Tech Trek Participants

WHAT IS TECH TREK?

Tech Trek is a weeklong summer camp for girls entering eighth grade. The students chosen to attend must show interest and potential in mathematics, science and computer technology. Girls from our area spend six days and nights on the campus of UCSD, living as college students do. During part of the day they attend classes and also choose from a number of rotating labs. They have designed robotic cars, built roller coasters, extracted DNA samples, created a web site and studied marine biology during boat trips on the bay. Their days are rounded out with talks from guest speakers and field trips to local biotech businesses.

RANCHO BERNARDO BRANCH INVOLVEMENT

In 2006 our Rancho Bernardo Branch sponsored nine girls from Twin Peaks Middle School and six from Bernardo Heights Middle School. Our Branch received very generous financial support from local businesses - $6,000 from Qualcomm Corporation, $2500 from Biosite, $2100 from Biogen-Idec., $1300 from Sony Corporation, $1000 from Rancho Bernardo Rotary Club, $700 from SAIC, and $200 from Robyn Cole - to provide grants that paid the camp fees for sixteen campers this year and more in the coming year. To be considered, a girl must be recommended by her math and/or science teacher. Finalists submit essays telling a bit about themselves and why they would like to attend. They are then interviewed by a group of Branch members who makes the final choices. Families of campers are asked to pay a $50 fee.

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

This program, unique to California, began in 1998 with initial funding from AAUW's Educational Foundation. That year one camp was held at Stanford University. Tech Trek has now expanded to five campuses: Stanford, Mills College, Whittier College, Fresno State and UCSD. Our Rancho Bernardo Branch has participated since the beginning, sponsoring girls from Bernardo Heights Middle School as well as Twin Peaks. Tech Trek was set up to encourage young women to pursue their interests in science, math and computer technology - fields in which women have traditionally been underrepresented.

HOW YOU CAN HELP

For more information about the Tech Trek program please contact our Tech Trek Chair . To contribute much-needed funds for the campers' support, click Contributions on the menu bar or contact our Financial Officer. Donations are deductible for federal income tax purposes to the full extent allowed by law.
 

October 2004 Branch Meeting Tech Trek chair Carrie Harrison, center, surrounded by the Tech Trek campers who spent a week at UCSD this summer.

In 2004 four local girls from
Twin Peaks Middle School 
shared their experiences at
Tech Trek Science Camp
at our October General Meeting.
 
This summer program for 8th grade girls is sponsored by AAUW-CA. The girls lived on campus at UCSD for one week, attended classes, participated in hands-on experiments and were taken on science-oriented field trips.

	Joan Hicks, left, with our Tech Trek campers at the September 2003 luncheon at the RB Country Club.

Twin Peaks Middle School Girls Chosen for Tech Trek in 2003
Three Tech Trek campers have attended a week-long adventure at UCSD this summer. The girls are 8th graders this year at Twin Peaks Middle School and were selected by our Tech Trek committee for this experience. The six day hands-on camp ran from July 20 to 26, 2003. In September they attended our first meeting to report on their experiences. Their camperships were provided by our Branch with generous help from Qualcomm, Inc. Tech Trek is AAUW California's premier project. Close to 500 girls participate in the program annually at five college campuses across the state. Almost 80% of the branches in California support Tech Trek by sponsoring attendees to the camps.