GA Students Participate in STEM Conference

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Greenwich Academy announced the third annual Girls Advancing in STEM (GAINS) Conference to be held in Silicon Valley from April 2-4. Conference partners include SLAC National Accelerator Lab, the Stanford Office of Science Outreach, the Stanford School of Engineering.

Through small group discussions, lab facilities tours and a career mixer, the conference will offer opportunities for girls to interact with more than 40 female STEM professionals representing a variety of fields. Leading technology organizations such as Facebook, Tesla, and Common Sense Media will be hosting student groups and providing speakers for the conference. Students will also hear from Director of Stanford University’s Institute for Computational and Mathematical Engineering Dr. Margot Gerritsen, who will deliver the event’s opening keynote.

Students from across the country will attend the conference, including girls from: Greenwich High School; public and independent California schools; the Boys & Girls Club of Boston; Hockaday in Dallas, Tx.; Harpeth Hall in Nashville, Tenn.; St. Paul’s School in Concord, N.H.; and Milton Academy in Milton, Mass.

GAINS Network Director Dr. Ann Decker expects the event to empower and energize attendees. “We are delighted to be holding this conference in Silicon Valley, the heart of the global technology sector. Attendees will visit world-renowned technology facilities where they will meet women who are at the highest echelons of their professions, and connect with peers who also have a passion for STEM fields.”

“We are taking a leadership role in supporting girls pursuing STEM studies and that includes extending our efforts beyond GA,” said Greenwich Academy Head of School Molly King, “Not only are we inviting other schools and community organizations to participate in the network and conference, but thanks to the generosity of our sponsors, we have been able to offer travel grants to select students who would otherwise be unable to attend the conference.”

The mission of the GAINS Network is to connect girls and women with a passion for STEM so they may support, encourage, teach, and inspire one another. GAINS began in 2011 as a social media network to connect GA girls who self-identified as interested in STEM with women in the field. It has since evolved to include numerous schools and community organizations, its own website and virtual mentoring events, and the annual GAINS Conference. The inaugural conference was held in 2015 at the Whitehead Institute at MIT. The 2016 conference was held on the campuses of Duke University and the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill.

In addition to the partners mentioned above, this year’s conference is made possible by the generous support of Tim and Nancy Armstrong and the Edward E. Ford Foundation.

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