In the 2022-2023 school year at Oakdale High School, former junior Melissa Krajewski decided to start the Women in STEM club to form a safe space where students can share their interests in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
In this club, students with an interest in STEM get together and discuss academic and social topics. They also organize and attend monthly events. Ms. Angela Spencer, the club advisor, explains how the student members participate in community service and fundraisers to support related organizations. Guest speakers show up occasionally to mentor the members, and monthly resources related to events and scholarships are sent out.
This club benefits its members in many different ways. It gives them the opportunity to form a community with individuals that share common goals, interests, and passions. Ms. Spencer expressed, “the key is to empower each other to form this community of women leaders . . . and be there and show support for each other in a field that, in the past, was unrepresented by women.”
The club was started so that students with an interest in this field did not feel alone. Krajewski, the president of the club, shared her experience with being involved in STEM. She pointed out that she never really saw other girls in her engineering classes, and this made her feel out of place. “I wanna build a community so that other girls who are feeling that sort of isolation, and uncertainty, can have a space to communicate and participate with other girls.”
Since this is currently the club’s second year, it is relatively new. It surprised Krajewski that the club had a lot of participation in its first year. The president would prefer to keep a reasonable number that is not too big, so that members can be deeply involved and actively interacting within the club’s activities.
Krajewski guides the members and makes sure they have their necessary resources, while the students plan and work on the events themselves. She highlighted, “It’s a very student-driven club . . . the whole point is to get the girls engaged in doing and hosting the events while planning them out themselves, so that they can be more active in the community”
The club’s first meeting of the 2023-2024 school year was on Friday, November 17. In this meeting, both new and old members of the club introduced themselves and thought about what would be the club’s December event. Leadership positions were additionally discussed and assigned, and plans for communication and continuous meetings were made.
The club members had many ideas to share for the first event and other events to come, including many learning opportunities and guest speakers.
With the organized meetings and events, a community based on understanding and common goals is created. As the school year progresses, students will commit to the club and get involved further, working together for the same purpose, all while being united through a common interest and love for learning and experiencing STEM.
