{"676609":{"#nid":"676609","#data":{"type":"news","title":"A Summer of STEM Exploration, From Soda Bottles to Bioplastics","body":[{"value":"\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOn a humid June morning, 50 students are gathered in The Kendeda Building for Innovative Sustainable Design to learn how to make a water filtration system. They use everyday materials \u2014 a soda bottle and cotton balls \u2014 and watch as dirty water becomes clean. Of all the places to try the experiment on Georgia Tech\u2019s campus, Kendeda is the ideal spot because of its focus on sustainability and the environment.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOn this day, however, the students pouring water over cotton, sand, and charcoal aren\u2019t Yellow Jackets \u2014 at least, not yet. They\u2019re rising ninth and 10th graders participating in an intensive experiential learning camp called \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.stemgemsbook.com\/\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ESTEM Gems\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E. The program introduces girls and young women to careers and women in STEM through hands-on activities, career exploration, and mindful conversations.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cI love the arts, but STEM is my main focus. That\u2019s why I applied to this camp,\u201d said Niema Spears, a rising ninth grader at Atlanta\u2019s Coretta Scott King Young Women\u0027s Leadership Academy. \u201cI never knew you could filter water using natural materials. It\u2019s consistent with what I\u2019ve seen all week: I didn\u2019t know I could do any of this.\u201d\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003EImage\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cimg src=\u0022https:\/\/coe.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/gtcoe_wide\/public\/2024-06\/two-people-looking-soil-stem-gems.jpg?itok=YnOIj-n9\u0022 alt=\u0022two girls look at soil in a cup\u0022 width=\u00221200\u0022 height=\u0022800\u0022\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003ETwo campers measure soil before putting it into their water filtration system.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThis is the second consecutive summer STEM Gems has chosen the College of Engineering as the best location to expose their participants to the possibilities of science, technology, engineering, and math and learn about the significant impact Georgia Tech research has in the world.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe College supports STEM Gems because of its focus on growing the engineering pipeline of women and people from underserved communities. The program\u2019s goals are aligned with other College-organized summer events that include the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/coe.gatech.edu\/news\/2024\/06\/summer-engineering-institute-gives-high-schoolers-taste-college\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ESummer Engineering Institute\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E and the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/coe.gatech.edu\/news\/2022\/08\/diversifying-stem-one-summer-time\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ESummer Undergraduate Research Experience\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cEmpowering K-12 students in Georgia with STEM education is not just about teaching science, technology, engineering, and math. It\u0027s about igniting curiosity, fostering innovation, and preparing the next generation to lead and thrive in a rapidly evolving world,\u201d said Associate Dean Damon Williams. \u201cSTEM Gems is a premier summer camp experience for Georgia students that does just that.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESTEM Gems was created by Atlanta native Stephanie Espy, a chemical engineer-turned-entrepreneur. After seeing few women in the engineering field during her college internships, Espy wrote a book about women in STEM fields and their careers. It was aimed at middle and high schoolers and has spawned the camp, an annual summit, and a K-12 club that currently has chapters in 100 schools around the nation.\u0026nbsp;\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003EAt the camp, the students visit Georgia Tech labs, hear from faculty and admissions officers, and enjoy a series of interactive activities. On their \u201cengineering day,\u201d they built the water filtration system, made eco-friendly jewelry from bioplastics, and created a hidden alarm to prank their parents. \u201cScience day\u201d included extracting DNA from strawberries, building a terrarium and tracking map for insects, and testing forensic evidence from a hypothetical crime scene. \u201cTechnology day,\u201d \u201cmath day,\u201d and \u201cmy STEM journey day\u201d rounded out the week.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe camp is free for participants because of funding from the Avantor Foundation. The grant also pays for camp facilitators, six of whom are Georgia Tech students.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cSeeing the campers engaged in thoughtful STEM-career-focused activities and learning about women in a diverse range of STEM careers has been very rewarding for me,\u201d Espy said. \u201cAnd Georgia Tech is a natural home for our STEM Gems camp. Tech enrolls and graduates the most women engineers every year. We want our campers to be on this campus and see themselves as future students, no matter which STEM path they choose.\u201d\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech is a natural home for our STEM Gems camp. Tech enrolls and graduates the most women engineers every year. We want our campers to be on this campus and see themselves as future students.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESTEPHANIE ESPY\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBioengineering Ph.D. student Makala Faniel spends the majority of her summer in the biomedical engineering lab of \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/bme.gatech.edu\/bme\/faculty\/Cheng-Zhu\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ECheng Zhu\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E researching cancer immunotherapy molecules and the immune system. This is the second year she took a week off to serve as a STEM Gems facilitator.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cI participated in \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/projectengages.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EProject ENGAGES\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E at Tech when I was in high school, and the program helped me figure out that I wanted to pursue materials science as an undergrad,\u201d Faniel said. \u201cThis is a chance to give back and provide some of the same assistance others gave me when I was that age. If I had more information as a high schooler, I would have been better prepared. This program and this week allow that.\u201d\u0026nbsp;\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003ETiffany Franklin said Georgia Tech was a big draw for her. She will start 10th grade at Smyrna\u2019s Campbell High School in August and applied to the camp because she loves math and science and couldn\u2019t pass up the chance to come to campus.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u201cThis week has been fun, empowering, and therapeutic. It\u2019s a rare opportunity to bring out the nerd in me,\u201d Franklin said. \u201cAnd seeing these labs and doing these activities here at Georgia Tech makes everything seem so official.\u201d\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"A group of high schoolers come to campus to experience hands-on STEM activities and explore careers as part of the STEM Gems camp.\r\n\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"A group of high schoolers come to campus to experience hands-on STEM activities and explore careers as part of the STEM Gems camp."}],"uid":"36454","created_gmt":"2024-09-06 18:54:43","changed_gmt":"2024-09-06 18:56:12","author":"swilliamson40","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2024-07-01T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2024-07-01T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"groups":[{"id":"1292","name":"Parker H. Petit Institute for Bioengineering and Bioscience (IBB)"}],"categories":[{"id":"138","name":"Biotechnology, Health, Bioengineering, Genetics"}],"keywords":[{"id":"187423","name":"go-bio"}],"core_research_areas":[{"id":"39441","name":"Bioengineering and Bioscience"}],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cdiv\u003EBy: Jason Maderer (maderer@gatech.edu)\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003EPhotos: Malcolm Davie\u003C\/div\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}