PORTLAND, Maine — What do you want to do when you grow up? It's a question we've all been asked once or twice.
Every summer, young girls in Maine are getting the chance to piece together their own answer to that question with the Girls Who Code program summer camp, which is hosted in Maine through Project Login.
Lindsay Jamieson is the camp director, and she also teaches at the Roux Institute at Northeastern University in Portland. She said she sees the value in showing girls new opportunities in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, or STEM fields, at a young age.
"I think it's really important to look into STEM careers at a young age because they're related to just about anything that everybody does right now," Jamieson said. "Everyone's sitting there with a mini computer in their pocket, and if you don't know how it works, you don't know how to fix it."
The Girls Who Code program is a nationally offered program that teaches girls different forms of computer-programing and problem-solving skills to help build confidence or interest in the field.
The camp is offered every year in different towns in Maine from Orono to Biddeford.
Girls have about a week to take on a project of their choice, program it, problem-solve through blocks in the road, and present the end result to families and friends at the end of the week.
The program hosted this year in Portland even got a chance to take a field trip to tech-based company WEX nearby to see what it is like to work in a related career field.
"A lot of the comments that we get are things like, 'Wow, that was really cool! I had no idea that was something I could do myself,'" Jamieson said.
By showing young girls that a career in tech is reachable, Jamieson said the opportunity can prepare students for next steps by the time they reach middle school or high school.