- GE Girls @ GA Tech Program Introduces Seventh- and Eighth-Grade Girls to the Possibilities of a Career in STEM Fields
- Nationwide GE Girls Program Encompasses 15 Programs across the U.S. in Partnership with Local Universities
ATLANTA - June 24, 2016 - After spending time with the graduating class of the 2016 GE Girls @ GA Tech program, one may find themselves feeling more optimistic about the future. While the 30 students from East Cobb Middle School who participated in the summer camp are a diverse group, they all share a newly sparked passion to change the world for the better through the pursuit of a career in a science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) field. Curing cancer, studying and protecting endangered animal species and designing technology to alleviate pollution in crowded cities are among their goals. That is, goals to pursue after they graduate from middle school.
During the weeklong camp, Atlanta-based GE employees hosted the middle school girls at Georgia Tech’s campus for an exploration of STEM activities. The curriculum covered a wide variety of topics including chemistry, biology, computer science and mechanical engineering, to name a few.
Bhavana Chandramouli, a rising eighth grader at East Cobb Middle School and a program participant, described her experience at the camp, “I believe you should seize opportunities presented to you and I am so grateful to have been able to have the opportunity to participate in this program. Science has always been my favorite subject in school, so it’s been exciting to hang out with women who use science as part of their jobs at GE every day. I’m definitely looking more forward to my chemistry class this year.”
In addition to exploring STEM topics, the program focuses on promoting confidence and leadership as well as fostering an environment for student-to-student mentoring. In this spirit, GE Girls @ GA Tech alumnae from last year’s program joined a few activities to serve as mentors for this year’s attendees.
“I had a fun time last year and thought this year’s group could use a guiding hand so I volunteered to help out,” explained Caroline Osborne, a rising freshman at Wheeler High School and GE Girls program alumna. “The advice I gave to the younger students was to major in a STEM field at college because there are so many options available to them. I plan to major in biomedical engineering so I can design technologies, like prosthetics, that make people’s lives better.”
The GE Girls @ GA Tech program is part of a GE educational outreach initiative called GE Girls. In its fifth year, the GE Girls program has reached 450 girls who will continue to engage with the program throughout their high school years. This year, GE will host 15 GE Girls programs across the U.S. in partnership with local universities.
JoDee Newcomb, a co-leader of the Atlanta GE Girls program and a commercialization manager for GE Power’s Digital Services business, explained the importance of the program, “The number of girls who select a STEM major in college has remained alarmingly low and unchanged in recent years. GE is taking a proactive role, through programs like GE Girls, to encourage young women to pursue careers in STEM fields and I am proud to be a part of that. The future of our company relies on a passionate, diverse workforce. Our hope is that if we can nurture these girls’ interest in STEM during their formidable years, we may one day see them walking the halls of GE, helping us solve our customers’ toughest challenges.”
To learn more about the GE Girls program, visit www.GE-Girls.com.
About GE
GE (NYSE: GE) is the world’s Digital Industrial Company, transforming industry with software-defined machines and solutions that are connected, responsive and predictive. GE is organized around a global exchange of knowledge, the "GE Store," through which each business shares and accesses the same technology, markets, structure and intellect. Each invention further fuels innovation and application across our industrial sectors. With people, services, technology and scale, GE delivers better outcomes for customers by speaking the language of industry. www.ge.com
About GE Girls
GE Girls is sponsored by General Electric and is a program designed to encourage girls to explore the world of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), and STEM-based careers. The program began in 2011 with one program at MIT and has since grown to over nine programs, with more to come. In addition to the in-person programs, GE Girls launched the GE Girls Club in 2016 as a way to keep the conversation going about STEM. Since its inception, GE Girls has reached hundreds of girls who will continue to explore STEM and engage with the program throughout their high school years.