Celebrating 15 years of building confidence in girls through science!

Science Club for Girls (SCFG) has captured many young, intelligent minds over the past 15 years. Each year it is growing and expanding in new locations. So many op-portunities are offered through Science Club for Girls. One year SCFG took a field trip and met the amazing astronaut Sunita Williams, who ran the Boston marathon in the space shut-tle! When girls come to

this club, they are always eager to learn, and have so much fun engaging in sci-ence. Not only that, but we have had amazing Volunteer Club Mentors lead the clubs and the girls enjoy them so much! When girls enter their clubs the atmosphere changes; yes, it may be a classroom where earlier in the day they learned Span-ish or Math, but during SCFG it’s their laboratory!

SCFG is a way for girls to meet other girls interested in science, and most impor-tantly, enjoy themselves. If they weren’t, they would not keep coming back for more, and SCFG would not be ex-panding. Girls in this club are a part of something ex-citing, and just watching them participate in different activities is inspiring.

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SCFG

Building self-confidence, sisterhood, & science literacy!

Fall 2008

1994: SCFG began at the King Open School

1995-2000: Increased par-ticipants

2000: Began at the M.L. King School; became a nonprofit organization

2001: Began at the Cam-bridgeport School

2002: Had 235 girls partipat-ing in SCFG throughout Cam-bridge

2003: Began at the Amigos School and the new King Open site; started Summer Science Program with Cambridge summer camps

2004: Began at Fletcher-Maynard Academy and ex-panded to Newton

2005: Increased participants to over 500 girls; built the World's Largest Geodesic Dome

2006: First cohort of club participants graduated from

high school; welcomed first Executive Director (Connie Chow); hosted Mentoring, Community and Achievement in Science community forum with Women of Power participants

2007: Began in Boston, Law-rence and Framingham; hosted Miz Wizard's Science Secrets community event which is a one-woman play about women’s contribution to sci-ence; hosted CSI Experience at the Cambridge Science Fes-tival

2008: Held Catalyst, the first annual fundraiser and award ceremony honoring Judy Ozbun and Lydia Villa-Komaroff; had over 600 girls participating in SCFG

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Interview with Erica, Youth Development Coordinator Erika in the computer lab Erika O’ Bannon joined Science Club for Girls in September 2008. She previously worked at Squash Busters in Roxbury.

1) How did you hear about the opportunity to become the Junior Assistant Leader?

I heard about the position for the Youth Development Coordinator through Ideal-ist, which is a website that allows individuals to find job opportunities with or-ganizations like Science Club for Girls.

2) Why did you want to apply for the job?

I decided to apply to be Youth Development Coordinator for several reasons. First, to be an inspiration and a model of intelligence, strength, and beauty to girls. The power of self-esteem has allowed me to achieve so much, like being inducted into the most prestigious honor society at Boston College, and I'd like to continue helping girls find their own individual power. Secondly, I have extensive experience working with youth and creating and developing youth programs in Boston and nations throughout Africa. Finally, I knew that I could put these skills and knowledge to great use at SCFG.

3) So far, how are you enjoying your experience?

So far, I am loving this experience! The girls bring constant joy into my life, whether it's due to the curiosity and amazement the girls express during clubs or guiding and witnessing the growth of the JAs and JAITs. The staff of Science Club for Girls have also made this an incredible expe-rience.

4) Where did you go to college? What was your major?

I graduated from Boston College with a Bachelor of Arts in History and a minor in Africa & Afri-can Diaspora Studies.

5) Were you interested in science when you were a girl?

I have not always been interested in science. I had difficulty with it in my younger years, but through some extra effort on my part I was able to succeed in my courses. Presently, I am expe-riencing a newfound interest in science through the Science Clubs.

6) Do you feel like you can be a good role model to these young girls? If so, how?

