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| (L-R) Cathy Coughlin, AT&T Executive Vice President and Chief Global Marketing Officer, Lauren Carter, Emily Fontes, Maria Zepeda, Samantha Belcher and Marachel Knight, AT&T Vice President of Technology Reliability Centers. |
Lauren Carter, a Girl Scout from Collinsville, travelled to the Girl Scouts of the USA’s National Convention in Salt Lake City recently to participate in the Girl Scout Leadership Institute. While at the convention, Lauren and three other Girl Scouts from Nevada, California and West Virginia met with senior AT&T representatives to talk about girls today and Science, Technology, Engineering & Math (STEM)
Girl Scouts of
Southern Illinois (GSSI) was one of four councils nationwide that received a $72,000
grant from Girl Scouts of the USA and AT&T to advance Science, Technology,
Engineering & Math for 200 girls in 10th-12th grades
in the Collinsville and East St. Louis School District. The grant is part of a partnership between
GSUSA and AT&T through a program called Imagine
Your STEM Future.
Lauren and other
Girl Scouts had breakfast with Cathy Coughlin, GSUSA Board Member, AT&T
Executive Vice President and Chief Global Marketing Officer and Marachel
Knight, AT&T Vice President of Technology Reliability Centers. Lauren shared about her Girl Scouting
journey and STEM experiences and how both have positively impacted her. “I love the Girl Scouts and I love Science,
Technology, Engineering & Math,” Lauren said. “Thank you AT&T for supporting the Girl
Scouts and providing more girls STEM opportunities.”
As the result of a
$625,000 national contribution from A&T Aspire—a long-time supporter of
Girl Scouting—Girl Scouts of Southern Illinois is implementing “Imagine Your
STEM Future.” Through this program, GSSI will inspire even more girls to pursue
STEM fields. “Imagine Your STEM Future”
will be implemented as a natural addition to the Girl Scout Leadership
Experience (GSLE), where girls will gain leadership skills by engaging with
program materials in the context of the three Girl Scout processes: girl-led,
learning by doing, and cooperative learning.
“We are thrilled to receive this Imagine
Your STEM Future grant from GSUSA and AT&T,” said Micah Bolandis, Director
of Mission Delivery. “Today’s girls need
programming that will introduce them to a variety of career options in the
science, technology, engineering and math fields. GSSI has an extensive STEM program that
allows girls to participate in a variety of STEM initiatives like programming
robots, building bridges, candy chemistry and STEM Explosion Day Camp. In fact, more than 1,728 girls participated
in a STEM program in the past year,” Bolandis added.
The contribution
from AT&T is part of AT&T Aspire, the company’s signature education
initiative, focusing on school success and workforce readiness. Beyond funding, AT&T
employees are giving their time by providing mentoring, which is a part of the
company's commitment for one million hours of mentoring by 2016.
More specifically, “Imagine Your STEM Future” will provide after school
STEM and mentoring activities to 800 girls in four councils across the country,
75% of which are at-risk of dropping out of high school. This program will also
increase local involvement of community and professional volunteers, and the
program’s outcome will be measured by girls’ academic performance.
Girl Scouts leads the nation in empowering girls to pursue their natural
interests in STEM. Girls exposed to STEM activities and careers while being
encouraged by professional mentors will not only be more likely to graduate
high school on time, but also be more likely to excel in STEM-related subjects
in school, explore post-secondary education in STEM, and consider STEM-related
careers in which women are historically underrepresented.
Girl Scouts of Southern Illinois serves
14,000 girls and 4,800 adult volunteers in more than 40 counties in southern
Illinois. Girl Scouting has inspired
more than 50 million girls and women since its founding in 1912.
About AT&T Philanthropy
AT&T
Inc. is committed to advancing education, strengthening communities and
improving lives. Through its community initiatives, AT&T has a long history
of investing in projects that create learning opportunities; promote academic
and economic achievement; or address community needs. In 2013, more than $130
million was contributed or directed through corporate-, employee-, social
investment- and AT&T Foundation-giving programs. AT&T Aspire is
AT&T’s signature education initiative that drives innovation in education by
bringing diverse resources to bear on the issue including funding, technology,
employee volunteerism, and mentoring.
