LT’s Girls in Engineering, Math, and Science (GEMS) club organized its annual “Introduce a Girl to STEM Day” event for girls in fifth through eighth grade, providing middle schoolers an experience with high school STEM. 

“Our goal is to inspire girls to pursue their passions in STEM and empower them to overcome any barriers in their way,” GEMS Sponsor Julie Riederer said. “Girls who attend[ed] participate[d] in four STEM sessions [and] hear[d] from high school girls who are aspiring STEM women in a supportive and fun environment.” 

The event occurred on March 15 at SC from 9:45 a.m. to 1:45 p.m. and required a $35 fee for attendees to cover snacks, a pizza lunch, and a STEM T-shirt to celebrate the occasion. GEMS captains started the day with an opening ceremony and then divided the girls into groups that rotated through four activities covering science, technology, engineering, and math topics. The day ended with a guest speaker and a pizza party. 

“GEMS and ‘Introduce a Girl to STEM Day’ does an amazing job supporting women in STEM by educating them about the various fields and showing how they can be fun and cool,” GEMS captain Nora Duffy ‘26 said. “My favorite activity [from past years] was either the homemade lava lamps in the science room or calculating the distance of Barbies falling in the math room.”

The event’s goal is to spread awareness about women in STEM by educating young girls through fun activities and experiments related to the field, Duffy said. The event is also one of GEMS’s biggest fundraisers to support the following year’s club activities and field trips. 

“This club is important to influence other girls into getting involved in STEM,” Duffy said. “Many STEM fields are male-dominated so it can be helpful to educate and influence these women into these fields and give them the courage and confidence to do so.” 

Girls interested in learning more about STEM are encouraged to attend a GEMS meeting in J103 every other Tuesday from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

 For more information about the club, visit the GEMS Instagram @lthsgems.

“STEM always needs more women in the field,” GEMS captain Katherine Suttle ‘25 said. “Introducing girls into the field early on through events like ‘Introduce a Girl to STEM Day’ is a great way to build interest and support. Sharing the love of STEM with other girls and making fun memories is what makes this event and being a part of GEMS so special.”