The University of Wyoming will host a virtual Women in STEM conference for junior and high school students across the state on May 18.
The event has been in place for over 20 years.
Megan Candelaria, the associate director for the Wyoming NASA Space Grant Consortium, said the conference will look different this year since it's virtual.
But they'll have events that weren't possible in person, Candelaria said.
"Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is going to do a virtual presentation, and so the students will get to virtually interact with some of their animal ambassadors, which I think is going to be really cool," she said. "The Pacific Science Center is going to be doing a planetary geology activity that will be interactive; the students will get to be looking at geological features of different planets."
There will also be a career panel that features scientists from across the U.S. Candelaria said the goal is to provide role models for young women.
"Research shows if you can see someone and connect with someone, that you're far more likely to be like, 'Oh, I can do that. I can do what I see them doing,'" she said. "We want them to see all of these cool STEM careers and STEM activities and maybe think, 'Hey I can do that,' and get inspired to go into STEM themselves."
Have a question about this story? Please contact the reporter, Ashley Piccone, at apiccone@uwyo.edu.
