Meet the National Girls Collaborative Youth Advisory Board (YAB). Participants will hear from Board members, learn about their activities with NGCP, and ask the YAB members questions about their experiences and involvement. The Youth Advisory Board helps to review and provide feedback on current National Girls Collaborative Project initiatives and assists in informing the future direction of the NGCP.

NGCP National Webinar: The IF/THEN® Collection in Action... at Museums!

Join representatives from ASTC member museums as they showcase resources and activities from the IF/THEN® Collection that enhanced their STEM programming.

Association of Science and Technology Centers (ASTC) member museums partnered with friends of the National Girls Collaborative Project to implement resources from the IF/THEN® Collection to enhance their programming and STEM activities. Participants will hear from the various and successful program leads as they showcase the resources used and how their program youth were impacted by the diverse representation from the STEM fields.

National Leap into Science Week is an annual celebration of science and literacy learning for all participating educators, state leaders, and organizations across the country, to increase awareness for science and literacy learning in community settings.

Educators across the country are celebrating by hosting science & literacy workshops with their communities. Join in the fun by reading your favorite children’s book or engaging in a hands-on STEM activity. Share your stories and use the hashtags #LeapWeek and #LeapIntoScience and tag @TheFranklin and @NGCProject on social media to participate. To find a Leap into Science workshop near you, visit The Connectory.

Calling all girls! Time to learn how the founders of NGCP launched a movement to support organizations serving girls in STEM. This Town Hall is focused on hearing the voices of women and girls as they explore how and why the NGCP was created. Led by youth, designed for youth, members of the NGCP Youth Advisory Board will moderate a discussion with several of NGCP’s founding mothers and include audience questions.

Throughout 2022 we will be highlighting the work and passions of NGC Board Members.

Michael, known by many as "Dr. Mike, is the Operations Specialist with The PEER Group, a consulting company that specializes in evaluation, organizational leadership and development, and research. Engineering education is his life's work, affording him diverse opportunities to learn and share professional development opportunities with youth. What excites him most about his work is engaging with girls and youth of color in STEM, inspiring their interests, and helping them reach their dreams. Youth are role models to him: "The creative minds of young girls and boys that prove to be the next generation of innovators. We can learn so much from their fearless attitude toward the future". Michael also shared his insights and advice on collaboration, stating "Shared vision and open communication are the bedrock of collaboration". Read the blog.

Attention: The AAAS Meeting has converted to an entirely virtual convening. The 2022 theme, "Empower With Evidence", seeks to make science more accessible through engagement and communication, and will feature groundbreaking trans- and multidisciplinary research. The meeting will highlight new initiatives in advocacy, education, and policy to address the challenges of rebuilding the public’s trust and appreciation of science. Register.

Educators and leaders serving K-12 students in afterschool, summertime, and beyond will have the opportunity to engage in professional development and capacity building. The four workshop strands are Building Relationships, Cultivating Creativity, Educational Justice, Program Foundations, and Youth Empowerment. NGCP is hosting the workshop "Leap into Science: Cultivating Creativity and Critical Thinking by Integrating Children’s Storybooks and STEAM Activities", as well as a booth during the STEM Fair "Representation Matters! IF/THEN® Resources to Support Gender Equity in STEM". Register.

ITEEA is a professional association focused on the professional development needs of classroom teachers, supervisors, curriculum writers, and teacher educators interested in developing technological literacy. This year's theme is "Standards for Technological and Engineering Literacy". Participants can also attend virtually. Register.

Attendees will have the opportunity to participate in education sessions, inspiring keynote speakers, virtual exhibit hall, personal and professional development seminars and workshops, as well as 2022 scholarship awards, Pioneer Hall of Fame induction celebration, and networking opportunities. Register.

The Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) is dedicated to the advancement of education that prepares youth and adults for a wide range of high-wage, high-skill, and high-demand careers. The seminar will include key education policy topics, best practices for influencing federal policy related to CTE advocacy and messaging, and Capitol Hill visits. Participants can also attend virtually. Register.

Connect with a community of professional science communicators via workshops, panel discussions, presentations, and networking opportunities. Register.

