Hundreds of San Francisco Bay Area girls in grades 5 through 8, as well as their parents and teachers, are expected to join NASA astronaut Janice Voss on a journey of scientific discovery at the Sally Ride Science Festival, to be held at NASA's Ames Research Center on Sunday, May 21.
Designed to encourage girls and young women to pursue careers in math, science and engineering, the festival runs from 11:00 a.m. to 4:15 p.m., Pacific Time, and features an inspirational talk by Voss, a veteran of five space shuttle missions. Other events will include an interactive street fair with experiments, food and music, and workshops presented by female professionals in fields ranging from astrobiology to veterinary medicine.
Girls will have the opportunity to attend two of the 22 workshops offered. Workshop topics cover fire science to the magic of water, studying Earth's atmosphere to the creation of craters in the solar system, new materials for spacecraft to space elevators, paper airplanes to air traffic management, and more. Parents and teachers
will attend separate workshops dedicated to different methods to support these students' interests in science and math.
Former astronaut Sally Ride founded the festival to support the large numbers of girls and young women who are, or might become, interested in science, math and technology. The company creates innovative science experiences for girls that empower them, engage them, and encourage their interests. Along with the festivals, current programs include the TOY challenge, Sally Ride Science Camps, and Sally Ride Science-After-school clubs. Ride's publications include a science careers book series, a space book series, a science newsletter and other science materials.
Attendees are required to pre-register at online or by phone at 800-561-5161.
