Annual Women in STEM Conference Expected to Draw Nearly 500 to UW May 21

Nearly 500 junior and senior high school female students from across the state will descend upon the University of Wyoming campus Tuesday, May 21, to learn more about science and its various disciplines.

The Women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) Conference, scheduled 8:30 a.m.-3 p.m., is designed to spark students’ passion in science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields; and provide the students mentors and role models. The conference, now in its 20th year, formerly was known as the Women in Science Conference.

“The Women in STEM Conference is designed to allow young women in grades 7 through 12 to learn, firsthand, about careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics from accomplished professionals,” says Michele Turner, program coordinator with the Wyoming NASA Space Grant Consortium. “Many young women in junior high and high school start to lose interest in science and engineering careers, and the goal of the Women in STEM Conference at UW is to directly address this problem.”

During the day, participants will engage in 29 hands-on workshops and lab tours, and have the opportunity to meet professionals who do “science” on a daily basis in their careers, Turner adds.

Volunteers from UW and regional organizations will present workshops on a variety of science and technology-related topics. Some of the workshop titles include: “Build a Rover: Learn How Astronomers Investigate Planets”; “It’s a Bird, It’s a Plane, No, Wait, It IS a Bird!”; “So You Want to be a Veterinarian? Animal Anatomy”; “Seismology in Action”; “Traffic Jam”; “Electromagnetic Waves and Colors”; and “Explorations in Satellite Remote Sensing.”

Workshop presenters come from the following institutions: UW faculty and students, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, the Denver Zoo, Made Safe in Wyoming, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Nature’s Educators, Teton Raptor Center, Wyoming Department of Transportation, and the Wyoming Game and Fish Department.

Workshops will take place on the UW campus in the Agriculture Building, the Classroom Building, Coe Library Maker Space, Engineering Building, Geological Museum, Michael B. Enzi STEM Facility, Physical Sciences Building, Energy Innovation Center, UW Harry C. Vaughan Planetarium, the Williams Conservatory and the Wyoming Union. Workshops are scheduled from 10-10:50 a.m., 11:10 a.m.-noon and 12:50-1:40 p.m.

“I liked meeting new people, experiencing hands-on activities, and becoming more knowledgeable about the medical and plant professions,” says one student who previously attended the conference.

Another student says what she liked most about the conference was “people willing to share their stories, and getting young people interested in science.”

Major supporters of this year’s conference include: Wyoming NASA Space Grant Consortium, College of Arts and Sciences Inreach Grant, College of Engineering and Applied Science, Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources, School of Energy Resources and Wyoming EPSCoR (Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research).

This year, students from the following communities will be participating in Women in STEM:

-- Big Piney: Big Piney Middle School.

-- Casper: Casper Classic Academy, Centennial Middle School, CY Middle School and Roosevelt High School.

-- Cheyenne: Johnson Junior High School, St. Mary’s Catholic Middle School and South High School.

-- Douglas: Douglas Middle School.

-- Encampment: Encampment K-12.

-- Glenrock: Glenrock Middle School and Glenrock High School.

-- Goshen County School District 1: Lingle-Fort Laramie Middle School, Torrington Middle School, Torrington High School and Southeast Junior High School.

-- Green River: Green River High School.

-- Hanna/Elk Mountain: Hanna Middle School.

-- Lander: Lander Middle School.

-- Laramie: Laramie Middle School and UW Lab School.

-- Lusk: Lusk Middle School.

-- Mountain View: Mountain View Middle School.

-- Niobrara County School District 1: Wyoming Virtual Academy.

-- Pinedale: Pinedale Middle School.

-- Saratoga: Saratoga Middle School and Saratoga High School.

-- Niobrara County School District 1: Wyoming Virtual Academy.

U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney will provide a two-minute video as part of the welcome, which takes place from 9:30-9:50 a.m. in the Wyoming Union Yellowstone Ballroom.

Ivy McLeod, flight controller for the International Space Station at Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, and a UW alumna, will give the closing presentation from 1:50-2:45 p.m. in the Wyoming Union Ballroom.

For more information about the Women in STEM Conference, go to www.wyomingspacegrant.org/k-12-programs/women-in-stem/.