This year's theme is "NSBE48: Inspiring Engineers". NSBE is a few years away from reaching the goal of graduating 10,000 Black engineers annually by 2025. With this goal in mind, the convention will take a holistic approach to developing the next generation of engineers and enhancing the NSBE experience for all. Register.

Attendees will have the opportunity to learn new science teaching tools, educator-developed teaching strategies, and try new products and technologies. Core topics include science literacy, equity and inclusion, learning for multilingual learners, effective assessments in the STEM classroom, and systems for expanding STEM participation. Early bird registration ends February 18, 2022. Register.

The NAPE Summit brings together administrators, teachers/instructors, counselors, and educational leaders to focus on the work required to identify and remove barriers to access and opportunity; foster equitable learning environments; and increase and support pathways to an equitable workforce. Organized to deliver insights into the latest research and policy considerations, sessions offer best practices, particularly in CTE and STEM pathways. Register.

This conference serves in and out-of-school time educators. Participants will have the opportunity to network, participate in team-building activities, and learn about the latest trends and research in innovative and quality out-of-school-time programming. NGCP is hosting a workshop, "Breaking Down STEM Stereotypes in Afterschool", focused on strengthening afterschool programs’ efforts to provide equitable STEM learning opportunities. Register.

The Connectory showcases STEAM opportunities for youth to families and is a free online collaboration tool for providers to help find partners based on interests and needs.

We’re excited to announce the launch of a new initiative with The Connectory and NGCP serving as a core partner. Funded by the National Science Foundation, Science Near Me is an innovative website designed to increase public engagement in science.

If you’re a program provider using The Connectory, what does this mean for you? The opportunities you add are automatically shared with Science Near Me, expanding your promotional reach to new audiences. Visit www.sciencenearme.org to find opportunities for adults as well as youth. The site includes online and in-person offerings from museums, science festivals, citizen science projects, science policy forums, maker programs, astronomy clubs, and more.

Beyond collaboration and expanded reach, this initiative is catalyzing new research about how audiences engage with science. "Science Near Me is doing something long dreamed about in STEM, but never before executed to this extent," says co-founder Martin Storksdieck, Director of Oregon State University’s STEM Research Center. “Science Near Me provides the first convenient tool to find all types of science-related engagement activities, both in-person or online, in one place while providing insights to inform future projects aimed at creating more equitable and inclusive science engagement.”

Get started and stay connected to The Connectory:

Black History Month: In recognition of Black History Month, resources that serve to promote Black students in STEM are highlighted below.

This NCWIT virtual chat series explores Black girls in K-12, Black women in post-secondary computing education, and Black women in the tech workforce. Each online discussion features a panel of experts who explore the advancement and inclusion of Black women and girls across the tech ecosystem.

Reinvented is teaming up with women and nonbinary individuals in STEM to write Galentine's cards to youth. Girls, women, and non-binary youth in high school and college with an interest in STEM can request a card with stickers written by a STEM professional. Galentine's Day cards will be mailed during the month of February free of charge. Recipients are encouraged to follow Reinvented on Instagram and share a picture of their Galentine's Day card. Galentine's Card Request Form.

The Action to Catalyze Tech (ACT) Report, a new initiative of organizations and companies in tech striving to foster collective action for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), calls for a new DEI paradigm in the tech industry that is holistic, collective, and sustainable to address systemic problems. The report includes four recommendations and 10 actions that tech companies and leaders can take to shift the DEI paradigm.

The International Day of Women and Girls in Science recognizes the role of women and girls in science as agents of change, including by accelerating progress towards the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation). This year’s assembly will address the theme “Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion: Water Unites Us", and gather experts from around the world to discuss the water nexus in achieving the three pillars of sustainable development: economic prosperity, social justice, and environmental integrity. Learn More.

Girl Day is a worldwide campaign to engage girls in engineering. Engineers, educators, and others act as role models, facilitate STEM activities, and educate girls about how engineers change our world. Sign up to be a virtual or in-person role model. DiscoverE provides resources to plan Girl Day activities, online training for volunteers, and tips for starting conversations about engineering.