Levine participates in Buena Vista University Tech Trek Camp

Madison Levine, who will be in eighth grade at LMCS this fall, participated in a week-long Tech Trek STEM camp hosted by The American Association of University Women (AAUW) Storm Lake branch on the campus of Buena Vista University (BVU). Forty-two rising eighth-grade girls attended in total.
Tech Trek is uniquely designed to show girls firsthand how exciting careers in the science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields can be.
“Thank you, Tech Trek at Buena Vista University and AAUW for a phenomenal week for our daughter,” said Tammy Randall of Norwalk, whose daughter, Marin Randall, attended the camp. “When we picked her up, she talked for two hours–nonstop–about everything she learned, the girls she met, the counselors, the teachers–all positive/ Not only is this camp educational and super fun, they taught professionalism and etiquette to the teens. Tech Trek empowered our daughter, and with this boost in confidence in the STEM area and what she learned in life skills, the sky is the limit. I hope this program continues in the years to come for other young women to benefit and enjoy.”
A longtime leader on issues related to women and girls in STEM, AAUW is working to expand opportunities for women and girls in these fields through advocacy, programming, and research.
“The faculty and staff of Buena Vista University, along with the Storm Lake community, eagerly welcomed these aspiring young scientists,” said Dr. Melinda Coogan, Tech Trek Camp Director and professor of biology at BVU. “Along with STEM core classes and workshops, field trips, and lake activities, the girls took part in a Professional Women’s Night where they had the opportunity to talk both as a group and one-on-one with each of the invited professionals who work in various fields of science.”
This summer, AAUW held 21 Tech Trek camps across the country. Attendees pay only a nominal fee, due to generous donations from AAUW’s supporters and the community, as well as sponsorships from corporations and industry stakeholders in developing practical, career-focused curricula.
Tech Trek was created in 1998 by an AAUW member in California, long before the shortage of women in STEM became part of the national dialogue. This successful program, which has served more than 11,000 girls in California alone, scaled up to a national AAUW effort in 2013. It continues to grow and spread to other communities across the country, including Storm Lake. Since 2013, only one camp per state is selected as the Tech Trek STEM site, following an extensive application process.
There is a strong demand for skilled STEM professionals. Tech Trek is a crucial program to prepare and empower the next generation of girls to go into these fields and increase the science and technology talent pool. Women in STEM benefit from highly stable, well-paying jobs while the STEM industry gains diverse perspectives from a deeper talent pool and more voices at the table. Opening up more opportunities and supporting girls in STEM is a win-win for the U.S. economy.

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