In 2018, Girl Day was again highlighted by a Capitol Hill luncheon briefing open to lawmakers, non-profits, and corporations. The briefing took place on February 13, 12 pm – 1 pm at the Rayburn House Office Building.
“I was excited to participate in DiscoverE’s Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day Capitol Hill Briefing," said Alexandra Dixon a member of Girl Scouts Nation's Capital.
Other young voices at Girl Day included Badana Mohamadi of the American Society of Civil Engineers chapter at George Mason University and Nikki Nola Gordon with the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE).
Girl Scouts STEM program opens doors at Raytheon
Alexandra also revealed that later this year, through Girl Scouts’ partnership with Raytheon, she will be starting start a new computer science program.
"I’ve enjoyed working with other Girl Scouts to learn how science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) can impact my life and how we can make the world a better place," she said. "Working on STEM programs has taught me to be inventive and I can’t wait to explore different STEM careers, and learn more about how technology shapes our world.
Raytheon has dynamic internship and co-op programs that provide experiential learning for students to be part of a diverse global team that’s working together to create systems and platforms that will help redefine defense and government electronics, space exploration, information technology, cybersecurity and more.
“Women are significantly underrepresented in STEM professions, and we want to help change that," said Shirali Patel, a cybersecurity program manager at Raytheon. "At a time when technology is transforming the way we live and work, we can – and should – show young women a clear path to taking an active role in this transformation.
"Engineers Week and Girl Day are opportunities to show girls the world of possibilities available through a career in STEM, and to demonstrate how exciting math and science careers can be. At Raytheon, we strive to help girls build confidence, re-shape their perspective, and see themselves as the robotics engineers, data scientists and cybersecurity professionals who will create a better tomorrow,” Patel said.
Speakers at the briefing included:
Other speakers at the briefing shared messages for encouraging girls in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) and illustrated how even one engineering experience for a girl can make a difference to her future.
This year, in addition to the many local Girl Day activities across the United States, schools, engineering clubs, libraries and others organized screenings for girls to watch Dream Big, the giant screen film that transforms how we think about engineering as it takes viewers on a journey of discovery.
Girl Day 2018 events:
The Women in Engineering program at UT Austin held a half day event for K-8 students on the UT campus. Girls met students and working engineers for hands-on activities, and demonstrations.
Engineering For Kids of Metro Atlanta hosted 46 3rd-5th grade girls from Title I schools for an aerospace engineering workshop.
At another event at a Maker Station for 12 3rd-5th grade girls for a mechatronic engineering workshop, girls met real-life engineers.
