• By 2010, jobs in science and engineering are expected to increase by 2.2 million. 
• In 2004, 56% of the U.S. professional workforce was female.  Only 25% of the STEM workforce is women, and they are most represented in social sciences.
• The percentage of girls who say they like science from 4th to 8th to 12th grade, goes from 66% to 47% to 48%, respectively.

Girl Scouts of the USA is committed to engaging girls in age-appropriate activities that make Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) approachable and fun.  We provide a supportive, all girl, learning environment that emphasizes collaboration, social and real-world relevance, and hands-on discovery.

GSUSA seeks to partner with the highest caliber educational and industry partners to aid us in this work, and we are proud to be partnering with the Optical Society of America’s Foundation (www.osa-foundation.org) (OSAF). The mission of OSAF is to support programs that advance youth science education, support optics and photonics education in developing nations, provide education and resources to underserved populations and support OSA’s Awards and Honors program.

Together, GSUSA and OSAF have developed a resource guide for girls, 11 – 15, called Lighten Up! Discovering the Science of Light.  Through fun, hands-on activities such as making their own sunset in a bottle, using Jell-O to understand how lenses work, and even making their own telescope, girls will learn about the exciting world of optics, and why it is so important to everyday life.  The guide also shows girls how the concepts they are learning relate to current research that impacts them today, and career profiles to highlight some of the many job opportunities in the field.  The book is available for free via download at http://www.studio2b.org/gossipyouneed/lighten_up.asp (PDF, 4.4MB)

Through this partnership, OSA’s Local Sections and Student Chapters are committed to working with area councils to help present program related to this topic and serve as mentors.  To find a section/chapter in your area, go to www.osa.org, click on Membership, and select Student Services or Local Sections from the menu.

The OSA Foundation supports philanthropic activities that help further the Optical Society of America’ s  mission to promote the generation, application and archiving of knowledge in optics and photonics and to disseminate this knowledge worldwide. Since its founding in 2002, the OSAF has funded over 75 programs and activities that help to inspire a new generation of scientists and engineers from around the world.