Teen founded nonprofit to bring STEM to 'Murdertown, USA'
This post is part of Mashable's ongoing series The Women Fixing STEM, which highlights trailblazing women in science, tech, engineering, and math, as well as initiatives and organizations working to close the industries' gender gaps.
Around 9am on a weekend day, about 50 girls, all between ages 6 and 13, come into the Wilmington Parks and Recreation building in Wilmington, Delaware. Waiting for them are trays, aprons, gloves, goggles, and beakers on top of the tables. There are small cups of chemicals like borax and up front, a ringmaster in the form of a 16-year-old girl: Jacqueline Means, known locally as the STEM Queen.
Means gives the assembled girls a rundown of their day and briefly explains what science experiments she has in store for them. The ones she chooses are eye catching – maybe the catalyst of yeast for elephant toothpaste or the bonding of borax and glue in slime. Means says she aims to show the girls that STEM is exciting, fun, and most importantly, accessible to them.
SEE ALSO:2 kickass women teach girls to code in neon-lit pop-up classroom“When it's a girl's first time coming in and they learn that they will be doing some science and math today. I can kind of see it on their faces,” says Means. “What's going on? Is this going to be boring? Is it going to be fun?"
Two years ago, Means founded the Wilmington Urban STEM Initiative, an organization dedicated to bringing STEM to underserved girls of Wilmington, a city that has earned the nickname “Murdertown, U.S.A.” for high rates of violent crime. Means and her brother were prohibited by their mother from playing outside when they were younger. A shooting had taken place across the street from their home and JoAnn, Means’ mother, wasn’t taking any chances.
“I knew from then that I loved science."
Means developed an interest in science from a young age, after her parents gave her a science kit around age 9. “I knew from then that I loved science,” she says. Means and her brother Johnny spent time tutoring younger kids at an after-school program in a community center a couple blocks from their home. Frustrated that there weren’t affordable science enrichment programs available, Means channeled her love of science and volunteering into creating a free program for young people in her community, specifically girls of color. She essentially created the option she wished she’d had.
“I decided to start my own STEM initiative and program because I wanted kids in Wilmington to have the same opportunities that other kids often get,” Means says.
But before they get to the science experiments, there’s a guest speaker to listen to, who will talk about overcoming obstacles and the power of believing in one’s self. “I think the girls, especially coming from a world surrounded by negativity, really benefit from hearing [their stories],” Means says.
When the program gets fully underway, Means takes the girls through hands-on science experiments – like making their own slime out of borax powder, water and food dye – she sees them grinning with excitement.
“It's just really great to see them transform from coming in and really not wanting to do anything to being so involved and so hands-on with everything we do,” she says.
Positive role models
Natalye Madric and her 13-year-old daughter Tayla Robeson say that they are grateful for the work Jacqueline is doing for the young people in the community. Madric says she especially admires Jacqueline’s inclusive nature, and that the events provide the youth with a positive environment.
“If a mom doesn’t have child care coverage, Jacqueline accommodates for the younger siblings or brothers to participate,” Madric says. "Her bringing the STEM initiative to the community allows kids to have the outlet that they need to not roam the streets and make negative choices. My daughter can look up to her and say, 'Wow, I can do that one day.'"
"My daughter can look up to her and say, 'Wow, I can do that one day.'"
Tayla said that after attending Jacqueline’s STEM events, her science grades improved. “I love the experiments she does and I invite my friends to come after because it’s so much fun,” Tayla says.
Improving science education can be an uphill battle in Wilmington, a city with one of the highest dropout rates in the country. The local high school has a 60 percent dropout rate.
“I show them that aiming high is a realistic goal, and that by believing in one’s own abilities and working hard, it is possible to face any challenge and overcome obstacles, and that they can build their confidence and belief in themselves and know that they absolutely can be a scientist, a technologist, an engineer, a mathematician, or anything else they set their mind to,” Means says.
“By letting the girls know I live right here in the same community as they do and that they don't have to fall into the typical negative stereotypes, I offer them hope as a role model, teacher, and friend,” she says.
Means is graduating from high school next year, and plans on using her passion for STEM at Princeton University or the University of Delaware.
“Once I graduate from one of those colleges, I want to go to med school, and then be a surgical intern, then have my residency, and then be a neurosurgeon!” she says with confidence. It’s a confidence she wants to share and incubate in the girls she teaches.
“I know that through my events [...] it is possible to face any challenge and overcome obstacles, and that they can build their confidence and belief in themselves and know that they absolutely can be a scientist, a technologist, an engineer, a mathematician, or anything else they set their mind to.”
UPDATE: April 8, 2019, 10:13 a.m. EDT This post originally referred to Means' organization as a "non-profit." She hasn't officially registered it as such, so the story has been updated to reflect that.
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