By Pamela Powers
Jul 18, 2016 Updated Oct 10, 2018
MENOMONIE — Seventh-grader Anna Thomley discovered at the UW-Stout STEPS program last week that she enjoyed soldering wires for a bug bot and how to set up the antennas to make it move.
Thomley of Prairie Farm also loved the chemistry classes at the Science, Technology, Engineering Preview Summer designed to teach girls going into seventh grade about careers and opportunities in science, technology, engineering and math.
“We learned a lot and it was a lot of fun,” she said, breaking into a smile. “We blew stuff up. It teaches you a lot. It helps show girls can do anything guys can do if not better.”
This is the 20th year of STEPS at UW-Stout. Over the years more than 3,000 campers have attended camps. This year there are four weeks of camps with about 40 girls per camp, said Wendy Stary, program director with STEPS and the director of plastics engineering. Camps continue until Aug. 4.
As part of the 20th anniversary a reunion of alumni campers is planned for 1 p.m. Tuesday, July 26, at 1 p.m. at the ballrooms in the Memorial Student Center. There will be a silent auction, tours and other activities. All alumni are invited but asked to RSVP to steps@uwstout.edu by Thursday.
STEPS started when the university found it difficult to find women faculty members in engineering and technology. The decision was made to start STEPS to expose girls to STEM careers.
It seems to be working, according to research, Stary said.
A 2005 survey showed campers were three times more likely to go into engineering or science related fields, Stary said.
Many girls enter middle school and for some unknown reason start to lose confidence in their abilities at math and science, Stary said.
“A big part of our job is not only exposing them to career fields but showing they are smart and they need to be confident in their abilities,” Stary said.
Meghan Walters, technology director for STEPS and a technology education teacher at Colby High School, was a STEPS camper in 2003.
“Without STEPS I would not be who I am,” she said. “I would not be a technology education teacher. It definitely changed my life.”
Campers made bug bots last week. They wired the robot, which reacts much like a Roomba vacuum cleaner, manufactured the plastic shell, and made other parts for the bug bot on campus.
Emma Mommsen, 12, of Menomonie said chemistry was her favorite part of the camp. Like Thomley she enjoyed making chemical reactions to make things explode.
Stella Glode of Eagan, Minn., said she enjoyed just learning more at all the classes.
However, she was also a fan of chemistry.
“We were able to blow up balloons,” she said. “We were able to take two chemicals and they exploded into a foamy mess.”
Contact: 715-556-9018, pamela.powers@ecpc.com, @MenomonieBureau on Twitter
Powers, Pamela. “Girls drawn to UW-Stout tech camp.” Leader-Telegram, July 18, 2018, https://www.leadertelegram.com/news/front-page/girls-drawn-to-uw-stout-tech-camp-w-video/article_035f9acf-4060-5cc6-b0d4-35cfdc0753fb.html.