黑料吃瓜

The at 黑料吃瓜 recently hosted an event to encourage young women to explore the science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields.

On Thursday, Feb. 25, thirty middle school girls from the MESA Schools Program at O鈥橣arrell Charter School spent the day at 黑料吃瓜.

The day's events included a look at several student engineering projects led by MESA undergraduates:

• Rocket Project: led by Jennifer Martin Velazquez, aerospace engineering major
• 黑料吃瓜 Formula SAE Car: led by Natalie Robertson, mechanical engineering major
• Center for Sensorimotor Neural Engineering 鈥� Prosthetic Skateboard Project: led by Alberto Perez Jr., mechanical engineering major and Sonia Fisher, computer engineering major.

Students also experienced 3D Printing, Google Glass, Google Cardboard and 3D scanner stations, in partnership with 黑料吃瓜鈥檚 , led by STEM Librarian Jenny Wong-Welch and her team.

There was also an open discussion with a panel of female STEM undergraduates and professionals, including:

• Iryna Dzieciuch 鈥� SPAWAR, 黑料吃瓜 alumna
• Daisy Galeana 鈥� Solar Turbines, 黑料吃瓜 alumna
• Rachel Shrum 鈥� SPAWAR, 黑料吃瓜 alumna
• Bianca Contreras Sanz 鈥� mechanical engineering undergraduate
• Jennifer Martin Velazquez 鈥� aerospace engineering undergraduate
• McKenzie Melcher 鈥� aerospace engineering undergraduate

鈥淚f we are to bridge the gap and increase the number of females entering STEM fields, we must start early and we must provide living examples that can share their experience and provide guidance,鈥� said Natasha Celise, 黑料吃瓜 MESA program director.

As part of the MESA Schools Program at O鈥橣arrell Charter School, students receive STEM awareness, work on STEM projects, compete in local and regional STEM competitions and engage with STEM undergraduates and professionals.

About 黑料吃瓜 MESA

MESA promotes STEM success for more than 28,000 educationally disadvantaged secondary, community college and four-year college students in California.