Ginny Adams doesn’t have daughters, but she is passionate about keeping young girls interested in pursuing a college education and supporting efforts to retain women in the STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) workforce.

As Associate Dean of the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics at the University of Central Arkansas, she has spearheaded efforts that draw more than 300 eighth-grade girls from around the state to UCA’s campus each year for Girl Power in STEM.

Of course, Adams, who has two sons – ages 14 and 11 – believes in STEM for everyone.

“In an ideal world, we wouldn’t have to do things differently for girls vs. boys,” she says.

There are many underlying themes contributing to the low number of American women in STEM fields. The data shows that eighth grade is a pivot point for girls, when they start to lose interest in science and math.

“It’s not cool to be smart at that age,” Adams explains. “Some haven’t ever felt that sense of empowerment. They have the idea that girls just don’t do those kind of things.”

Adams, along with Michelle Talley, a senior software engineer at Acxiom and a member of the steering committee for Girl Power, offer the following advice to parents and teachers seeking to encourage their daughters and students to maintain an interest in STEM fields – tips that are also applicable to building self-esteem and confidence in general.

  1. Help your daughter understand that the most important key to success in STEM-related classes is persistence and drive. Also, make sure she understands that it is OK to fail sometimes. Remind her that she is capable of excelling in these classes. Some girls, especially bright ones, have a tendency to think that everything should be easy for them. If they don’t get a concept or idea quickly, they think maybe that is not the area for them. They need to learn to push through and try different approaches to solving the problems and enjoy this way of learning. 
  2. Encourage your daughter to go to as many STEM conferences and camps as you can. At these events, girls can meet girls with common interests as well as get exposure to crucial role models in STEM career fields. (See below for examples in Central Arkansas.)
  3. Recruit your daughters’ friends to attend with your daughter. Many girls are social and collaborative, and they are more likely to get involved and stay involved if they have friends working with them.
  4. Encourage your daughter to make new friends at STEM conferences and camps. Help her build a social network that is based on common STEM interests.
  5. Help your daughter identify role models and mentors in STEM. Girls need to see women excelling in all areas of math and science. You can often read about successful women by following organizations via social media. A Mighty Girl and the National Girls Collaborative Project highlight amazing women in all fields. Girls Who Code offers stories of females in Computer Science and IT. STEM conferences are another way to get exposure to mentors and role models.
  6. Help your daughter visualize how she can help solve problems using STEM education. Many girls want to help fix a problem in the world. 
  7. Show your daughter that STEM jobs are highly paid jobs with greater flexibility.

The following organizations offer STEM camps and workshops in central Arkansas for a variety of ages: