No scary stories at this overnight camp. Instead 40 middle-school girls gathered last week at the Living Coast Discovery Center for hands-on learning workshops and mentorship opportunities as part of the Fleet Science Center’s BE WiSE (Better Education for Women in Science and Engineering) program.
The program, which hosts overnight events for girls from all over San Diego each year, is aimed at inspiring young women to develop an interest in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) to ultimately help shape the course of their future education and career paths.
Future leaders of clean energy
As part of the overnight camp, the girls met scientists and engineers in a variety of fields and participated in small mentorship sessions where they asked questions and took part in interactive workshops.
And for the team of female engineers at SDG&E, led by vice president of Electric System Operation, Katie Speirs, this provided the perfect opportunity to open their minds to energy and innovation where each girl got to design and prototype their own windmills. Speirs kicked off the workshop, which included developing a model windmill with oatmeal containers, straws and spoons that would serve as the structural foundation for a rotor blade design challenge. As part of the challenge, the model windmills were actually put into use to generate electricity on alternating currents, giving the students a small taste of the world of renewable energy.
At SDG&E, we proudly support programs committed to developing the next generation of leaders as well as engage in volunteer mentorship opportunities that highlight clean energy projects and innovative careers at our company. The thought is that the youth in our region will one day be the leaders of our company.
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