Girls in Engineering Program Inspires the Next Generation

July 17, 2015 - For the second consecutive year, the University of California, Berkeley hosted the Girls in Engineering program for middle school girls as part of an effort to narrow the gender gap in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields. FORCES researcher Claire Tomlin directed the program, which recruited girls from schools in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Just as FORCES researchers are applying engineering concepts to improve the resilience of systems in areas of critical importance to daily living such as transportation and energy, participants in the Girls in Engineering program gained an understanding of how engineering can solve everyday problems. The curriculum incorporated hands-on learning and helped develop leadership skills. Visits to industry partners reinforced concepts learned on campus, and this year campers spent a day at Twitter headquarters.

The program was supported by the National Science Foundation, The Peggy and Jack Baskin Foundation, SanDisk, and the UC Berkeley College of Engineering.