BOSTON (WHDH) - Girl Scouts of Eastern Massachusetts has launched its new STEM curriculum for Girl Scouts between the ages of 9 and 11 in partnership with Suffolk Construction in an effort to promote gender equality in the construction industry.
The patch-earning curriculum is part of Suffolk’s 10-year partnership with GSEMA. “Rebuild the Ratio” aims to bring 10 percent of all Girl Scouts in eastern Massachusetts through the curriculum and increase the number of women in Suffolk’s workforce from 28 percent to 38 percent in the next 10 years.
The first 41 Girl Scouts to earn this new patch took a tour of Suffolk’s national headquarters in Boston on Saturday.
“Our partnership with GSEMA and our Suffolk Rebuild the Ratio initiative demonstrate our commitment to closing the gender gap in construction and STEM careers,” said John Fish, Chairman and CEO of Suffolk. “We believe it is our responsibility, as an organization and as an industry, to provide the resources and education young women and girls need to pursue a career in the thriving fields of STEM and construction. We are thrilled to collaborate with GSEMA to achieve this ambitious vision.”
The “Juniors Who Build” curriculum will take Girl Scouts through a five-step process of building a treehouse, with options to choose an activity for each step. Upon completion of the program, Girl Scouts will be armed with knowledge of design and coordination, cost and estimation, planning, site management and safety, and trades.
“We are very grateful to Suffolk for their work and dedication on this partnership,” said GSEMA CEO Barbara Fortier. “This is just the beginning. Our goal is to create programming for each level of Girl Scouting to expose our Girl Scouts to many aspects of the construction industry. At Girl Scouts, it is important for us to provide programming in different career fields whether it be STEM, marketing, sales and/or finance.”
Suffolk and GSEMA are building and developing a talent pipeline that fosters future generations of girls’ and young women’s interest in STEM, increasing the potential to bridge the gender equality gap. The “Juniors Who Build” curriculum is just one way GSEMA and Suffolk will work to achieve these goals.
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