More than 1,000 girls, parents, educators, volunteers, and employers from more than 43 school districts from 8 counties in Pennsylvania, as well as girls from New Jersey, Delaware, and New York, attended the 23^rd Annual Girls Exploring Tomorrow’s Technology (GETT) held Saturday at the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks.

The 23^rd Annual Girls Exploring Tomorrow’s Technology is a unique opportunity for girls in 5th through 10th grades to explore more than 100 hands-on, interactive STEM activities to encourage them to discover new ways to connect their passions for science, technology, engineering, and math and learn about STEM career opportunities.

This annual event is presented by the Chester County Economic Development Council (CCEDC) via its Innovative Technology Action Group (ITAG) initiative. Experiential activities were led by successful women in STEM from more than 65 of the region’s top STEM-based companies and organizations. This diverse group of professional women in STEM interacted with the girls as they explored dynamic expo-style experience stations.

Girls participated in more than 100 hands-on activities including architectural design, robotics, bio-engineering, chemistry, coding, aviation, healthcare, aquatic animal sciences, engineering, video gaming, virtual reality, environmental science, aerospace, information technology, veterinary sciences, forensic sciences, agriculture science, manufacturing and much more.

New for this year was the addition of exhibit buses from the PA Friends of Agriculture Mobile Ag Immersion Lab, Commonwealth Charter Academy’s Mobile Aquaponics Lab and The PA Attorney General’s Mobile Forensics Lab. Girls were able to explore the ambulance from Good Fellowship Ambulance Company, the PECO bucket truck and “fly” Stubby the helicopter from the American Helicopter Museum. The Da Vinci Science Center and The Candy Lab led the girls through multiple scientific experiments.

Over the past 23 years, Girls Exploring Tomorrow’s Technology has touched the lives of thousands of girls by nurturing their interest in STEM fields, providing a venue to meet friends who share these interests, and introducing them to exceptional female professionals from some of the Philadelphia region’s top tech companies.

According to Marianne Stack, ITAG’s Project Director, “ITAG has faced a notable challenge in the form of limited diversity, equity, and inclusion within the tech industry workforce. GETT plays a pivotal role in tackling this issue by sparking girls’ passion for STEM and nurturing the next generation of tech leaders, while also highlighting the organizations in southeastern PA that offer abundant STEM opportunities.”

Patti VanCleave, Vice President of Workforce Development at CCEDC, said, “Our STEM Innovation Youth programs aim to provide students with opportunities to explore career prospects in all of our core industry sectors. These programs contribute to the development and reinforcement of a knowledgeable and skilled workforce within our communities. The Girls Exploring Tomorrow’s Technology (GETT) event stands as a shining example of this endeavor. It not only showcases the vast array of STEM-based careers available today but also empowers young girls, instilling the belief that they can pursue any career path within the realm of STEM.”

According to the National Girls Collaborative Project, women make up half of the total U.S. college-educated workforce but only 28 percent of the science and engineering workforce. Female scientists and engineers are concentrated in different occupations than men, with relatively low shares in engineering (15 percent) and computer and mathematical sciences (26 percent).

GETT 2023 Premier Sponsors included Bentley Systems Incorporated; The Chester County Department of Workforce Development; Comcast; Chester County Intermediate Unit’s Technical College High Schools; QVC, and The Vanguard Group. Innovator Sponsors included Ansys and West Pharmaceutical Services. For a complete list of GETT 2023 Sponsors, go to here.

Girls Exploring Tomorrow’s Technology (GETT) began in Chester County, Pennsylvania in 2001 as a response to the under-representation of young women in the computer and information technology fields. Since that time, GETT has expanded its geographical footprint to include students from all around Southeastern Pennsylvania and now showcases the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM).

GETT is an initiative of the Innovative Technology Action Group (ITAG), a program under the Chester County Economic Development Council, and is driven by the volunteer efforts of numerous public, private, and educational organizations, along with public and private investments.

Learn more at the Chester County Economic Development Council.

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