Richland, Wash. – Up to 150 middle school girls from the Tri-Cities and the Yakima Valley will learn about nontraditional career opportunities Saturday at the Expanding Your Horizons conference.
The conference is from 8:55 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at WSU Tri-Cities, 2710 University Drive, Richland.
WSU Tri-Cities is the host of Expanding Your Horizons in partnership with the Yakima Valley/Tri-Cities MESA (Math, Engineering, Science Achievement) program, the Society of Women Engineers, and the American Association of University Women.
“Expanding Your Horizons is designed to show girls the career opportunities in nontraditional fields,” said Jorge Moreno, MESA middle school coordinator. “They get to meet professionals from various careers in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields and learn about non-traditional jobs for women.”
The event starts with a welcoming speech in the East Building Auditorium by Dr. Novella Bridges, a Battelle chemist.
The sixth- through eighth-grade girls each attend four 40-minute workshops in classrooms throughout the WSU Tri-Cities East and West buildings, where they will hear about careers such as electrical engineering, marine biology, law, and banking. The workshops include hands-on activities related to the career fields, plus advice on the kind of education and training needed for those jobs.
The closing session starts at about 1:40 p.m. in the East Building Auditorium.
In addition to Moreno, the Expanding Your Horizons committee members are Teresa Torres, Alicia Boyd, Marji Parker, Tammy Maruska and Alice Orrell, with technology support from Richard Fowler.
