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Interactive STEM Event For Middle Schoolers

Local middle school students will have the opportunity to embrace the fields of science, technology, engineering and math during an upcoming event at Grand Valley State University and Grand Rapids Community College.  It’s an interactive “STEM” program hosted by The Association of Women in Science-West Michigan. 

“I don’t believe that everyone needs to be a scientist any more than I believe that everyone needs to be a dancer, but I want people to know this is an option. It’s very fun and very creative. I don’t think people think it’s creative. And so, just to open up the options for people.”

Opening up the options and exploring the STEM fields of science, technology, engineering and math is what an upcoming conference is all about.  Karen Gipson is the President of the West Michigan Chapter of the Association of Women in Science or AWIS.  She’s also a Physics professor at GVSU. 

AWIS is hosting “Fall in Love with STEM” this Saturday.  It’s being held at Grand Valley State University and Grand Rapids Community College. Gipson says workshops and activities in the stem fields will be plentiful.

“So, the fields that are represented are geology, math, physics, biology and chemistry in Allendale and then downtown there are also sessions in the morning on cell and molecular biology and engineering."

Organizers says it’s an important event because it introduces the STEM fields to young people, in this case to those in middle school.

“So we want people to realize that STEM is important.. and that STEM is one aspect of a fulfilled life and for this activity that STEM is fun. We want young people not to be dissuaded from going into STEM fields based on anything, cultural, expectations, where they go to school if their school doesn't have resources to help them see that STEM activities are fun."

Registration for the event is open until Friday the 9th.  You can contact Karen Gipson at gipsonk@gvsu.edu for more information.

Jennifer is an award winning broadcast news journalist with more than two decades of professional television news experience including the nation's fifth largest news market. She's worked as both news reporter and news anchor for television and radio in markets from Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo all the way to San Francisco, California.