I certainly feel like and know that I can be a positive role model to the girls. I have so many things to be thankful for and achievements to be proud of, yet it's important to realize that my life could have taken a completely different path. There have been so many obstacles in my life and so many moments when I thought I would give up, but I didn't and I don't plan on ever giving up. I also haven't always been my own strongest supporter, but I am now and I hope that this sets a strong example for the girls that I work with. Life can challenge you with more than you think you can or want to handle, but I hope that I can stand alongside these girls and help them find their own paths towards success.

7) How can you contribute to their education? What can they benefit from you?

I mostly contribute to the education of the girls during our Leadership Workshops, where we forge strong relationships through team building games, discuss and practice the type of leaders and women we intend to be, and most importantly explore and expand our dreams and goals of what is possible for our lives. I am also very cognizant of how I lead my life as a woman, knowing that it will play a significant role in how I will help shape the lives of the girls that I mentor. I will continue on my own path to success by working hard to pursue my goals, which include pursu-ing a Doctorate degree, starting a family, and continuing to empower youth through the develop-ment of out-of-school time programs.

8) What is your favorite memory so far with Science Club for Girls? 

I have so many favorite moments that it's hard to choose! If I have to pick though, I would say the JA Retreat was my favorite. We had a great turnout, the girls had such positive energy, and there was so much fun and laughter the entire time! I'm also really glad that the JAs from the different Cambridge sites were able to meet and get to know each other. It was awesome!

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Staff Spotlight

Interview with Colleen Rothaupt, Engineering Teacher at Cambridge Rindge and Latin High School

1) What school did you attend? Did you always want to go into this school, and into engineering?

I got my Bachelors of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Northeastern University.

I knew from about the time I was in middle school that I wanted to study engineering, but I wasn't sure what school I wanted to go to until I went to visit colleges when I was a senior in high school.

2) You grew up in Hawaii. Is Boston more technologically advanced?

Boston has a lot more tech-nical companies than Hawaii does. The colleges and com-panies in this area offer a lot of opportunities to people in technical fields.

3) How many girls were in your field?

When I graduated college I graduated with 50 mechanical engineers that were men and six that were women. When I worked as an engineer in the medical device industry I worked on a team of about 40 engi-neers, five of which were women.

4) Did you ever feel discouraged since there were so many guys?

Being on teams with a majority of men never bothered me. The guys I was in school with and the guys I worked with were always very kind to me and never made me feel out of place, even though I was one of the only girls.

5) You started the Engineering Club for Girls at the high school. Do you feel that Science Club for Girls and the Engineering Girls can collaborate and do some projects to make younger girls aware of the science realm?

I would love to work on a project with the Engineering Club for Girls and the Science Club for Girls together! I think it would be a lot of fun and I think meeting with younger girls and opening their eyes to science and engineering would be very beneficial to them.

6) Were you always interested in science?

I have always been interested in science. In high school, biology and physics were my favorite classes. I also enjoyed math even though it was never easy for me and I had to work harder in it than any other class.

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7) What would you tell young girls who feel discouraged about science, who think they cannot do it because they are girls?

I think it’s really important to never let anyone tell you that you can't do something for any reason. If you are interested in science, math, or anything you should pursue it. Some of the best scientists in the world have been women and they can be great role models to any girls who feel discouraged in science.

8) When growing up, were there any female role models you looked up too?

My biggest role models are my mom and my two older sisters. All three of them are hard workers and they've always encouraged me to pursue any field I was passionate about, and to not be turned off by the fact that it is male-dominated. All three of them have had to overcome challenges, and seeing how strong they are has given me strength whenever I have had to overcome my own challenges.

9) How cool does it feel to make a medical device? What exactly is it?

There is a tremendous amount of satisfaction you feel when you help to de-velop a product that improves people’s lives. I worked on endoscopes that doc-tors use to detect problems in a patient’s digestive tract. These devices allow doctors to diagnose life-threatening illnesses like cancer earlier, and therefore could save the patient’s life. I really enjoyed working in this field and always felt that I was making a real difference in people’s lives.

