Sunday, June 26, 2005

Max Ortiz / The Detroit News Jennifer Piccard, left, and Jasmine Harris raced their robots during STEPS camp at University of Detroit Mercy. The weeklong camp introduces girls to manufacturing, engineering, science and robotics.

Science camps prep girls

Summer college courses introduce female students to engineering and other male-dominated subjects.

By Christina Stolarz / The Detroit News

Science boost While these engineering camps are filled this summer, they will likely be offered next year. STEPS • A summer engineering program offered through the University of Detroit Mercy. • Open to girls who are enrolled in ninth or 10th grades who maintain a 2.0 grade point average or better. • Enrolls 40 girls for each one-week session. • Costs $40 for a week; students stay overnight on campus.   Women in Engineering Training • Offered through Wayne State • It's a three-year program that recruits 30 girls before they enter eighth grade. They must fill out an application, turn in a letter of recommendation, write an essay and maintain a 3.5 grade point average. • The cost is $140 for four weeks. • Students do not stay overnight on campus. Sources: University of Detroit Mercy and Wayne State University Comment on this story Send this story to a friend Get Home Delivery

Michelle Elias did everything in her power last summer to keep from attending an engineering camp for girls because, like many girls her age, she didn't think it was for her.

But after learning about sensors and microchips on the University of Detroit Mercy campus, the 15-year-old from Eastpointe changed her tune and begged her mother to allow her to return this summer.

Metro Detroit girls, like Elias, are getting a boost in science and engineering this summer at camps tailored specifically for them.

"Engineering didn't seem like a very 'girl' thing to do," said Elias, who finished camp Friday. "I think that a lot more girls would be interested in it if they would give it a chance. Girls are just like guys, we can do anything we want."

Earlier this year, Harvard University President Lawrence Summers sparked controversy when he suggested in a speech that women don't have the aptitude to excel in science and engineering.

He explained why, in his opinion, there are so few top-level women in those fields. But summer camps at U-D Mercy and Wayne State University hope to change that stereotype by encouraging girls to pursue math, science and technology courses early on so they can find success in college engineering programs.

Women account for 19.1 percent of all undergraduate engineering students in Michigan, while the national average is 18.1 percent, according to the fall 2003 data from the Engineering Workforce Commission of the American Association of Engineering Societies.

"A lot of girls want to do it, I think, but shy away because they're told they're not supposed to do it," said Daniel Maggio, director of pre-college programs at U-D Mercy.

"It's really important to us that they learn what they're capable of."

Since 2002, U-D Mercy has offered the Science Technology Engineering Preview Summer, or STEPS, camp for girls who are heading into 10th and 11th grade, he said. The two weeklong camps, which are primarily funded by the Society of Manufacturing Engineers' Education Foundation, introduce students to manufacturing, engineering, science and robotics.

The second camp will conclude next week, Maggio said.

About 80 girls combined take four classes a day. They learn about batteries, motors, circuits, Lego robotics and sensors to help them construct a robot that must perform a task. The girls also meet women in the field, he said.

Tahirah Hairston, 14, plans to further pave the path for women by becoming a neurologist. She said it's fun learning about the science and medical professions.

"Women can do anything. They're not limited to one career," said Hairston, who will be a sophomore at Andover High School in West Bloomfield Township in the fall.

Wayne State's summer camp, Women and Engineering Training, also known as WET, challenges the girls to use their knowledge of physics and aerospace to build rockets and roller coasters, said Jasmine Roberson, program coordinator.

It is a three-year program that offers classes for four weeks throughout the summer. Once the 30 or so girls finish with the program, Roberson said, they're encouraged to enroll in a high school engineering program. The goal is to recruit more women into the school's college of engineering.

"In the workforce, women and minorities are under-represented," she said. "It's such a great opportunity."

Rahina Chowdhury, 14, said she was going to sign up for the camp at Wayne State. "Everyone should get the chance to become what they want and shouldn't be judged by whether or not they are a guy or a girl," said Chowdhury, of Hamtramck, who wants to become a biomedical or aerospace engineer.

Chowdhury said she's having fun trying new experiments, especially building two airplanes out of paper, Popsicle sticks, paper clips and rubber bands.

"I like working with my hands," she said. "It could get me prepared for my future."

You can reach Christina Stolarz at (586) 468-0343 or cstolarz@detnews.com.