Girl STEM-Powerment Event Opens World Of Opportunities For Students

In what may become an annual event, Severna Park High School's signature program teamed up with the Maryland STEM Festival to co-host the Girl STEM-Powerment event on November 13. Fifteen presenters from a variety of fields and approximately 150 people attended the event.

Girl STEM-Powerment was designed to encourage young girls to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Hosted as part of the broader Maryland STEM Festival, the event focused on showcasing the possibilities available in STEM fields through hands-on activities. Attendees were able to connect with female STEM professionals, educators and entrepreneurs who shared their personal stories, challenges they have overcome, and the exciting opportunities they have encountered in their careers.

“Personally, I loved seeing how the girls were given the chance to participate in coding challenges, engineering design projects, and experiments, all aimed at building their confidence and skills,” said Annie Houghton, Severna Park High School signature site facilitator. “They also learned about educational pathways, career opportunities and internships in the STEM fields. It is so important to introduce our students to these opportunities at a younger age. Overall, the event helped foster a sense of belonging and empowered girls to pursue their passions in STEM, reinforcing the message that they can succeed in any field they choose.”

Students came away from the event with a positive experience.

“I liked learning about the books that the women wrote about STEM,” said Tim Greaves, a fourth-grader at Oak Hill Elementary. “It was interesting how the girl in the story made a time machine to go back and meet Leonardo da Vinci to find out how he did it all.”

Fellow Oak Hill fourth-grader Lola Alahverdian loved learning about the “Army and military stuff and how to stay safe,” while Folger McKinsey Elementary School first-grader Tori Meredith enjoyed making her own song.

“The marker experiment was fun,” added Folger McKinsey first-grader Poppy Spohn. “The ink would go up and showed if it was water soluble.”

Kaycie Quinones brought her daughters and their friends, four girls total, from Benfield Elementary.

“It is a great opportunity to show how important women are in the workforce, from science labs to aviation to making music, and it was a very hands-on exciting opportunity,” Quinones said. “I hope this becomes an annual event.”

Shalannah Smalls, operations manager at Andrews Air Traffic Control Tower, represented the National Black Coalition of Federal Aviation Employees and its Washington suburban chapter.

“I am the ERT (education, recruitment and training chairperson),” she said. “We talk to students about scholarships and opportunities that are available. We tell students what air traffic is and everything that supports it, including engineers, doctors, lawyers, finance, IT and the FAA technical operations.”

Diana Hugue, a fire protection engineer for Jensen Hughes, loves outreach opportunities like Girl STEM-Powerment. She used the opportunity to educate students about her career.

“Fire protection engineering department is around 20% female, and I'd love to get that number to rise,” Hugue said. “Being able to get the word out and show how cool engineering can be is exciting!”

Another participant, Michelle Dina of Unmanned Safety Institute, explained how drones are the next evolution of aviation.

“They are being used in every industry,” Dina said, “and the opportunity for young ladies to get involved and have great, rewarding, high-paying, skilled jobs is tremendous.”