Program
2009 USF Girls STEM Summit
June 20, 2009
University of South Florida
Sarasota-Manatee
LEADING THE WAY FOR GIRLS IN SCIENCE AND MATH
Dear Summit Participant,
On behalf of the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee and the American Association of University
Women (AAUW), we would like to welcome you to the Girls Science, Technology, Engineering and
Mathematics (STEM) Summit. We have brought together a wonderful group of USF women faculty and
community leaders working in the STEM fields to help you on your path to educational success. We will strive
to build your confidence as well as provide you with many community resources and role models who will be a
source of encouragement and support as you continue on your academic journey.
We hope that you take full advantage of the opportunities you will have to listen, learn and explore the many
possibilities that await you in the STEM fields.
This wonderful new program at the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee has been greatly enriched
by the support of the following groups to whom we extend our sincerest appreciation and thanks:

USF Sarasota-Manatee Girls STEM Summit Planning Committee who have demonstrated their
commitment to middle school girls by producing this wonderful event

AAUW Sarasota Chapter members for their donations and support

AAUW Florida for providing funding

G. WIZ for their continuous support and donation of hands-on activities for the girls

National Girls Collaborative Project for providing funding

Florida Commission on the Status of Women for providing funding and support
Enjoy the connections you will make at this summit and we hope that our passion will inspire you to
think and dream big!
Sincerely,
Valerie Connors
AAUW Student Affiliate
USF Sarasota-Manatee
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Sunita Lodwig, Ph.D.
IT Faculty
USF Sarasota-Manatee
Ila Preti
Past President
AAUW Sarasota Chapter
Schedule
Registration
Summit Begins
10:00 a.m.
Knowledge Test
10:00 – 10:10 a.m.
Introduction – Dr. Jane Rose
10:10 – 10:15 a.m.
Keynote Speaker – Dr. Ellen Prager
10:15 – 11:00 a.m.
Break
11:00 – 11:15 a.m.
Discussion Workshops
11:15 – 12:15 p.m.
Lunch Break & Book Signing
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9:30 – 10:00 a.m.
12:15 – 1:00 p.m.
Hands-on activities
1:00 – 2:30 p.m.
Break
2:30 – 2:40 p.m.
Salsa Lesson
2:40 – 2:55 p.m.
Closing Remarks
2:55 – 3:00 p.m.
USF GIRLS STEM SUMMIT
Keynote Speaker
Dr. Ellen Prager
Marine Scientist and Author
Dr. Ellen Prager is a well-respected marine scientist and author, widely recognized for her expertise and ability to bring
science to the laymen. She is the chief scientist for the Aquarius Reef Base program in Key Largo, FL, which includes the
world’s only undersea research station, a freelance writer, and consultant for clients such as the world-renowned
Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science at the University of Miami, the President’s U.S. Commission on
Ocean Policy, and Celebrity Cruise Lines. Dr. Prager has built a national reputation as a scientist and spokesperson on
earth and ocean science issues and is a sought after speaker for public-oriented events and as an expert by the media.
She has appeared on The Today Show, Good Morning America, Fox News, CBS Early Show and News, CNN American
Morning, Larry King, and Lou Dobbs. Dr. Prager was also featured in an ABC News Special Planet Earth, Miami’s NBC
EcoWatch Coral Crisis, and has been in shows for the Discovery Channel.
Dr. Prager focuses much of her time on bringing earth and ocean science to the public through writing, working with the
media, creating innovative partnerships, and special events. She has written articles for scientific journals, public-
oriented magazines, and several other books including Furious Earth: The Science and Nature of Earthquakes,
Volcanoes, and Tsunamis and The Oceans both published by McGraw-Hill. Comments on The Oceans have
been superb – Jean-Michel Cousteau describes it as a “must have” for all those interested in the oceans. Dr.
Prager has also published a series of children’s books with the National Geographic Society, the first SAND
received the 2000 Parents Choice Award, Volcano was released in September 2001 and Earthquakes in March
of 2002. She has also published a children’s fiction novel, Adventure on Dolphin Island.
Dr. Prager has participated in research expeditions to places such as the Galapagos Islands, Papua New
Guinea, Caribbean, Bahamas, and the deep waters of the Florida Reef tract. She obtained a BA from Wesleyan
University, Connecticut, a MS from the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric
Science, and in 1992, a PhD from Louisiana State University.
She continues to focus her efforts on developing innovative ways to share her passion for the oceans and the
environment with others.
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Workshop Sessions & Speaker Profiles
Careers in Marine Science - A Lot More than Manatees and Dolphins
The marine sciences range from the most familiar subjects of marine biology to studying volcanoes on the
deep sea floor to predicting the effects of storm surge on coastal communities. Marine scientists include
