Creating the Girls in STEM Program with SciTech

SciTech is a nonprofit interactive science museum in Batavia, Illinois that aims to build creativity and innovative engagement in STEM. This project focuses on creating and evaluating the success of a Girls in STEM program hosted at SciTech, which provides hands-on STEM experiences for preschool and elernentary school girls, a historically underrepresented community when it comes to STEM. Over the course of the project, research will assess participant engagement, identify strengths and areas for improvement, and develop new curriculum activities to increase the prograrn's impact. A mixed-methods approach, including surveys, interviev.s, and data analysis, will be used to tæasure effectiveness and retention. The findings from this program Will support SciTech's mission by informing curriculum development, strengthening funding proposals, and attracting more participants from a more diverse area of communities.