My biggest role models are my mom and my two older sisters. All three of them are hard workers and they've always encouraged me to pursue any field I was passionate about...

10) How do you manage being a teacher, an EMT on the weekends, a co-leader of Skills USA on the weekends, and having personal time? (Skills USA is a national competition for all technical students. There are also Skills USA offi-cers that go around educating people, participating in community service, etc.)

I would say that I keep myself pretty busy. I love being a teacher and I hope I am making a difference in my student’s lives. Running clubs is especially fun. It allows me to work with students outside of the typical classroom in a more relaxed atmosphere. I think being the advisor of three clubs (Skills USA, Model Bridge Club, and the Engineering Club for Girls) allows me to get to know my students better. I think it is really important to keep a balance in your life between the stuff you work hard on and the more fun stuff. For me that is being a teacher, being an EMT, and running clubs.

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Interview

K: Patterns and Motion: The kindergart-ners discovered how things move. Can you push them or pull them? What tools can be used to make music? How can animal patterns reveal how things move and communicate?

1st: Liquid, Force, and Symmetry: The first grade curriculum featured water as the main ingredient. In it, they discovered just why water is so remarkable. They had the chance create a siphon to see how water moves, test absorbancy of sponges, and per-form a gravity defying trick!

2nd: Sounds, Light, and Color: The second graders answered questions like what is a rainbow? Why do we have shadows? And what is a prism? They then ex-plored sound by testing their own hearing, and seeing sound vibrations using salt.

3rd: Circuits and Magnets: Third graders had the chance to create their very own secret code as they discovered circuits. They studied magnets in order to have a magnetic race, build a compass, and learn what an electrical engineer does.

4th: Science of Sports: In this curriculum fourth grade girls learned scientific concepts as they are related to sports. How does your body achieve balance for a sport like football? Why are certain balls used in different sports? The fourth graders also built their own parafoils and launched them to see if they would safely land.

5th: Mechanical Engineering: Fifth graders learned about four simple machines that can be used to lift heavy loads. Eventually they built a crane and then their own toys!

6th: Kitchen Chemistry: Sixth graders had fun doing activities that can all seem “ magical” until the science behind them is explained. They discovered Dry Ice, Chromatography, Acids and Bases, and much more. They had the chance to perform some of these “tricks” to the younger girls at the Science Fest!

7th: Rube Goldberg Machines: Seventh graders combined their imaginations with mechanical engineering to create Rube Goldberg machines. These complex machines are designed using common materials to perform a simple task, such as making lem-onade.

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Hello, my name is Georgia P. and I am currently attending Cam-bridge Rindge and Latin School. I started coming to Science Club for Girls when I was in the third grade. I was and still am interested in science but my interest has expanded over time. I enrolled in SCFG for the main reason that my friends were going to enroll in it as well. I never thought that my interest in science would be sparked in the way it has. I am currently a mem-ber of the SCFG Media Team. As a jun-ior, I am taking the course of engineer-ing through our technical arts program. I am really engaged in it and am think-ing about pursuing a field of engineer-ing. Last year some of the students in the class, including myself, had the opportunity to go on to a nationwide competition for technical arts called Skills USA. Our team of two—Georgia K. and I—advanced from the Regionals with a gold medal to States. Unfortu-nately we did not go on to Nationals but the experience was a pleasure. Although I am not sure about the spe-cific career in engineering I want to pursue, I do know that science and engineering are capable of opening a number of doors for me.