biologists, chemists, engineers, geologists, and physicists. And all of these areas need individuals who can
apply mathematics to their subjects. Workshop participants will get a sense of the diversity of careers
available to those interested in the coastlines and oceans.
Pamela Hallock Muller, Ph.D. is a Professor at the College of Marine Science, University of
South Florida in Tampa. By studying the geologic record, as well as modern coral reefs and
other carbonate depositional systems, she and graduate students gain insight not only into
environments of the past and present, but also the potential effects of human activities on the
future of Earth's ecosystems. Her work has implications for coral reef and shelf ecology,
environmental management, evolution, paleoceanography, paleoecology, sedimentology including carbonatefacies analyses, and hydrocarbon exploration.
Research and Research Process
Introduce girls to the arena of scientific research and describe the basic steps associated with the research
process. In particular, I am going to discuss the following topics: 1) identifying and developing a research
question; 2) gathering background information; 3) constructing the sample; 4) deriving hypotheses; 5)
designing the survey instrument; 6) collecting data; 7) analyzing data; and 8) interpreting the results.
Fawn Ngo Mitchell is a visiting faculty in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of
South Florida Sarasota-Manatee. Prior to her arrival, Fawn was the Associate Academic Director
for the Master Criminal Justice Distance Learning Program at the University of Cincinnati. She
has also taught criminology courses at the University of Maryland, University of Nevada at Las
Vegas, and University of Cincinnati.
Fawn received her B.A. in Criminology, Law and Society from the University of California at Irvine, her M.S. in
Criminal Justice from the California State University at Long Beach, and her Ph.D. in Criminology and Criminal
Justice from University of Maryland. Her areas of interest include testing criminological theory, comparative
criminal justice, corrections and evaluation research. She currently serves as the Project Manager for the
International Prisons Initiative (IPI) project, a program that links international scholars together for the
purpose of conducting research in the area of corrections.
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Workshop Sessions & Speaker Profiles
New Faces of Engineering – How Women are Changing the Industry
A presentation with question and answer session that discusses: What is engineering, what types of careers
are available, and what types of classes are needed. A selection of women engineers will also be highlighted.
Paula R. Wiggins, P.E. graduated from Florida State University in 1998 with a BS in Civil
Engineering and is a Masters of Business Administration candidate from Webster University.
She has spent the last 10 years with Sarasota County working in various areas including Traffic
Engineering, Land Development Services and Road Program.
She is currently the Transportation Planning Manager where she supervises staff in the reviews and analysis of
Long Range and Current Planning reviews of transportation-related elements for compliance with County and
State policies and regulations. She is a member of the Florida Engineering Society, National Society of
Professional Engineers, and the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), where she has served as the
Treasurer, Secretary, Vice-President, and President. She currently holds the office of the Outreach Committee
Chairperson for the SunCoast Branch of ASCE. She is the recipient of the SunCoast Branch of the ASCE’s 2006
Young Engineer of the Year award, the 2007 Florida Professional Engineers in Government Fellowship and the
SunCoast Branch of ASCE’s 2008 Government Engineer of the Year. She sits on the Riverview High School
Edison Community Advisory Board and has been a Riverview High School Executive Internship Sponsor.
Math is Cool!
Murder mysteries, cures for cancer, dolphins and designer clothes are all about using math to explore your
passion! Do you have the passion to use math to get what you want? What are your choices? How do you
choose?
Donna Clarke is a Florida native. Donna began her professional career as a high school math
teacher. Later, she acquired 14 years of experience with Fortune 500 technology companies
while based in Atlanta, Georgia.
For 12 years, Donna owned and operated an environmental services firm located in Sarasota and Fort Myers.
The firm specialized in multilevel permitting support involving wetland mitigation, biological surveys, and
aquatic preserves. Project team experience included work with the Everglades Restoration, Alligator Alley,
Tampa Bay Water, and Peace River Water Authority.
Donna served in the Florida House of Representatives from November 2000 – 2006. She chaired several
committees including Water and Natural Resources, Health Access and Financing and Joint Administrative
Procedures. More recently she has worked as an Adjunct Mathematics Professor at Manatee Community
College (State College of Florida) and continues to consult on Governmental Policy and Environmental issues.
