Annual summit shows girls STEM jobs are not just for the boys

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Today was all about girl power over at UNCW as about 100 young ladies showed off their skills in STEM fields.

The 8th annual Girls in Technology Summit put on by GE Hitachi showed students math, science, and engineering can be fun.

“I like experimenting with things and working in labs in class,” said 8th grader Alexis Hyman.

The summit hopes to show girls that STEM careers are not just for the boys.

“Exposing the girls to engineering. When I was a child if it wasn’t for parents and teachers that exposed me to things like Science Olympiad, I wouldn’t know that the engineering careers were out there as a possibility for myself,” said packaging engineer Kate Martin.

Martin said showing the girls what’s out there while they’re in middle school prepares them for high school when they can really specify their classes. She said the girls are incredible to work with and bring a new perspective to problem solving.

“I was there to maybe talk about some of the mechanical concepts but other than that they sort of led themselves. So it was kind of inspirational to see them just take it an go,” Martin said.

And it doesn’t hurt that the kids took home some valuable lessons as well.