Hello, my name is Georgia K., and I am a junior at the Cambridge Rindge and Latin High School (Learn-ing Community S!). I have been part of SCFG since third grade, and have been an active member ever since. In 7th grade as a JA, I learned to com-municate through science and be a role model to the younger girls. I joined SCFG, because as a little kid, I was always interested in science. Be-cause of SCFG, I joined the engineer-ing program at school, and compete in vigorous competitions with my part-ner, Georgia P. My favorite classes in school are Biology and Criminal Law. At the moment, I still do not know what I want to be because I am torn between two fields. For my whole life, I always thought of myself as being a Biomedical Engineer. But since taking a Criminal Law class, I am now think-ing of being a lawyer! Whatever I do in life, I know I will be great at it, because I give my all with whatever I do. I also adore playing sports. I have been playing basketball throughout my high school career, and this year will hopefully be on the varsity team. I also did varsity swimming and la-crosse, but now just stick to basket-ball and tennis.

Hi, my name is Daniel’ G. (pro-nounced as “Danielle”) and I attend Cambridge Rindge and Latin School. I first got started with Science Club for Girls when I worked there as a summer intern through the Mayor’s Program. Our summer projects were to set up the curriculum and to prepare pictures to make our curriculum more user-friendly. During the summer we also organized supply charts in order to know how much of the materials were needed. I enjoyed the summer intern-ship because I got to work behind the scenes and learn what it takes to put on Science Club for Girls. In addition to the Media Team, I continue to work for SCFG as a Program Assistant at the King Open and Fletcher-Maynard sites. I am interested in Criminal Law and Dentistry as future careers. I love my Sidekick cellphone and buying new sneakers!

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Media Team

Letter from Kareen Wilkinson, Program ManagerHello Science Club for Girls Community,

My name is Kareen Wilkinson and I am the proud Program Manager of Sci-ence Club for Girls! What I love about this role is that I get to bring girls, Junior Assistants and female scientists together each week to all partake in hands-on science activities. Together we have done many amazing things this semester that have included Patterns and Movement in the Kindergarten Clubs, Water Magic in the First Grade Clubs, Circuits & Magnets in the Third Grade, and so much more.

Not only that, but we did science all over Eastern Massachusetts! We have sites in Boston at the Tobin and McCormack School, in Newton at the Myrtle Baptist Church, in Framingham through the Framingham Greater Community Church, in Lawrence through Movement City and in Cambridge at the King Open, Fletcher-Maynard, Cambridgeport, and Amigos schools. All totaled, we had 31 clubs with over 300 girls enrolled. Isn’t it cool to know you are one of many doing science through Science Club for Girls! That's awesome!

Thanks to our 62 wonderful Club Mentor Scientists who shared their love for science, math and engineering and en-couraged curiosity among their girls. These women dedicated two hours a week to mentor our girls and have served over 1200 hours in total this semester. They represent a diverse and committed community of female scientists from Harvard University and Medical School, MIT, BU, Simmons, Northeastern, Draper Labs, General Mills, and Boston Col-lege. Without them, we would not be able to do what we do.

This semester we also welcomed Erika O'Bannon as the Youth Development Coordinator to our organization. Erika has been an inspiration in her work supervising and leading our middle school and high school programs—the Junior Assis-tants and Rocket Team. Her passion for working with girls has led her here and we are honored to have her share her talents with us.

As always, this newsletter is produced by the young women who comprise the SCFG Media Team, a computer science club we offer to high school aged women who have an interest in learning desktop publishing, HTML, and website de-sign. Keep up the good work ladies!

As part of the SCFG Community, I thank you for your continued support whether you are a teacher who lends us your classroom to host a club, a Club Mentor who dedicates two hours a week, a parent who provides snack for your daughter’s club, or a donor that makes it possible for us to purchase supplies. We are greater than the sum of our parts and it shows! I wish everyone Happy Holidays and hope to have your continued support in the Spring.

P.S. Mark your calendars! SCFG begins again on February 10th!

Yours in Science,

Kareen WilkinsonProgram Managerkwilkinson@scienceclubforgirls.org

Newsletter produced by the SCFG Media Team: Daniel’ G., Georgia K., and Georgia P.

Printing Sponsored by Draper Laboratories

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Science Club for GirlsPO Box 390544Cambridge, MA 02139