Girls Inc. Eureka!

"I have had the privilege of being part of Eureka! for the last four years. I have built long lasting friendships, job skills, and learned to care more about my academic career. I appreciate how Girls Inc. offers me many opportunities that I would otherwise not have had."
- Yvonne, age 17, Girls Inc. National Scholar

Call to Action

Girls have proven themselves to be as capable in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) fields as boys are; however, many girls opt out of STEM coursework early as a result of persisting stereotypes that girls—especially those from diverse ethnic backgrounds or from impoverished circumstances—cannot excel in these fields.

• According to the National Center for Education’s Science 2009 Report Card, only 21% of 12th graders demonstrated proficiency in science. Overall, male students scored higher than female students at all three grade level—4th, 8th, and 12th—assessments. This discrepancy was the widest among the 12th grade boys and girls.

• Girls continue to lag behind boys in course enrollment and advance placement exam participation in specific STEM subjects such as computer science, physics, and math.

• Women still represent fewer than one in five faculty members employed in computer science, mathematics, engineering, and the physical sciences collectively.

• According to the National Center for Education Statistics, lower income students are more likely than higher income students to have low math scores on national tests such as the National Assessment for Educational Progress (NAEP).

Girls Inc. Eureka! ®

Girls Inc. Eureka!®encourages girls ages 12-18 to explore career paths and post-secondary educational opportunities in STEM fields. The program begins by addressing girls in middle school who are at high risk of losing interest in STEM as they are beginning to set educational goals and identify future coursework.

The program begins with an intensive experience on a college campus for four to six weeks during the summer. For our girls, many of whom may be the first in their families to go to college, the experience of being on a college campus environment makes a lasting impression and shows them that they too can belong. Throughout the school year, there are opportunities for follow-up education as well as for paid internships focused on math, science, and technology.

Through Eureka!, girls are also provided with support to seek higher education. Girls Inc. staff members act as role models who encourage girls to seek scholarships through Girls Inc. and other sources and offer support and workshops around college applications, financial aid, test preparation, and career exploration that may lead to alternative post-secondary education opportunities.  

Girls Inc. Eureka!® Results

Girls who participated in Eureka! show increases in:

• Belief in their ability to attend college

• Knowledge of how to research college and financial aid options

• Knowledge of workplace dynamics

We view college enrollment as a measure of success of the program. Many Eureka! participants go on to college, making up a high percentage of Girls Inc. scholarship recipients each year. At one of our Eureka! sites, every single girl who completed the program started college after high school graduation for the past two years.

Goldman Sachs Impact

Four Girls Inc. affiliates currently offer Eureka! In 2009, 401 girls participated in the program. Last September, Girls Inc. was featured at the Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting with our Commitment to Action to expand the program.

 

Here are some of the ways your investment will support the expansion of Eureka! and make a difference in the lives of girls:

• For $10,000 you support a girl in Eureka! for the entire five-year program and give her the confidence to pursue STEM coursework.

• For $60,000 you will give a cohort of 30 girls the opportunity to participate in Eureka! for one year so that they can learn about career paths in the STEM fields—careers that, before participating in the program, may have felt impossible.

• For $300,000 you sponsor 30 girls in Eureka! throughout the entire five-year program and make possible for them a college education and paid internships in the STEM fields.

Girls Inc. is committed to expanding the Eureka! program to 28 more program sites over a five-year period and enroll 840 additional girls into this intensive, multi-year program, an expansion that is projected to cost $6 million. With seed capital of $3 million, Girls Inc. will be able to implement the expansion project and leverage this investment to sustain the program indefinitely.