EITC Sample Press Release - Idaho's Career Pioneer Network
EITC Sample Press Release - Idaho's Career Pioneer Network
EITC Sample Press Release - Idaho's Career Pioneer Network
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Conquering the Gender Gap<br />
Conference aims to encourage middle school girls to<br />
pursue non-traditional careers<br />
-Staff Writer-<br />
How can girls break through the glass ceiling? By learning about math, science,<br />
engineering and technology (STEM) careers at the 2012 Expanding Your Horizons<br />
(EYH) conference at Eastern Idaho Technical College (<strong>EITC</strong>).<br />
Hosted by the Center for New Directions and the <strong>Career</strong> <strong>Pioneer</strong> <strong>Network</strong>, this<br />
day-long conference is aimed at girls in grades sixth through eight. This event will<br />
take place on May 12 and will include hands-on activities and STEM-based<br />
projects. Through these exciting hands-on workshops, young women learn that<br />
exploring male-dominated careers can be fun, rewarding and vital to preparation<br />
for higher education.<br />
“While most girls have met a female nurse or school teacher, fewer have met a chemical<br />
engineer or computer scientist,” says <strong>Career</strong> <strong>Pioneer</strong> <strong>Network</strong> Facilitator Yvonne Perez.<br />
“This initiative is part of a statewide effort to increase enrollment into nontraditional<br />
programs of study at six technical colleges from across the state.”<br />
At the conference, girls will have the opportunity to meet STEM role models from<br />
our community and learn more about careers. EYH’s ultimate goal is to motivate<br />
girls to become innovative and creative thinkers ready to meet 21st century<br />
workforce needs.<br />
By using local volunteers to lead workshops, conference planners and sponsors<br />
including Mountain View Hospital, have been able to reduce the registration fee to<br />
only $5 with scholarships available for low-income students. Parents are welcome<br />
to attend at no charge.<br />
“Only 11% of practicing engineers are women according to the Department of<br />
Labor,” continues Perez. “But the job market both locally and nationally is in need<br />
of highly skilled workers in all careers based on science, technology, engineering<br />
and mathematics (STEM). Plus, although women make up almost half of the U.S.
workforce, they hold only 24% of STEM occupations. We seek to close the gender<br />
gap.”<br />
The event’s keynote speaker is nuclear engineer Dr. Mary Lou Dunzik-Gougar<br />
who has been Assistant Professor of Nuclear Engineering at Idaho State University<br />
(ISU) with joint appointment as a researcher at the Idaho National Laboratory. Her<br />
research interests include the nuclear fuel cycle, systems modeling, spent fuel<br />
processing, and waste form development.<br />
For more information, visit<br />
www.expandingyourhorizons.org/conferences/EYHat<strong>EITC</strong> or call Cathy at 524-<br />
3000 ext. 3363 or Yvonne at 524-3000 ext. 3609