Engineering camp builds career awareness and encourages diversity

More than 25 ninth and tenth grade girls from Long Beach High School stepped into a world of career opportunities in the science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields during the first Mississippi Power’s iCan! Girls in Engineering camp offered this year. The camps are an example of the company’s long legacy of supporting education and providing opportunities for women to excel in non-traditional roles.

In its third year to be offered in Mississippi, the iCan! Girls camps are expanding across the service area, with additional camps to be held in Hattiesburg and Meridian.

Lesley Lewis, manager of Mississippi Power’s Chevron Cogenerating Plant, was the keynote speaker and discussed her experiences and the importance of diversity in the workplace. Lewis, who holds a degree in engineering, became the company’s second female plant manager in 2010 when she was named to her current position.

“The basic idea is to introduce girls to the concepts of math, science, technology and engineering in a way that relates to them,” Lewis said. “The camp helps to break down the idea that these are male-dominated fields. This opportunity wasn’t offered to me, so I’m happy to help expose more girls to it.”

Through four workstations led by female engineers and co-op students, participants learned mechanical, electrical, industrial, civil, chemical and computer engineering concepts from hands-on interactions where they built and raced K’NEX cars, designed a high heel shoe, created lip balm and bath fizzies, and created and edited their own digitally animated movie.

“The female engineers who help plan and work these events are so passionate about what they do, it’s easy to see why the event has been a success,” Workforce Development and Education Representative Ann Holland said.

EMS Support Engineer Kate Szkolnik and Marketing Principal Lauren Taylor served as this year’s engineering leads.

“We want to build that relationship and continue it. We want to revisit these girls throughout their high school career, then three years down the road at graduation see if they are going to pursue a degree in engineering,” Szkolnik said. “We want to help impact their choice and continue to mentor them as they enter the workforce – hopefully as Mississippi Power employees.”

“I always enjoyed and excelled at math and science, but I didn’t realize that being an engineer was a possibility until I spoke with my brother,” Taylor said. “I hope, because of this camp, these girls are able to realize their potential earlier than I did.”

Between workstations and speaker presentations, participants were able to get information from Louisiana State University, University of South Alabama and Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, who set up booths.

The upcoming Hattiesburg camp will feature Valerie Wade, manager of Plant Daniel in Escatawpa, as the keynote speaker. Wade, who spoke at last year’s camp, became the company’s first female plant manager when she joined Mississippi Power in 2008 as the manager of Plant Watson in Gulfport before moving to Plant Daniel in Escatawpa in 2010.

“Last year I discussed how I got involved in engineering, my career progression and the need for women in engineering,” said Wade. “I also talked about the different career paths you can take with an engineering degree and some of the challenges in college as an engineering major.

“This year I plan to have a similar conversation with the group. In addition, I intend to encourage the girls to do their research when choosing a university and to take advantage of all that comes with the experience. The education process has grown so much since I was a student and now offers unique ways to get real world experience such as robotics and rocket building competitions.”