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“Girls will not succeed if they do not believe that they can succeed.”


- Beyond Bias and Barriers: Fufilling the Potential of Women in Academic Science and Engineering. Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy. The National Academies Press, 2006

Model Programs and Resources

Mentoring Programs

Moraine Valley Community College

In 2002, Maria Vlamakis saw the need for a mentoring program for young women and created one under her NSF-ATE Grant #DUE-02022256 3D Parametric Modeling Grant. To ensure the persistence of the mentoring program beyond the 2002-2005 grant period, she passed the program’s administration to the Center for Systems Security and Information Assurance (CSSIA) at Moraine Valley Community College. The resulting NSF-supported Women in Technology Mentoring Group served as the inspiration for the mentoring programs in this project. At Moraine Valley, two mentoring groups are available to meet the needs of female students—one that allows new students entering Moraine Valley’s Mechanical Design/CAD, LAN, IT Security, Computer Programming, and Networking programs to connect with experienced female students who can provide guidance and answer questions and another that connects them with corporate mentors. Moraine Valley’s Women in Technology Mentoring Program Manual is available for download.

Girls E-Mentoring in Science, Engineering and Technology (GEM-SET)

GEM-SET is a demonstration project developed by the Women's Bureau, U.S. Department of Labor, in partnership with the Center for Research on Women and Gender at the University of Illinois at Chicago. The GEM-SET web site is maintained by the University of Illinois at Chicago Center for Research on Women and Gender and the UIC Women in Science and Engineering Program (WISE).

Models from NSF Projects
(As documented in New Formulas for America’s Workforce 2: Girls in Science and Engineering)

Computer Science Computing and Mentoring Partnership
A project of the Center for Excellence and Equity in Education at Rice University, Houston

The Computer Clubhouse Network
Founded by the Boston Museum of Science

Science, Gender and Afterschool: A Community of Practice
Addresses the practical aspects of developing and administering a successful afterschool program.

Powerful signals: Audio profiles of 10 successful projects helping girls and women pursue science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

High Tech Girls Programs

Girl Tech Camp (Adobe Acrobat file)- Summer Camp at Moraine Valley Community College for 6th-9th grade girls. Partially funded by The Gender Equity Collaborative, GirlTech includes sessions on animation, computer networking, robotics, auto mechanics, welding and law enforcement. Click on the link to access a toolkit with resources for replicating this model at your institution.

MATC Girls Tech Camp - Summer Camp at Madison Area Technical College for girls in 6th-9th grades.

Tech Trek - A project of Tidewater Community College, the Tech Trek tour takes 40 school system counselors to local businesses that represent business, information technology, health sciences, engineering and industrial technology, enabling them to see high-tech careers in action.

Tech4UNow - An initiative established by North Orange Community College District and local education agencies as a regional approach to the preparation of a skilled workforce in California.

Resources