Girls Solving Climate Challenges with STEM

K-12 STEAM education

Expand existing project, program, or initiative (expanding and continuing ongoing, successful work)

LACI’s Middle School Girls in STEM Education Program (MSG Program) addresses the chronic opportunity and gender disparities in STEM + Sustainability spaces. Girls in underresourced communities often lack access to critical science, math and engineering support, including up-to-date curriculum and laboratories (US News and World Report). Women made up 48% of the workforce but just 35% of STEM workers in the U.S. in 2021 (National Science Foundation), and remain underrepresented in clean technology due to a dearth of female role models, its perception as a male-dominated field, and a lack of institutional encouragement to pursue cleantech careers (CleanTechnica). LACI’s MSG Program builds a pipeline for future female innovators by delivering an immersive experience with opportunities for inquiry-based research, access to prototype development tools, and connections with women STEM professionals, thereby creating more access points to STEM learning and bridging chronic gender gaps.

In partnership with middle school science teachers in low-income communities like Boyle Heights, Watts and South LA, LACI has designed a research-backed curriculum aligned with Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) that emphasizes the relevance of school and STEM to future achievement, teaching students about climate change and ways they can make an impact to mitigate its effects, now and in the future. LACI works with a curriculum consultant to update the program guide and train teachers at our partner schools to deliver the program to 30 girls. During the three-month program, we engage the girls in a climate-related design challenge posed by one of our corporate partners. Previous design challenges include “Design an automated solar panel cleaner,” “Design a zero-emissions school bus,” and “Design an upcycled fashion line.” We provide the girls with Prototype Kits and pair them with mentors to support their ideation and design. At the conclusion of the program, the girls participate in a Demo Day, where they will showcase their prototypes and learn about additional opportunities to explore additional STEM + Sustainability programming.
MSG teacher Jillian Davenport from Hollenbeck Middle School shares the importance of having role models in STEM to help the girls envision a future that is possible, “It was important for the girls to see women and women of color in these spaces, so that they could see themselves as agents of change in making the world a better place.”

Of 76,500 STEM workers in LA, only 30% are women. Under 15,000 are Black or Hispanic/Latino (SmartAsset). This program introduces young girls to different STEM careers to foster critical thought about sustainability challenges in their communities and provides resources to encourage problem-solving.
Short-Term Goal: Engage 30-60 middle school girls from Low to Moderate Income communities across LA in exploring STEM + Sustainability careers.
Long-Term Goal: In 5 years, design a scalable program that includes prototype development, peer collaboration, mentorship and community action, inspiring at least 100 young girls annually to pursue STEM education and create solutions to climate-related challenges.
There is more demand for the program than we can accommodate. Support from LA2050 would allow LACI to scale the program. We are developing plans to reach more girls through cohorts at new partner schools and considering an alumnae program to extend the pipeline of support into high school.

LACI measures goals and outcomes at the close of each MSG program cohort:
Goals: 1) Introduce cleantech concepts and opportunities; 2) Highlight the relevance of participants’ current STEM courses to climate crisis solutions and encourage STEM + Sustainability career exploration; 3) Create opportunities to apply program knowledge towards sustainability solutions
Outcomes: 1) At least 50% increase in knowledge of climate change/clean technology; 2) At least 80% of the girls see themselves as future STEM Professionals; 3) 100% of the girls build critical skills in design thinking, prototype development and sustained R&D
Measurements: 1) Pre/Post-surveys; 2) Post-surveys; 3) Final project presentations on Demo Day
Pre/Post survey feedback from the girls highlights a marked increase in scores around “I can be a STEM Professional if I want to be.” One girl noted a changed perspective. She learned “it is possible for anyone from anywhere no matter who they are to become an engineer in STEM.”

Each year, LACI collaborates with Katy Cleminson, our Curriculum Consultant with Intrepid Schools, who utilizes her background as a K-12 educator to craft climate-related curriculum in alignment with Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). Based on the selected Design Challenge for the cohort, Katy redesigns the Program Guide, provides updated Teacher Training, identifies prototype materials, and creates a Pacing Calendar to keep all schools on track for program completion.