those male-dominated fields, and the United States has a shortfall of qualified graduates to fill them.
The students, who will be entering eighth grade in the fall, will live on campus and participate in activities such as programming apps for tablets and smart phones, conducting chemistry and biology lab experiments, exploring cybersecurity online, building circuits, maneuvering a robot over an obstacle course, and collecting samples from Lake Fred to examine under a microscope.
On Wednesday, July 20, two field trips will focus on aviation. Twenty girls will be going to Philadelphia International Airport’s air traffic control tower, and two other groups of 20 each will rotate through a day of drone flights and building and launching rockets on the Galloway campus.
“Stockton deeply values the action that AAUW has been taking to close the gender pay equity gap,” said Dean Claudine Keenan of the School of Education, an AAUW member and one of the event’s organizers. “Decades of research point to the reasons that adolescent girls turn away from pursuing STEM fields, where higher paying careers show the starkest gender imbalances.”
“The Tech Trek camp model puts that research into action, providing girls with hands-on STEM experiences, led by women in these fields, at our state-of-the-art facilities, in our naturally beautiful, residential campus environment,” Keenan said.
All campers will attend core classes during the week including:
For more information about the camp, visit the AAUW Tech Trek site.
For more information about Stockton, visit www.stockton.edu.
On Wednesday, July 20, two field trips will focus on aviation. Twenty girls will be going to Philadelphia International Airport’s air traffic control tower, and two other groups of 20 each will rotate through a day of drone flights and building and launching rockets on the Galloway campus.
“Stockton deeply values the action that AAUW has been taking to close the gender pay equity gap,” said Dean Claudine Keenan of the School of Education, an AAUW member and one of the event’s organizers. “Decades of research point to the reasons that adolescent girls turn away from pursuing STEM fields, where higher paying careers show the starkest gender imbalances.”
“The Tech Trek camp model puts that research into action, providing girls with hands-on STEM experiences, led by women in these fields, at our state-of-the-art facilities, in our naturally beautiful, residential campus environment,” Keenan said.
All campers will attend core classes during the week including:
- Symantec Cyber Security: Learn how a computer works, how to code and finally how to hack like a hero - with LOTS of hands-on activities.
- It’s Electric! Learn how circuits work and creating your own with light-up name tags, flashlights and a circuit thank you card for the sponsors. Learn about women such as Edith Clarke, who made their mark in electrical engineering before anyone believed we could.
- MIT Inventor Apps on Verizon Tablets: Use existing phone app templates to add one’s own spin on coding apps. Learn the basics of app invention in an environment that MIT developed, and discover how apps are used on mobile phones and tablets.
- 1-2-3 Blast Off to STEM: During this interactive and hands-on learning approach, actively participate in several different laboratory experiments understanding the how and why things work in various branches of science while integrating technology seamlessly within each step of our learning. Students will build rocket racers, create an apparatus to have the highest explosion with Coke and Mentos, walk across eggs, and much more.
For more information about the camp, visit the AAUW Tech Trek site.
For more information about Stockton, visit www.stockton.edu.
