Too few girls are encouraged to pursue STEM at an early age, so I decided to provide more opportunities to learn about STEM in an innovative, fun, and engaging way. I held 3 STEM nights where I collaborated with over 20 engineering organizations. Some key organizations were the Society of Women Engineers, Girls Who Code, the Robot Garage, Michigan Science Center, and Michigan State University WIE. The students here loved participating in the engaging presentations and live demos.

 

To market the event towards K-6th grade students, I contacted administration at all 20 elementary schools from 3 school districts (Novi, Northville, Farmington), reaching out to over 25,000 people. I worked with local restaurants such as Little Caesars to donate food and arranged for music with DJs. The Novi Education Foundation (NEF) is a nonprofit that funds creative, educational enrichment programs in the school district. I was the first student to receive a grant from the NEF since their inception in 1986.

 

I also worked with 8 local businesses to secure sponsorships of $2,100. To secure volunteers, I reached out to over 600 students through platforms such as TAB(the Novi Library volunteer group), HOSA(Future Health Professionals), Novi Youth Council, and National Honor Society. By partnering with my high school robotics team as well, I've secured a total of over 120 volunteers that have attended my events throughout my project.

​

The first STEM Night had a total of 157 people, the second had 259 people, and the third one had 743 people in attendance. Over the 2 past years, I’ve had a total of over 1,150 attendees. The results were amazing: 86% of students said they were more interested in pursuing a STEM field.

 

I also implemented a weekly STEM program at Feed the Need, a summer lunch program that provides meals for children who would normally receive free/reduced lunch in the school year. I developed the curriculum, secured funding, recruited volunteers, and taught 17 interactive STEM lessons for 60+ students.

​

I was thrilled to see my hard work I had put in daily and 400+ hours I had put in come to life at STEM Night: the energetic music, the children buzzing with excitement, the volunteers smiling. I vividly remember holding the microphone and speaking out to hundreds of people at the event, and seeing many girls looking up to me as their role model. This was special to me because I was helping these girls find their passions, without the stereotypes and gender biases that hold them back in STEM.

 

Students were able to network, create meaningful relationships, and learn new skills with all the mentors. The impact that this event has on these students is real and the message is clear: STEM is for everyone. I’ve become a role model to girls, and I’ve helped several girls start their own STEM programs!

 

Amazed with the far-reaching impact of my work, the assistant superintendent of my district invited me to a district-wide STEM Equity panel. I was 1 of 7 panelists, and the youngest. Here, I collaborated with technology leaders such as Kathy Giori, a Senior Product Manager at Mozilla, and Jessica Kempany, a Senior Executive at Toshiba, about how we can empower girls to pursue STEM fields in school. I lead conversations about the importance of diversity in tech fields and shared my Girl Scout Story.

​