The third annual Los Alamos National Laboratory Summer Physics Camp for Young Women has concluded in Pojoaque, giving 22 participants from Northern New Mexico communities a grounding in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines, introducing them to role models and showcasing the wide range of STEM opportunities available at the Lab.

“The free camp aims at empowering local young women to explore a future in STEM by showcasing topics through demonstrations and hands-on experiments and lectures,” said camp organizer Anna Llobet (Neutron Science & Techonology, P-23).  (Llobet recently won a Distinguished Performance Award for her efforts with the camp.)

“The camp also connects the participants to role models who share their career paths and explain what the day-to day-work looks like. The ultimate goals are to inspire the youth in our neighboring communities and increase the diversity in STEM fields generally, and in the Lab’s workforce in particular.”

Not your typical summer camp

A total of 94 volunteers (60 of whom were female) led demonstrations and hands-on experiments and gave talks on concepts including electricity, magnetism, atomic structure, particle physics, space exploration, computing and modeling. The campers, from 14 high schools across Northern New Mexico, had the opportunity to learn how to solder or build and program their own computer.

“I’ve learned so much in the past two weeks, and every day has opened my eyes further to what I can accomplish,” said student Judith Allison from Santa Fe. “I loved meeting all the female scientists and hearing their stories and what they went through to get where they wanted to go.”

The educational leaders were DOE Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellow Pascale Creek Pinner and Los Alamos Middle School science teacher Megan Rains.

A STEM start

“While 45% of the students were strongly considering a college future in STEM before of the camp, only 55% of the students reported having any family members working in STEM fields, indicating a strong need for STEM role models in our local student population,” said Llobet.

To underline the wide range of STEM careers available, especially at Los Alamos National Laboratory, the camp visited lab research facilities including LANSCE, the Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy Lab, the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory and the New Mexico Consortium Biolab.

Students also received guidance on professional development, including resumé and interview tips, and information about student internships at the Lab and opportunities at local colleges.

“This has truly inspired me even more to pursue a STEM career and maybe even get a full-time job at LANL,” said camper Ariana Garcia, who attends Capital High School in Santa Fe.