Bay View Academy, together with its sponsors, Hasbro Inc. and Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) hosted the second annual Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) Conference this past Saturday, November 17th.
The event, open to girls from any school in grades five through eight in Rhode Island and Southeastern Massachusetts, was a great success, drawing 197 attendees representing 27 communities. All girls were provided with free transportation, breakfast, lunch, t-shirts, take home bags and the choice of three out of 16 available hands-on workshops related to the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, Medicine and Math (STEM).
The workshops, led by the Academy’s distinguished faculty and alumnae, covered all disciplines from medicine to Mars.
For example, Bay View science teacher Janell Johnson, Ph.D., led a workshop called “Into the Nucleus and Beyond!” which challenged the girls to analyze a DNA sample collected from a fictitious crime scene using DNA gel electrophoresis in order to determine which “suspect” was guilty.
Bay View Alumna Dr. Meredith Mulhearn’s (class of 1993) workshop, “How Vital Are Your Vitals?”, gave the girls the opportunity to measure vital signs like blood pressure, pulse, and oxygen levels.
Bay View Alumna Jennifer Huff Kushner (class of 2000) , who received her Bachelor of Arts from Wellesley College in Astrophysics, led “Red Rover, Red Rover, Send Mars Right Over!”. In this workshop girls recreated the study of planetary exploration through the examination of rock specimens and the use of their own classroom “Rover.”
Bay View’s WISE Conference, modeled after the very successful Women in Science Conference held at WPI, offers girls an opportunity to look at science, technology, engineering, medicine and mathematics in a fun, exciting, and educational way. Historically, women have been underrepresented in the sciences but Bay View Academy aims to change that and is committed to exposing young women to, and advancing them within, STEM fields.
The Academy has also announced its bookend to the WISE Conference, Women in Creative Careers¸ to take place for the first time on March 9, 2013. Women in Creative Careers will be the same type of free, workshop-centered event, open to girls from any school in grades five through eight from Rhode Island and surrounding Massachusetts areas. It will feature Visual Arts teachers from the Academy as well as distinguished alumnae with creative careers and promises to be an inspiring day that will delight and awaken the budding artist in all.
The list of WISE Presenters is as follows:
- Sharen Barboza ‘88, Ph.D.
Bay View Alumna; Director of Clinical Operations MHM Correctional Services, Inc. - Meg Battersby ’74 (East Providence, RI)
Bay View Faculty - Kerry Britt (Johnston, RI)
Bay View Parent; Assistant Pretreatment Manager, The Narragansett Bay Commission; BS Chemical Engineering, URI - Barbara Connors (East Providence,RI)
Bay View Faculty - Kris Durkay (Seekonk, MA)
Bay View Faculty - Cailyne Ghazarian ’05 (Coventry, RI)
Bay View Alumna; Emergency Room Physician’s Assistant at Rhode Island Hospital; Boston University, BS in Human Physiology, Massachusetts College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences, Masters of Physician Assistant Studies - Bill Goodwin (Middletown, RI)
Bay View Faculty - Janel Johnson, Ph.D. (Cranston, RI)
Bay View Faculty - Jennifer Huff Kushner ’00 (Westerly, RI)
Bay View Alumna; Scientist, B.A. Wellesley College 2004 Astrophysics; MIT Lincoln Laboratories - Jane Lavallee (East Providence, RI)
Bay View Faculty - Elisa Liberto ‘82, DMD (Exeter, RI)
Bay View Alumna; Graduate of Providence College and Tufts University School of Dental Medicine - Margaret Miller ‘79, MD (Cranston, RI)
Bay View Alumna; Associate Professor of Medicine, Alpert Medical School of Brown University; Director, Women's Medicine Collaborative - Meredith Mulhearn ’93, MD (Brookline, MA)
Bay View Alumna; Cardiologist, Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates; Brown University, BA 1997; Tufts University School of Medicine, MD 2004 - Lisa Tortorice Ragaza ’95 (Hamden, CT)
Bay View Alumna; Forensic Science Examiner, State of Connecticut; Tufts University, BS in Archaeology and Geological Sciences, 1999; University of New Haven, MS in Forensic Science, 2005 - Kristen Smith '08 (East Providence, RI)
Bay View Alumna; BS in engineering management student at Worchester Polytechnic Institute - Ann Coleman Stadtler ’61 (Wakefield, RI)
Bay View Alumna; Children’ Hospital Boston, Director, Site Development & Training, Brazelton Touchpoints Center; Boston College School of Nursing '65 BS; Catholic University '80 MSN; Northeastern University '12 DNP - Vanessa Volpe ’07 (Chapel Hill, NC)
Bay View Alumna; Doctoral Teaching and Research Fellow at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; BS in Psychology Applied Psychology, New York University; Ph.D. in Quantitative Developmental Psychology in progress, UNC-Chapel Hill - Britta Voss (Woods Hole, MA)
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Aquatic geochemistry research of rivers; BS in oceanography; University of Washington, 2009
St. Mary Academy-Bay View is an independent Catholic School for girls open to all faiths, Pre-kindergarten through Grade 12, located in East Providence, Rhode Island. In existence since 1874, Bay View endeavors to provide a quality education preparing girls and young women for the challenges of the global community. St. Mary Academy–Bay View is a college preparatory school accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges.
