“Only 11.5 percent of all engineers in the U.S. are women, according to the National Science Foundation, and business leaders say it is critical that more young women consider a career in engineering to help bridge the gap.

The Verizon Foundation is enabling Tufts University’s Center for Engineering and Education Outreach to help attract more girls to the field of engineering.  The foundation has provided a $60,000 grant to support a program that will provide fourth- and fifth-grade teachers and students in the Boston, Medford and Somerville public schools with more training and tools for teaching science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). 

The grant will enable teachers to attend an engineering-focused professional-development workshop in the summer, support classrooms with undergraduate fellows who will provide students with engineering role models, and offer scholarships to girls to attend a STEM-focused summer camp.”

read the rest of the press release here