AAUWMNI - Community Service

AAUW Newport Mesa Irvine branch is a visible community force committed to education and equity for women and girls. We actively present, sponsor, and participate in community activities.
Tech Trek - Chair: Catherine Follett
“Because it takes fifteen years to create a scientist or advanced engineer, starting from when that young man or woman first gets hooked on science and math in elementary school, we should be embarking on an all-hands-on-deck, no-holds-barred no-budget-too-large crash program for science and engineering education immediately.” Thomas L. Friedman in The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century In AAUW we contribute to the economic solution Mr. Friedman calls for with Tech Trek--we sponsor 7th grade girls to live on a college campus where they can participate in science and math activities--also meeting women in those fields. What is Tech Trek? The first Tech Trek camp was started over 10 years ago at Stamford University and since that time has spread to seven different sites, including for the first time in July 2010 a camp at UC Irvine. Tech Trek is a mathematics and science camp designed to develop interests, excitement and self confidence in girls who will enter eighth grade in the fall. All sleeping, eating, instructional and recreation facilities are located at the university or college. Campers are assigned to either a math or science core class that they attend each day. In addition, off site field trips are planned to offer more interaction and a different instructional settings. This year during the UCI camp they visited Crystal Cove, the Newport Nautical Museum and took a boat tour out of Newport Beach with a marine biologist. Core classes are taught by certificated middle school or high school teachers who also plan different rotating labs. Evening activities provide the girls with the opportunity to meet different women who have chosen a career in mathematics or science. This year’s group visited the UCI observatory and heard a nutritionist speak among others. The Newport-Mesa-Irvine branch of American Association of University Women has sponsored girls to attend camps at Stamford, UC San Diego and this year at UCI. After an interview process, our branch selected five girls from South Lake Middle School in Irvine to attend the UCI camp in July 2010. The girls were Ali Coll, Gigi Olmedo, London Pickney LaRee Solfua and Yasmine Yadollahi. If you would like to meet these girls as well as former campers, please plan to attend our September 25th Tech Trek Reunion. To view information about this year’s camp visit http://web.me.com/res20y26/TTirvine/TT_Home.html For further information about Tech Trek, please contact Catherine Follett at 949-673-7573 or at cmfollett2hotmail.com.
AAUW Newport-Mesa-Irvine PO Box 7413 Newport Beach, CA 92658 info@aauwnmi.org

“Because it takes fifteen years to create a scientist or advanced engineer, starting from when that young man or woman first gets hooked on science and math in elementary school, we should be embarking on an all-hands-on-deck, no-holds-barred no-budget-too-large crash program for science and engineering education immediately.”

Thomas L. Friedman in The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century

In AAUW we contribute to the economic solution Mr. Friedman calls for with Tech Trek--we sponsor 7th grade girls to live on a college campus where they can participate in science and math activities--also meeting women in those fields.

What is Tech Trek?

The first Tech Trek camp was started over 10 years ago at Stamford University and since that time has spread to seven different sites, including for the first time in July 2010 a camp at UC Irvine.

Tech Trek is a mathematics and science camp designed to develop interests, excitement and self confidence in girls who will enter eighth grade in the fall. All sleeping, eating, instructional and recreation facilities are located at the university or college.

Campers are assigned to either a math or science core class that they attend each day. In addition, off site field trips are planned to offer more interaction and a different instructional settings. This year during the UCI camp they visited Crystal Cove, the Newport Nautical Museum and took a boat tour out of Newport Beach with a marine biologist.

Core classes are taught by certificated middle school or high school teachers who also plan different rotating labs. Evening activities provide the girls with the opportunity to meet different women who have chosen a career in mathematics or science. This year’s group visited the UCI observatory and heard a nutritionist speak among others.
The Newport-Mesa-Irvine branch of American Association of University Women has sponsored girls to attend camps at Stamford, UC San Diego and this year at UCI. After an interview process, our branch selected five girls from South Lake Middle School in Irvine to attend the UCI camp in July 2010. The girls were Ali Coll, Gigi Olmedo, London Pickney LaRee Solfua and Yasmine Yadollahi. If you would like to meet these girls as well as former campers, please plan to attend our September 25th Tech Trek Reunion.

To view information about this year’s camp visit http://web.me.com/res20y26/TTirvine/TT_Home.html
For further information about Tech Trek, please contact Catherine Follett at 949-673-7573 or at cmfollett2hotmail.com.