Twitter
Facebook
Reddit
Digg
Tell us what you think!Send a letter to the editor about this or any other article in The Maine Campus.
For the past three decades, women have long been outnumbered in the fields of science and math, but new organizations created across Maine and the United States are seeking to change this.
In 2008, the University of Maine’s Women’s Resource Center (WRC) will receive a $28,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to provide organizations with the tools necessary to enable girls to pursue careers in math, science and technology.
The WRC will also coordinate a professional networking system to establish communication between state organizations. A clearinghouse will allow groups to find each other and share information, as well as provide forums and conferences for the next three years, which is the length of time for the grant.
Sharon Baker, the director of the WRC, is excited to be part of this new plan. “The Women’s Resource Center is going to be working with a leadership team of 10 or 11 other individuals across the state,” she said. “Our work is not so much with working with the girls but rather working to increase communications between organizations and have more networking, so they can better communication between themselves. ”
For the next three years, the WRC will work both statewide and nationally to encourage better networking and communication.
All this is based on a grant given to a program in Washington state, called the Northwest Girls Collaborative Project (NGCP). Its purpose was to help organizations in Washington and Oregon address the complex issue of gender equity in the fields of science and math.
The organizations encourage girls to break into the male-dominated careers of math and science.
“This project is a way to leverage all our efforts in Maine and make sure we’re all plugged in so we get the biggest bang for the buck in serving the interests of girls in the state,” Baker said. “We also want girls to see positive role models in math and science.”
Many college students, such as second-year student Renee Lewis, also understand the importance of having positive role models in the fields of math and science.
“I had a few math classes in high school, and I was really inspired, not necessarily to study math or science, but to learn more as a student,” Lewis said. “I think having programs and organizations that encourages girls’ interest in science and math is a great opportunity.”
In addition, the WRC has had a representative from the American Association of University Women (AAUW) working with them to better assist in the program. “This is a really valuable asset to us,” Baker said.
The representative, along with two other team members, will travel to Seattle, Wash., for the March conference to learn how to get the program off the ground. Maine’s kick-off conference will be scheduled for sometime next fall.
Karen Peterson, leading the national project, will visit UMaine to speak at the Buchanan Alumni House on Nov. 29, at 2 p.m. to explain and help initiate UMaine’s involvement.
