May 23, 2014
Mentoring young women to choose engineering
May 1 was not a typical school day for grade 8 girls participating in the聽聽science mentorship program. Operation Minerva pairs young girls with female science mentors to demonstrate how successful women can be in engineering, science and math oriented careers.
Now in its 25th year, 120 students from across Calgary took part in a job-shadow day at several institutions. Stephanie Besoiu, Mazel Salve, and Janelle Hansen聽were given the opportunity to visit the Schulich School of Engineering, led by Professor聽.
鈥淚t鈥檚 an opportunity to expose girls to science and engineering,鈥 said Hill. 鈥淗opefully, with this information they will consider engineering when making a career decision.鈥
The day's activities were meant to be fun and inspiring. The girls learned how to determine pi with the aid of a digestive cookie and make ice cream using liquid nitrogen.
鈥淭he ice cream was tasty,鈥 said Besoiu. 鈥淭hese activities make me think of engineering in a new way. There are more career options than I thought. It鈥檚 a really good experience鈥
The girls also had the chance to visit labs and participate in demonstrations including creating polymers, also known as slime. The afternoon鈥檚 activities included a soldering project working alongside electrical engineering graduate students Kassandra Rizopoulos, Kay Yuhong Liu and Bushra Muharram.聽
Rizopoulos wanted to be involved with Operation Minerva as a mentor because not all girls have the confidence to pursue careers in engineering. 鈥淚t鈥檚 important for me to be a role model and give them a positive start in the field.鈥
鈥淭he day gives more insight into what engineering really is, beyond the stereotype,鈥 said Salve. 鈥淚t鈥檚 exciting and a career I鈥檓 more interested in now than before.鈥