Hamilton Herald Masthead

Editorial


Front Page - Friday, December 23, 2011

Girl Scouts and AT&T advance high school girls in STEM




AT&T officials present a $25,000 IMAGINE grant to the Girl Scout Council of the Southern Appalachians on December 16. Grownups present included (L-R) council board chair Janice Greer, State Sen. Andy Berke, State Sen. Bo Watson and AT&T Regional Director Mary Stewart Lewis. Representing Troop 40502 were (L-R) 4th grade Girl Scouts Haley Taylor, Mary Sue Cooper and Zoe Brown. - David Laprad

As women gravitate away from science and engineering toward other professions, experts say employment in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) fields will continue to grow.

The Girl Scout Council of the Southern Appalachians and AT&T have launched an initiative to spark interest in STEM careers in 250 Chattanooga-area high school girls. Girl Scout volunteers will deliver the program, called “IMAGINE: Your STEM Future,” free of charge in select high schools.

As part of the program, AT&T on December 16 gave the local Girl Scout council a $25,000 IMAGINE grant.  The Chattanooga-area council is one of 18 AT&T selected through a national competitive process to receive an IMAGINE grant.

 “The Girl Scout Council of the Southern Appalachians has promising young women who are eager to learn and make a positive impact in both their personal lives and future careers,” said Council CEO Booth Kammann. “AT&T’s contribution enables us to expand our focus to help more girls explore educational and workforce options.”

IMAGINE is funded through a $1 million AT&T Aspire contribution to introduce 6,000 young women across the U.S. to career options in the science, technology, engineering and math fields. AT&T’s contribution is among the largest gifts made to Girl Scouts of the USA for STEM programs.

Other councils participating in IMAGINE include those in Los Angeles, St. Louis and Dallas.   v