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TheNationalScience Foundation awardeda $2.4 million grant for aprogram that aims to introduce black middle school girls to robotics and engineering and nurturingtheir interest through high school and beyond.

Thenew Ujima Girls in Robotics Leadership (GIRL) Project is a free,hands-on engineering and robotics program designed to teachengineering and leadership in a culturally relevant environment togirls in middle and high school. The program is beingrun by the Universityof California Davis'Centerfor Integrated Computing and STEM Education (C-STEM).

TheUjima GIRL Camp takes an existing program, C-STEM's GIRL/GIRL+camps, and adds a cultural component for AfricanAmerican students. "Ujima" is a Swahili word for"collective work and responsibility," which, organizersexplained, is an important principle in many black/African Americanspaces.

Theprogram will work with community colleges in the state and the UmojaCommunity Education Foundation, to recruit AfricanAmerican college students to lead each camp, develop curriculum andserve as mentors.

Asprogram leaders noted, introducing girls to STEM activities in middleschool and nurturing that interest through high school increases thelikelihood that they'll stay in the field. The expectation is that bysupporting black girls' STEM skills in "identity-affirming, funand supportive environments," access barriers will lower andengagement with STEM will persist.

Theproject is being led by an interdisciplinary team:

Cheng'svision is to build a "mentoring pipeline" that will keepparticipants involved from their first Ujima GIRL Camp throughcollege. Ujima GIRL Camp alumni could return as assistant coacheswhen they reach high school and also participate in the GIRL+ Camp.GIRL/GIRL+ alumni in college can return as coaches. In addition,Cheng also wants to encourage participants to create their own UjimaGIRL clubs within their local schools, where they can share theirexperiences with other girls.

Inthe first three years, the program expects to host 48 Ujima GIRL and48 GIRL+ camps statewide, nurturing about 2,000 students. Ifsuccessful, the team hopes to increase that number and expand theprogram nationwide.

"Wewant to give students a life-changing experience and inspire them togo into college, post-secondary studies and careers in STEM,"said Cheng, in a statement. "This program will help them make areal-world connection with math, because we want to give them thetools to be successful in their academic programs and learn in theyears ahead."

"Thisis an exciting opportunity to further encourage the creativity,leadership and scientific genius of black girls and young women inways that many don't have access to in their day-to-day schooling,"added Mustafaa. "I am hopeful about the mutually empoweringbenefit of this project for the participants, our research team, andeveryone else involved."

"Thisgrant will illuminate the talent that our black girls already haveinside them and provide a safe and nurturing environment for growthand development," said Aldredge.

Theprogram is expected to launch next summer.

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning. She can be reached at [emailprotected] or on Twitter @schaffhauser.

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Grant Aims to Boost Equity in Robotics and Engineering -- THE Journal - T.H.E. Journal