The Montana Girls STEM Collaborative seeks to unite and support educators, parents, professionals and other champions of STEM so we can engage and inspire the next generation!
In this issue:
STEM Girls in Government - apply by June 14 //
STEM Summit 2019 and other professional development events
// Women in STEM: Cool careers in Montana //
New research on engaging girls in STEM
// Apply to be a national STEM Ambassador
Plus STEM Camps and events around the state
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Apply by June 14: Immersive STEM experience for girls 12-18
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The Montana Girls STEM Collaborative is proud to partner with the IT Managers Council to offer
STEM Girls in Government,
an opportunity for a team of up to 15 girls to have a two-day immersive STEM experience in our state capital on Sept. 16-17.
Girls apply as a team, and the application is due June 14.
The IT Managers Council, which is comprised of professionals from Montana state government agencies, has created this entire two-day experience in Helena so girls can learn about technology in state government, meet professionals and learn about careers, do a coding exercise, and other fun and rewarding opportunities. Meals and lodging are included, too!
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Announcing....STEM Summit 2019
plus Science Summer Institute and Afterschool & Beyond
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We are pleased to share the announcement of
STEM Summit 2019, a gathering of STEM professionals, students, educators and champions from across the state of Montana. Whether or not you attended the first STEM Summit in 2017, we'd love to hear your voice as we explore opportunities and challenges, build collaborations, and explore action items for advancing STEM learning in Montana.
The STEM Summit is free thanks to sponsorship from the MSU Science Math Resource Center and the Montana Afterschool Alliance. Register or learn more at
STEM Summit 2019.
The STEM Summit is the centerpiece of a week of professional development. Please consider attending these other events:
Housing is available in MSU's residence halls; see websites for information.
Please consider attending any and all of these amazing events.
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Engaging Girls in STEM: The latest research! June 12
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Please join the National Girls Collaborative Project and SciGirls for an update on the latest research on engaging girls in #STEM.
Wednesday, June 12, 2019, Noon Montana Time
During this special one-hour live stream, participants will learn about the latest research on best practices for engaging girls, based on a comprehensive literature review and extensive feedback from SciGirls educators and trainers.
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Women in STEM: Cool Career—Liddi Meredith, Hydrogeologist
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This month launches a new feature, as we profile cool STEM careers from women affiliated with the
Montana NSF EPSCoR
project.
Liddi Meredith is a hydro-geologist at Montana Tech in Butte
. She spent time in Helena as a young person, and now studies groundwater and surface water quality and quantity at sites across Montana.
Liddi works with water users in Montana, which could be anyone from
irrigators to homeowners who use a domestic well to ranchers who need water for their stock. She helps identify what the water users need to know, often writes a grant proposal to get funding for research, and then presents the research findings through presentations, pamphlets and scientific reports.
Liddi gets to work outside as well as in a lab. Her work helps solve problems for people all around Montana
Liddi advises girls interested in STEM to take a wide variety of classes, such as writing and public speaking, in addition to math and science. And, she said, you don't have to move far away from Montana to have a great career!
"
A career in the sciences does not have to take you far from rural Montana," said Liddi. "I work all over eastern Montana, including Alzada, Birney, Broadus, Culbertson, Mosby, Sidney, and Winnett. A background in farming and ranching can help you, as a scientist, accurately identify the research needs of rural Montanans."
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STEM professionals: Apply to be an AAAS If/Then Ambassador
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Let's make sure some Montana Women In STEM are part of this amazing program!
The next deadline to apply is July 21.
AAAS (The American Association for the Advancement of Science) has launched its IF/THEN Ambassadors program, which will bring together 100 women from a variety of STEM careers to serve as high-profile role models for middle school girls.
Women who are selected as an Ambassador will take their STEM outreach to the next level by participating in a dynamic and fun summit; receiving coaching and support from specialists in science communication and related fields; building a network of other STEM professionals; and participating in a wide variety of future opportunities that inspire girls. Ambassadors will also be part of an engaging photo / video library that will be hosted by our own National Girls Collaborative Project.
Learn more and apply through AAAS
.
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The STEM Effect:
Montana is proud to be part of a national team working to understand the long-term impacts of STEM programs on girls.
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Upcoming STEM events and opportunities
If you offer a STEM event or opportunity that we missed, be sure to post it on our
Facebook page
as well as in
The Connectory
-- it's free!
Look for events that are
NEW
since our last newsletter.
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BILLINGS
Billings Public Library:
NEW
STEAM Week at the TECH Lab at Billings Public Library is June 11-15
, 1-3 pm
- June 11: 3-D Printing; June 12: Fun with Photoshop; June 13: Board Games; June 14: Computer Coding; June 15: Lego Robots
Plus...
NEW
- Animation & Rendering: Make an Animated Short. June 20 &21, 1-3 pm. Learn how to animate a simple scene and then render your animation into a 3-D model!
- Create Your Own Cartoon Character. June 26, 1-3 pm. Learn how to use Photoshop and Illustrator to create your own cartoon characters.
- Video Game Design Camp. July 9-13. Learn how to code in Python and create your own game.
