The West Virginia Chapter of the Association for Women in Science and West Virginia Wesleyan College will be hosting Expanding Your Horizons in Science and Mathematics, an educational conference that nurtures girls’ interest in science and math.

The event is open to girls in middle school in West Virginia and will be held on Saturday, (April 14) from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in Christopher Hall of Science on the campus of West Virginia Wesleyan College.

The West Virginia chapter of the association is a network of women in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math throughout the state who educate and advocate for women in science. Amy Keesee, a research assistant professor in the Department of Physics at West Virginia University, is the current president of the state chapter.

“West Virginia and U.S. economic competitiveness will depend upon a diverse, high-tech workforce to tackle the problems we face as a society,” Keesee said. “Studies have shown that middle school is a critical age to foster girls’ natural curiosity in science and math. The EYH conference provides an opportunity for girls to do some fun experiments while interacting with role models in successful science and math careers.”

Students will participate in hands-on workshops on a variety of science, engineering and mathematics topics. The workshops include: “Become a Legal Drug Dealer,” in which students will perform pharmacy experiments; “Living With a Star,” in which students will learn about the Sun; and “Gene-y In a Bottle,” in which students will learn about and extract their own DNA.

The workshops will be presented by faculty members and students from WVU and Marshall University. A program offered for parents, guardians and teachers of participants will include, “The Admissions and Financial Aid Process for College,” presented by a West Virginia Wesleyan College representative, and “Intro to the NASA IV&V Educator Resource Center,” presented by Amy Phillips from the NASA IV&V Facility in Fairmont.

The event is supported by a grant from the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission, Division of Science and Research.

Participants can register for the event at http://www.expandingyourhorizons.org/conferences/WestVirginia/ through Wednesday (April 4). A $5 registration fee applies for student registrations, with waivers available for economic hardship. There is no charge for the adult program.

Contact Dr. Amy Keesee, association president, at amy.keesee@mail.wvu.edu or 304-293-5113 for more information.

-WVU-

CONTACT: Amy Keesee, AWIS-WV president
304-293-5113, amy.keesee@mail.wvu.edu

Follow @WVUToday on Twitter.