STEM Engagement: NASA Earth Science Content and SciGirls Seven Strategies

SciGirls is a robust program designed to engage middle school girls in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). The program consists of three components: an Emmy Award-winning PBS television series, an interactive website, and a community of practice focused on research, training, and content. SciGirls has a foundation in seven proven research-based strategies to engage girls in STEM, along with complementary Role Model and Gender Equity strategies. Since the program's establishment in 2011, it has reached over 39 trainers, providing 139 trainings, resulting in 1,855 educators versed in SciGirls strategies. In 2014, NASA and the CERES Students' Cloud Observations On-Line (S'COOL) Project teamed up with SciGirls to film an episode as part of a third season of shows featuring a variety of Citizen Science projects. The S'COOL Project involves students and the public in real world science, making and reporting ground truth observations of clouds to assist in the validation of the CERES instrument and contributing to our understanding of how clouds affect our weather and climate in relation to the Earth's energy budget. The new season, including the Sky Girls episode featuring S'COOL was released in spring 2015 and is available on YouTube and local PBS stations. The S'COOL Project has held two role model training courses with a foundation in SciGirls strategies, reaching 38 NASA Professional and has seen a spike in program registration due to Sky Girls viewings. NASA Langley Research Center now has certified SciGirls trainers who have adapted the SciGirls Strategies to incorporate Earth science activities and NASA content. This presentation will walk attendees through the seven research proven strategies for engaging Girls in STEM, and NASA content and resources to assist in the implementation of those strategies, including the NASA SkyGirls Learning activity.