SCCC holds a class to promote women in STEM fields
April 16, 2018
At the center of a lego course in the computer room was two young ladies who were eagerly grabbing parts to construct a Lego Ev3 robot. Kaitlyn Thompson, a 6th grader at Seymour Rodgers, and Jordyn Sautter, a 4th grader at Meadowlark Elementary, played with the robot and even added ears and wings to their creation.
Behind this course is SCCC instructor Ed Hall. When asked why he introduced this course, Hall mentioned that he wants “to see more women in these classes because women focus more on details and that is essential for the STEM fields.”
The three-hour long course included the building of a robot and programming the robot to complete different challenges.
One of the biggest challenges for women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) is the big gender gap.
“24.4 percent of all computing jobs are held by women,” Hall explained, then added that “Hispanic and black women are underrepresented, we need more women in these fields.”
As for Thompson and Sautter, both of their passions started early on.
“I’ve always liked taking things apart and putting them back together” Sautter said.
Thomspon agreed with Sautter and added that she “likes the use of wires and motors.”
SCCC plans to continue to introduce women into STEM fields.
“We hope to to introduce more people in middle and high school early on so that they can get interested,” Hall said.
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