Ms. Elwood
On February 12th, 2025, Somerville High School’s Women in STEM (WiSTEM) Club hosted its inaugural conference, a full-day event held in the SHS auditorium and media center. The conference welcomed female students from the high school as well as eighth-grade girls from Somerville and Branchburg middle schools. The purpose of the event was to encourage young women to pursue careers in STEM, with physics teacher Ms. Lawless addressing the current STEM crisis and emphasizing that there should be no limits for women in these fields.
The day was packed with engaging activities designed to inspire the attendees. The conference began with a complimentary breakfast, followed by icebreaker sessions to help students from the three schools get to know one another. Afterwards, advisors Ms. Elwood and Ms. Lawless discussed the critical role of women in STEM. The club’s founders—Jilian Puluka, Ava Azzinnari, Emily Palko, and Gabby Skrivanek—then shared their personal journeys in STEM and reflected on the significance of the club to them.
Following the introductions, Dr. Lauren Poole from Rutgers University delivered a mini-lecture on fibrin and fibrinogen in mice and how this research relates to liver damage in humans. Students remarked that her presentation was far more fascinating than they had anticipated. The event continued with a Q&A panel featuring eight women currently working in STEM fields. They shared insights into their daily lives and the paths that led them to their careers. Importantly, they spoke candidly about the challenges of failure, the value of perseverance, and the fact that no one needs to have their future entirely figured out—regardless of their age. The panel was a powerful source of inspiration for the passionate attendees.
After a brief lunch break, the conference participants split into small groups to explore a series of hands-on activities. These included a mini-forensics lab highlighting SHS’s forensics class, a crafting session that involved building functional lights, an in-depth discussion on fibrinogen, an engineering booth led by junior Tegan Dingwall, and a chemistry demonstration by Mrs. Lang, the school’s chemistry teacher. The goal of this segment was to showcase the various science courses offered at SHS and to help students discover their particular areas of interest.
Overall, the day was a resounding success. Many students expressed heightened interest in STEM fields, and there was a palpable sense of enthusiasm throughout the event. The impact was especially significant for the middle schoolers, with eighth-grader Annantika Singh from SMS noting, “I think science is pretty interesting if you look into it, and I think it’s a fun subject that we don’t talk about often. I’d like to take [science classes] more.” High school students echoed similar sentiments, expressing excitement about the possibility of pursuing STEM careers.