- Audio Journalism with Yellowstone Public Radio. July 15-19. Work with journalists and audio production professionals from Yellowstone Public Radio to learn how to research, write, and produce your own piece of audio journalism!
BOZEMAN
Montana Conservation Corps
programs for middle and high school students begin June 9 and other dates throughout the summer.
Learn more
(also in Helena, Kalispell and Missoula).
Montana Science Center (formerly Children's Museum of Bozeman)
Women in STEM series June 22 11am-2pm
Join local women scientists and engineers for experiments, activities, and more. Learn about their different careers and experiment with each of them! Included with admission or membership. All ages welcome.
- Full STEM Ahead: Summer Camp June 10-14 Enjoy an entire week of camp fun and design challenges! Each day will be filled with interactive activities relating to Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math.
- Spy Camp: Summer Camp July 15-17 How many ways can you code and decode, making and breaking secret messages? Learn about famous codes (and codebreakers) of the past and become a spy yourself!
- Power to the Programmers: Summer Camp July 22-23 We will explore the STEAMlab and learn all kinds of tech, troubleshooting, Scratch and mBots. Try out Inventor's Kits and micro:bits.
- E-Textiles: Superhero Sewing Summer Camp August 26-27 Sew circuits like a pro. Make a flashy cape with your wearable circuits. Design and create your own textiles. Come learn how to sew!
BOZEMAN/HYALITE CANYON: Montana Youth Range Camp. June 25-29, 2019
. Campers will be introduced to 25 of Montana’s important range plants—grasses, forbs, and shrubs—and will learn about the interaction of soils, water, plants, wildlife, and livestock on the range. Scholarships available.
Learn more
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NEW
Math Problem-Solving and Puzzles, Aug. 19-22 at MSU.
Youth entering grades 6-10 who want to enrich their mathematics skills beyond the classroom will enjoy math problem solving and puzzles while interacting with MSU students and like-minded peers. For more information, visit the
Science Math Resource Center
or
email Ehsan Salam
.
CANYON FERRY LAKE
All-Girls STEAM Camp - Crime Scene Investigation - July 21 - 25
Does your child like to solve puzzles? This summer’s forensic camp is an active week where mystery meets science. Campers will use a variety of tools and techniques, including DNA fingerprinting, to analyze data and answer some big questions. This is the third year for the “girls only” camp. Support from Montana PBS helps cosponsor this camp.
GREAT FALLS
NEW
Add-A-Tudez // Team KAIZEN // Ingenium offers a game design camp
with
Great Falls Rec Center
June 17-21 and June 24-28, all 1:30-3:30 PM. Kids can take either week or both. Call (406) 727-6099 and speak with Erica to register.
HELENA
Montana Conservation Corps
programs for middle and high school students begin June 9 and other dates throughout the summer.
Learn more
(also in Bozeman, Kalispell and Missoula).
NEW
June 25-26, 2019: Aviation Career Exploration (ACE) Academy for high school students.
Wide-ranging aspects of aeronautics that will include flights in general aviation airplanes, general aviation fly-in, tours of the Helena air traffic control tower, the aviation maintenance technician program at Helena College, an agriculture spraying operation, and Montana Medical Transport.
KALISPELL
Montana Conservation Corps
programs for middle and high school students begin June 9 and other dates throughout the summer.
Learn more
(also in Bozeman, Helena, and Missoula).
MISSOULA
Montana Conservation Corps
programs for middle and high school students begin June 9 and other dates throughout the summer.
Learn more
(also in Bozeman, Helena, and Kalispell).
Montana Natural Resources Youth Camp at Lubrecht Experimental Forest June 14-19.
Drop the Wii and get in the woods! Summer Camp in Montana for all youth ages 14-18. A wonderful opportunity to get the kids outside where learning and recreation come together, to foster understanding and instill appreciation for the natural amenities of Montana.
Learn more
. Deadline June 14!
Girls Interested in Math
-- For students at or above grade level who are interested in further enrichment in mathematics.
- For Campers entering Grades 5 and 6: July 22-25. Explore challenging problems in Number Theory, Algebraic Thinking, and Geometry through hands-on activities, games, and puzzles.
- For Campers entering Grades 7 and 8: July 29 - Aug. 1. Geometric software and graphing technologies (such as Desmos and Geogebra), challenging mathematics problems--some found around campus and in the community, and the whys of mathematics.
SciGirls Get Tech, Ages 8-13,
July 22-26, 9am-4pm. Explore, design, and create at spectrUM in this girls-only science camp! Meet with female scientists as you explore the exciting world of computers. Use your imagination and new skills to design your own computer game and learn how to code.
Register Now (SpectrUM has lots of other great summer camps, too)
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About the Montana Girls STEM Collaborative
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The Montana Girls STEM Collaborative was founded as an outreach program of
Montana NSF EPSCoR
and has co-leaders at Montana State University and the University of Montana as well as volunteer board members across the state.
This material is based upon work supported in part by the National Science Foundation EPSCoR Cooperative Agreement OIA-1757351. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.
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Suzi Taylor
Montana State University
Bozeman, MT
(406) 994-7476
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Jessie Herbert
University of Montana
Missoula, MT
(406) 243-4828
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