Girls Explore Photonics Technologies at 2nd Annual Tech Like A Girl - Feb. 21, 2018
Fort Pierce, Florida (February 21, 2018) – LASER-TEC, Center for Laser and Fiber Optics Education and Stuart AAUW (American Association of University Women) partnered once again to offer a four-Saturday STEM camp on the Treasure Coast for middle and high school girls. The camp was held at the Fort Pierce and Stuart campuses of Indian River State College (IRSC), from January 20 – February 10, 2018.
The first session focused on successful women who have careers in photonics related STEM fields. Campers were introduced to Dr. Anni Vuorenkoski Dalgleish, Assistant Research Professor at Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute, Cindy Boyd, CEO of PCS Fiber Inc., Dr. Desiré Whitmore, Assistant Professor of Photonics at Irvine Valley Community College, and Dr. Abbie Watnik, Research Physicist at Navy Research Labs. All of these inspiring and dynamic women spoke about their personal experiences and the exciting and upcoming technologies that lie within their profession. Heather Hunt-Gonzalez, a student from the Robotics & Photonics Institute at Indian River State College, also spoke to the girls about her decision to study at the Robotics and Photonics Institute of IRSC.
In the second and third sessions, girls began their hands-on activities by making a DIY Fiber Optics Lamp with the choice of a primary or secondary LED light color. This taught the girls about light, fiber optics, electronics, and more. Another project was to build and solder their very own Laser Enabled Security System, engineered by Dr. Chrys Panayiotou, Director of LASER-TEC and Department Chair of Electronics Engineering Technology at IRSC. Campers learned to identify an array of electronics components and how to solder those components on to a circuit board.
Throughout all four sessions, girls were also taught to design a website and use it as a portfolio to convey all that they learned from the camp. They populated their sites with information they learned about various STEM technologies, photos that they took while attending, and their overall thoughts on each session of the camp. During the final session, girls presented the websites they created and set up their security systems to show to family and friends after the presentation.
This initiative was designed to interest girls in the areas of STEM and to increase awareness of the high-tech, high-paying career opportunities both locally and throughout the country. The girls and their parents were made aware of the many opportunities for great careers in in many sectors of the economy where lasers and fiber optics are used. Campers were also advised of the courses they need to take in high school to put them in a successful career pathway. All of the girls who participated attend school in Martin, St. Lucie, and Indian River Counties, in Florida.
Thank you to all of the incredibly helpful volunteers from AAUW Stuart who assisted with all of the camp’s activities and provided lunch and snacks for the girls. To learn more about AAUW, visit http://stuart-fl.aauw.net/.
All girls were given a bag of goodies with a gift certificate from Cindy Boyd of PCS, the Women in Optics 2018 Planner provided by SPIE, and the laser security system kit provided by LASER-TEC/NSF.
To see the camp from the girls’ perspective, please visit the websites below showcasing their experience:
https://tlaggrace.weebly.com/
https://techlikeagirl18.weebly.com/
https://tlagsamantha.weebly.com/
LASER-TEC is a National Science Foundation Advanced Technological Education Center of Excellence in Lasers and Fiber Optics and is headquartered at Indian River State College, in Fort Pierce, Florida. It is an association of community and state colleges, universities, K-12 schools and technical centers, trade associations, and laser and fiber optic (LFO) companies. The Center’s mission is to develop a sustainable pipeline of qualified laser and fiber optic technicians to meet industry needs. For more information about the Tech Like a Girl event please contact Lauren Hays who coordinated all the activities and logistics at lhays@irsc.edu, 772-462-7179. For more information about LASER-TEC please contact Dr. Chrys Panayiotou, Executive Director at cpanayio@irsc.edu, 772-462-7621, or visit www.laser-tec.org
The first session focused on successful women who have careers in photonics related STEM fields. Campers were introduced to Dr. Anni Vuorenkoski Dalgleish, Assistant Research Professor at Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute, Cindy Boyd, CEO of PCS Fiber Inc., Dr. Desiré Whitmore, Assistant Professor of Photonics at Irvine Valley Community College, and Dr. Abbie Watnik, Research Physicist at Navy Research Labs. All of these inspiring and dynamic women spoke about their personal experiences and the exciting and upcoming technologies that lie within their profession. Heather Hunt-Gonzalez, a student from the Robotics & Photonics Institute at Indian River State College, also spoke to the girls about her decision to study at the Robotics and Photonics Institute of IRSC.
In the second and third sessions, girls began their hands-on activities by making a DIY Fiber Optics Lamp with the choice of a primary or secondary LED light color. This taught the girls about light, fiber optics, electronics, and more. Another project was to build and solder their very own Laser Enabled Security System, engineered by Dr. Chrys Panayiotou, Director of LASER-TEC and Department Chair of Electronics Engineering Technology at IRSC. Campers learned to identify an array of electronics components and how to solder those components on to a circuit board.
Throughout all four sessions, girls were also taught to design a website and use it as a portfolio to convey all that they learned from the camp. They populated their sites with information they learned about various STEM technologies, photos that they took while attending, and their overall thoughts on each session of the camp. During the final session, girls presented the websites they created and set up their security systems to show to family and friends after the presentation.
This initiative was designed to interest girls in the areas of STEM and to increase awareness of the high-tech, high-paying career opportunities both locally and throughout the country. The girls and their parents were made aware of the many opportunities for great careers in in many sectors of the economy where lasers and fiber optics are used. Campers were also advised of the courses they need to take in high school to put them in a successful career pathway. All of the girls who participated attend school in Martin, St. Lucie, and Indian River Counties, in Florida.
Thank you to all of the incredibly helpful volunteers from AAUW Stuart who assisted with all of the camp’s activities and provided lunch and snacks for the girls. To learn more about AAUW, visit http://stuart-fl.aauw.net/.
All girls were given a bag of goodies with a gift certificate from Cindy Boyd of PCS, the Women in Optics 2018 Planner provided by SPIE, and the laser security system kit provided by LASER-TEC/NSF.
To see the camp from the girls’ perspective, please visit the websites below showcasing their experience:
https://tlaggrace.weebly.com/
https://techlikeagirl18.weebly.com/
https://tlagsamantha.weebly.com/
LASER-TEC is a National Science Foundation Advanced Technological Education Center of Excellence in Lasers and Fiber Optics and is headquartered at Indian River State College, in Fort Pierce, Florida. It is an association of community and state colleges, universities, K-12 schools and technical centers, trade associations, and laser and fiber optic (LFO) companies. The Center’s mission is to develop a sustainable pipeline of qualified laser and fiber optic technicians to meet industry needs. For more information about the Tech Like a Girl event please contact Lauren Hays who coordinated all the activities and logistics at lhays@irsc.edu, 772-462-7179. For more information about LASER-TEC please contact Dr. Chrys Panayiotou, Executive Director at cpanayio@irsc.edu, 772-462-7621, or visit www.laser-tec.org
