Over 400 middle school girls packed the new C.M. Russell High School STEM Center Friday morning to learn more about women in STEM.
STEM stands for careers in science, technology, engineering and math.
This event was the inaugural Great Falls Public Schools (GFPS) Girls in STEM Day and gave students the opportunity to hear from female leaders in the community and to engage in hands-on activities at different booths.
According to STEM Like A Girl, women only hold 24 percent of STEM-related jobs in the United States.
North Middle School 8th Grader Sarah Faulk said, “When you think of science and STEM, you always picture not necessarily women in there, but it’s nice to see and look at those women that are already in here and now teaching you how to do it too.”
Twenty businesses in Great Falls had their own set up to showcase their careers.
North Middle School 8th Grader Madylin Connell said, “Seeing the real people, what they think, their opinions is really nice because we’re seeing so many different things from water to computer programming.”
She added, “In the 2000s we’ve been able to get so far and do so much more, but we just need to take that one final step into getting into the sciences even more than we are now.”
The goal for Girls in STEM Day was to encourage young women to pursue a career in STEM.
It gave the middle schoolers the chance to explore their options before scheduling for their high school classes.
