Foster girls' interest in STEM early on. 

We strategically target girls in 4th-6th grade, based on a 2003 issue of the Journal of Women and Minorities in Science and Engineering that identified this age as the time period where girls begin to fall behind boys in terms of achievement and enthusiasm in STEM. These existing disparities underscore the need for outreach programs that engage young women, who have the potential to succeed in STEM fields but may be unaware of it. 

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Develop confidence through interacting with women role models.

We want our Explore participants to envision themselves excelling in STEM fields in the future. To achieve this, we surround the kids with women pursuing STEM degrees and careers who can share their authentic experiences of overcoming challenges and finding their love of STEM. Every Explore event is organized by 100+ women in STEM: Group Leaders who accompany the students throughout the day: Activity Leaders representing different STEM subfields and UM organizations (e.g., Society for Women in Physics, Girls Who Code), and UM faculty members who serve as keynote speakers.

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Encourage learning through diverse peer-to-peer interactions. 

There is so much to be learned from those who have different experiences and perspectives! To encourage participants to make new friends and learn from each other, we try to make sure that each Explore group consists of 12-15 students from different schools. We group students of the same grade together to establish common ground and start the day with icebreaker activities to spark new friendships.