Workshops Offered During 2022 Girls STEM Summer Camp, Eureka!
- In summer of 2022, this camp ran from July 5th to July 29th from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
- STEM sessions were from 9:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. and from 12:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m., Monday through Thursday, for four weeks.
- Personal Development and Sport, Health and Wellness activities took place daily.
- Fridays were designated for career exploration.
- Each workshop session (two each day) was attended by approximately 15 girls with a number of Drexel facilitators and Girls inc. coordinators.
- Workshops took place in-person and included two cohorts of girls.
Photos from 2022 Workshops
2022 Workshops Offered
Week One
Introduction to Engineering Design
Instructor: Alissa Sperling and Maya Mueller (with Gabe Grajewski, Ramy Tajik, Bria Williams, Ali Rahmaninezhad, and Dezerae Kelley)
In this workshop, campers were introduced to the design process and participated in a school lunch redesign.
Introduction to Coding with Sphero Bots
Instructor: Gabe Grajewski and Ramy Tajik (with Alissa Sperling, Maya Mueller, Avani Kavathekar, Bria Williams, Dezerae Kelley, and Ali Rahmininezhad)
The campers were taught about coding and computer basics and were introduced to algorithms and robotics. They completed an exercise in drag and drop coding and worked on a simple text "syntax exercise." They also practiced programming from scratch, their Sphere Bots with a partner.
Egg Drop Challenge
Instructor: Ramy Tajik and Maya Mueller (with Alissa Sperling, Bria Williams, Dezerae Kelley, and Gabe Grajewski)
Campers were introduced to egg drop prototypes and simple physics via a YouTube video. They were then placed in groups of two and built a prototype to protect their eggs. Campers dropped their eggs in a competition from the second and third floor of the Main Building.
Visit to Academy of Natural Sciences and to Product Design Department at Drexel
Week Two
Solar Cars
Instructor: Maya Mueller, Avani Kavathekar and Bria Williams (with Alissa Sperling, Ali Rahmaninezhad, Dezerae Kelley, Ramy Tajik, and Gabe Grajewski)
Campers were presented with a video on solar cars and then built their own! After the cars were built, the girls took them out to the street to race them!
Capstone Design
Instructor: Alissa Sperling and Michael Glaser (with Dezerae Kelley, Maya Mueller, Gabe Grajewski, and Ramy Tajik)
Campers were introduced to a lesson on how to build a prototype and created a prototype proposal for their visit to the Academy of Natural Sciences.
Slender Tower Challenge
Instructor: Dani Schroeder, CAEE alum (with Alissa Sperling, Gabe Grajewski, Dezerae Kelley, Ramy Tajik, and Ali Rahmaninezhad)
Campers were put into two groups and challenged to design and build the tallest tower with the smallest footprint using just paper, tape and scissors.
Let's Care About Air
Instructor: Rahul Inaganti (with Alissa Sperling, Gabe Grajewski, Dezerae Kelley, Ali Rahmaninezhad, and Ramy Tajik)
Campers were given an air quality tool called the Aranet4, a battery powered, hand-held sensor that spot checks CO2 levels every five minutes. By determining CO2 levels for a particular area, they could make predictions about the effectiveness of ventilation systems and the overall air quality in that area.
Oil Spill Simulation
Instructor: Avani Kavathekar and Bria Williams (with Alissa Sperling, Ali Rahmaninezhad, Maya Mueller, and Dezerae Kelley)
Campers were introduced to a lesson on fossil fuels and oil spills, including the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. After the lesson, the campers were given materials to simulate an oil spill and then had to figure out the best way to clean the oil spill using various materials.
Motivational Talk with Terrance Harris, Inaugural Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusiveness
Week Three
Indoor Kites
Instructor: Dr. Richard Cairncross (with Alissa Sperling, Maya Mueller, Bria Williams, Dezerae Kelley, Ali Rahmaninezhad, Gabe Grajewski, Avani Kavathekar and Ramy Tajik)
Dr. Cairncross presented a lesson on how to make indoor kites, after which, each girl made their own. When the kites were completed, they took them to the Great Hall of the Main Building to fly them.
Sustainability Mapping and Scavenger Hunt
Instructor: Alissa Sperling (with Gabe Grajewski, Ali Rahmaninezhad, Avani Kavathekar, Maya Mueller, Bria Williams, and Dezerae Kelley)
During this workshop, campers were introduced to reporting and worked on community sustainability mapping, after which they uploaded to their google sites. After sustainability mapping, they participated in a scavenger hunt on campus.
Capstone Build in Westphal
Instructor: Alissa Sperling (with Gabe Grajewski, Dezerae Kelley, Ali Rahmaninezhad, and Ramy Tajik)
During this workshop, campers began to build their project for the Academy of Natural Sciences.
SWE Mechanical Hand Design
Instructor: Members of Drexel's Society of Women Engineers (with Alissa Sperling, Ali Rahmaninezhad, Dezerae Kelley, Maya Mueller, and Ramy Tajik)
In this workshop, participants made mechanical hands using various materials and were able to pick objects up using them.
Week Four
Introduction to Sustainable Design Project
Instructor: Alissa Sperling (with Avani Kavathekar, Dezerae Kelley, and Gabe Grajewski)
Campers were introduced to their final sustainable design project and performed research on their respective topics.
City Planning
Instructor: Alissa Sperling (with Maya Mueller and Ramy Tajik, and Ali Rahmininezhad)
Campers were introduced to their final sustainable design project and performed research on their respective topics.
Chocolate Tasting
Instructor: Dr. Rose Trout (with Alissa Sperling, Ramy Tajik, Maya Mueller, Ali Rahmaninezhad, Gabe Grajewski, and Dezerae Kelley)
Campers learned about the science of chocolate and where chocolate is grown and how it is made and then taste tested various types of chocolate.
Capstone Design
Instructor: Alissa Sperling (with Gabe Grajewski, Dezerae Kelley, Ali Rahmaninezhad, and Ramy Tajik)
Campers constructed their projects and walked over to the Academy of Natural Science to present them.
Project Presentations
During the last day of camp, the students presented their projects to a panel of Drexel faculty members and sustainability experts.