Grade 9 students explore hands-on chemistry in a Medicine Hat College lab Wednesday.--NEWS PHOTO ANNA SMITH
asmith@medicinehatnews.com
More than 40 local girls had the opportunity Wednesday to glimpse a future in science with the 34th annual Operation Minerva.
Grade 9 students spent the morning shadowing various female professionals in a variety of fields, from engineers and explosion specialists, to nurses and sonographers. Senior scientific consultant Patty Rooks with Praxis Science Outreach says they try to showcase as many careers in STEM as possible to the girls, to demonstrate the sheer number of paths available in their home communities.
This year, the project has taken to a new locale and enjoyed attendance from more schools, evolving to continue to thrive in today’s landscape.
“This year, we’ve been lucky to partner with Medicine Hat College, so in the afternoon, we have so many workshops that the girls can do hands-on,” said Rooks. “We have everything from, again nursing, to chemistry, to physics.”
These workshops are especially valuable, says Rooks, as it offers opportunities for these students to get lab experience that they may otherwise be unable to gain outside of Operation Minerva.
“I had a student text me the other day or email me and said, ‘thank you very much for allowing me to do hands on science with you, because I went into my first university lab, and I was one of the few people who knew what an Erlenmeyer flask was,'” said Rooks.
Rooks expresses her gratitude to the community for support, as the program would not be possible to continue offering the day students without a willingness to serve as mentors, venues, or otherwise lend a hand to keep Operation Minerva a reality.
“I also think it is really important to just show these girls what careers are in our community. We need to show our students what careers are in our community that they don’t know about,” said Rooks. “Because they go away to university, but we really need them to come back and work here, because those careers exist outside of the larger cities. That’s how we keep our rural communities vibrant.”
She looks forward to seeing how the program continues to evolve in the years to come.
