Engineering Day at Google Inspires Future Scientists

Participants More Likely To Pursue College Majors, Careers in STEM

02/27/2008

In a dramatic demonstration of the power of role models and hands-on learning, nearly 95 percent of NCGS students who attended last week's Engineering Day workshops at Google campuses say they're more likely to pursue careers in the sciences.

Google has partnered with NCGS for the last several years in hosting an Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day, part of the National Engineers Week Foundation portfolio of programs.

Google Day in Mountain View Play CNET News video »

On February 21, students and teachers from The Chapin School and from The Nightingale-Bamford School were treated to a program of interactive, hands-on workshops using Google computer software, talking with young women engineer Google staff members, and tours of the ultra-modern and ultra-fun office spaces.

Similar events were held at the Google campuses in Mountain View, California, and Seattle, Washington, and were attended by students from NCGS member schools Castilleja School, Julia Morgan School for Girls and Annie Wright School.

An Overflow Crowd

The Google Day also included area Girl Scouts of America troops, giving NCGS students and Girl Scouts the opportunity to collaborate and make new friends as they put Google software to work in workshops and chatted over lunch. In New York, the day was so successful that Google has generously offered to host another day for other NCGS member schools including The Marymount School, The Spence School and The Brearly School on April 17th.

Approximately 95% of NCGS students attending the three events responded favorably when asked if they were more interested in pursuing engineering as a college major and career as a result of the Google Day.

"What's the catch?"

After being immersed in a typical day at the Google New York headquarters on 8th Avenue, a Chapin School student asked a Google staffer, "Well, so what's the catch?"

Laughter and nodding heads of students and teachers were the reaction to this comment by the girl who couldn't imagine why anyone wouldn't want to work in such an remarkable environment as the Google one-city block, several-floors-worth-of-campus.

So...what's the catch? The engineer who answer that question said, "Google pledges to offer an environment that's friendly to its employees...I guess the catch that we all really like to and want to be productive and design new products that will help everyone!"

An Array of New Resources

The National Coalition of Girls' Schools marked Engineers Week by announcing an array of new resources centered around STEM -- science, technology, engineering and math -- for girls and young women. In addition to member schools' participation in the Google campus events, NCGS unveiled its new STEM website (www.ncgs.org/stem) for teachers, students and parents. Created with the support of Google Inc. and The Margaret Hall Foundation, the site offers lesson plans, profiles of women scientists, and ideas for encouraging girls' achievement.

Also in time for Engineers Week, the Junior Engineering Technology Society (JETS), with the support of the Motorola Foundation's Innovation Generation Grant, provided NCGS member schools with classroom kits packed with learning materials. Among the items: curriculum development tools; DVDs and software; engineering competition invitations; and more.

About NCGS

NCGS is the leading expert on single-sex education for girls, representing all-girl schools across the United States plus international members and affiliates in Canada, Great Britain, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Our member schools reflect the full diversity of today's educational landscape: private, public, and charter... day and boarding... urban, suburban and rural... big and small. In the U.S. alone, nearly 54,000 girls and young women attend NCGS member schools. On the web: www.ncgs.org. Media contact: Carolyn Colletti, (978) 368-9086 or carolyncolletti@ncgs.org.