The Women in Engineering Program (WEP) hosted its ninth annual Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day (Girl Day) Saturday, Feb. 20. Nearly 1,600 elementary and middle school girls visited campus to explore fun, grade-specific, hands-on engineering activities such as designing an electrical circuit to create an electric butterfly, creating bubble wands and the bounciest ball.
More than 40 activities and demonstrations were led by about 450 students, faculty and engineering professionals from university student organizations, corporate partners, community organizations and area colleges. The day ended with an interactive show from Science in the Movies. The show featured the engineering and science behind movie stunts such as explosions and building fires.
The event is designed to increases girls’ awareness of the contributions engineers make to daily life, encourage the study of math and science in school, and introduce girls to careers in engineering. Girl Day is part of Engineers Week, an international celebration of the contributions of engineers to the world, with programs designed to reach out to current and future generations of engineering talent.
Girl Day 2011 is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 26.
Videos from Girl Day 2010 are posted to the Women in Engineering Program Facebook page:
