Synoptic volunteers at George Mason’s FOCUS Camp

Ilana had the pleasure of dropping in on STEM camp this summer for a quick visit. George Mason University hosts FOCUS camp – an exploratory week of science, technology, engineering, and math for Females of Color and those Underrepresented in STEM programs.

Ilana joined a panel to talk to the campers about careers in STEM. The panel represented the academic fields of computer science, industrial engineering, and chemical engineering, and the domains of radio frequency technologies, natural language processing, engineering standards in defense applications, and patent examination. The campers asked great questions about patents, college, engineering, success at work, success as an underrepresented person, and more.

The posters that the campers had on display in the meeting room discussed an impressively wide variety of topics: bias in AI, genetics, nursing, civil engineering, and more. It was clear from these poster projects and their participation in STEM Career Bingo, led virtually by another presenter, that the camp offered an array of perspectives and experiences for the campers.

We are proud to have contributed to this important learning experience!