Donna earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Education/Mathematics from the University of Miami and her Masters
Degree in Industrial Management from Georgia Institute of Technology.
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Workshop Sessions & Speaker Profiles
Are You Smarter Than a Fourth-Grade Boy?
This activity will be a fun quizzing session to see how smart you are! The questions are simple, but will require
smart observation and thinking. The session will end with videos on cyber-security and cyber-bullying.
Sunita Lodwig, Ph.D. is a faculty member teaching Information Technology at the University of
South Florida Sarasota-Manatee campus for the last four years. Sunita has been in the corporate
arena for the last twenty years (13 with AT&T Bell Labs – prior to its becoming Lucent – and 7
with Motorola most recently) in the field of Telecommunications. Her technical background
covers a wide range – from defining strategy, technical marketing, project/product
management, and globalization issues, to cutting edge software architecture, requirements, design,
development and delivery.
Prior to this, Sunita was an Assistant Professor at Northern Illinois University (NIU) in the Computer Science
department for two and half years. Her teaching experience, albeit short, was memorable and enjoyable. The
interactions and rapport with students were especially important, and Sunita was considered a good teacher
presenting complex concepts in a simple easy-to-understand manner. Needless to say, even as she left NIU
and joined Bell Labs, Sunita looked forward to the day she would return to academia (which she has!).
Anne Marie Young, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for TechHouse, joined the team in 2001 as Office
Manager and Marketing Specialist. She is responsible for the Sarasota/Manatee and Orange County markets
as well as all National Accounts. Anne Marie attended Palm Beach Atlantic College and was a medic in the U.S.
Army for 6 years. In addition to leading the Business Development team, Anne Marie initiated the TechnoGirlz
event for middle school girls- a day long annual event that introduces middle school students to mentors in
science and technology.
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Hands-on Activities & Sponsor Profile
The following two activities have been provided by Karen Malesky and G. WIZ The Science
Museum utilizing Florida’s new science standards!
Karen J. Malesky, Museum Educator at GWIZ the Science Museum in Sarasota. A Manatee
county native, she holds a B.A. in Anthropology (Archaeology) from the University of Florida.
31 years were spent teaching Science in Manatee County schools. A member of The Florida
Association of Science Teachers she served as President in 2006-2007. Other S.T.E.M.
activities include serving as a N.A.S.A. Resource Teacher, Board member of the Florida
Foundation for Future Scientists (State Science and Engineering Fair), committee member –
Committee on Pre College Education for the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. Florida DOE has
had Karen work on various teams for Science curriculum and standards.
DNA Activity
In Forensic Science, one of the breakthroughs is the ability to use DNA to identify human remains or
evidence from a crime scene. Extract your own DNA and make a necklace that is really YOU!
Kinetic Sculpture Activity
The challenge of this activity is to make a sculpture that has at least two parts that move in the wind.
That's what makes it kinetic—it moves. The goal is to make the sculpture sturdy enough so it can
stand up in the wind.
Mobile Aquarium Activity – Mote Marine Aquarium
In this activity, you will be able to touch and explore various sea critters in Mote Marine’s Mobile
Aquarium Unit while learning all about them from a Mote Marine expert!
Puff Mobile Engineering Activity – Paula Wiggins, P.E. & Neirda Lafontant
The Puff Mobile activity will challenge you to make a car out of a few select items.
The catch – the only way you can make your car move is by blowing on it!
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Acknowledgements
USF Girls STEM Summit Planning Committee
Summit Committee Chair
Valerie Connors, USF Sarasota-Manatee
Advancement & Development Committee
Alexis Upham, USF Sarasota-Manatee
Barb Lewis, USF Sarasota-Manatee
Logistics
Jay Riley, USF Sarasota-Manatee
Marketing Committee
Christine Manring, USF Sarasota-Manatee
Crystal Rothhaar, USF Sarasota-Manatee
Special Events
Sunita Lodwig, Ph.D., USF Sarasota-Manatee
Activities Committee
Karen J. Malesky, G. Wiz Science Museum
AAUW Sponsorship
Ila Preti, AAUW Sarasota Chapter
Participating & Contributing Community Organizations
We want to thank the following participants and exhibitors listed below who have demonstrated
their commitment to the middle school girls of Sarasota and Manatee counties.

Girls, Inc. of Sarasota County

Take Stock in Children of Sarasota County

Boys and Girls Club of Sarasota County

Girl Scouts of Gulfcoast Florida

Just for Girls
And a very special thanks to the volunteers who dedicated their time to help make this
summit a success!
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