IUPUI to Host ‘Girls in STEM’ Conference

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More than 100 high school girls from across the Midwest will attend a “Girls in STEM” conference at IUPUI this weekend. Organizers say the goal of the three-day event is to inspire students to pursue a career that involves science, technology, engineering and math.

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – More than 100 high school girls from 10 Midwestern states will attend an inaugural conference at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis designed to inspire them to study science, technology, engineering and mathematics in college and pursue a STEM career.

The 135 girls will attend the three-day Girls in STEM MAEOPP Pre-College Student Leadership Conference beginning May 29. The students are from Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Ohio and Wisconsin.

The conference was organized by the Mid-America Association of Educational Opportunity Program Personnel, with assistance from the IU School of Informatics and Computing, the Purdue School of Engineering and Technology, the School of Science, TRIO/Upward Bound and the Office for Women at IUPUI.

The association is a consortium of professionals from the TRIO and Educational Opportunity Programs that was formed to help level the playing field of educational opportunity for first-generation, low-income and disabled students.

During the conference, the girls will:

– Engage in hands-on activities in laboratory settings.

– Learn about colleges, college majors and careers.

– Meet with college students, professors and professional women.

– Tour the Schools of Informatics and Computing, Engineering and Technology, and Science.

– Participate in critical thinking and discussion exercises.

– Hear from motivational speakers.

According to the association, the need for such a conference is clear. It cites U.S. News and World Report, which said only 13 percent of girls say they plan to pursue a STEM career.

If the U.S. is to stay competitive in the global market, the number of women in STEM fields must be increased, the association said.