BRATTLEBORO — Women in the U.S. continue to be underrepresented in careers related to science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), despite some recent strides in these areas.
Although women make up 47 percent of the total U.S. workforce, a 2015 Department of Labor report indicates that they constitute only 15.1 percent of workers in all architecture and engineering occupations as well as just 24.7 percent of all workers in computer and mathematical occupations, for example, according to a news release.
The Windham Regional Career Center (WRCC) is planning to address this divide, in part, by providing a free summer program for girls from Windham County currently in grades 7-9. The intent is to introduce these girls to a variety of STEM topics and to encourage them to consider pursuing further relevant coursework at the Career Center, their local high schools, and eventually at post-secondary institutions.
Work opportunities in STEM fields abound in our local area for those with the requisite experience and skill sets, and the hope is that this program will help inspire some of these girls to eventually pursue these careers. This is the second summer that the Career Center will be providing this free, fun learning opportunity.
All activities will be “experiential and hands-on,” according to the news release. Courses will include bridge construction and tensile strength, digital photography, food science, straw bale house construction, digital videography, wooden toy construction, and hands-on math instruction, to name a few.
The free WRCC STEM Summer Program will consist of two week-long sessions, both running Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The first session will run from July 11-15 and the second session from July 18-22. They will include free breakfast and lunch as well as limited free transportation to and from the Career Center.