BUSINESS BUZZ
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STEAM By Ron Fortier
Fifteen years ago, concerned citizens in the greater New Bedford area wondered about the specific impact of limited educational success and opportunities for girls 12
AHEAD
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esearch had shown that positive educational opportunities for middle-school-aged girls contributed to reduced teenage pregnancy while increasing high school graduation rates and offered a greater possibility of post-secondary education. It was about creating an overall interruption of the poverty cycle. The concerned citizens formed a group and took on the challenging task of starting a tuition-free middle school. The school’s focus and mission was about serving the economically disadvantaged girls of New Bedford. In September 2008, it opened its doors to fifth and sixth grade students. Today, Our Sisters’ School now has 72 girls enrolled in grades five through eight.
January 2022 | The South Coast Insider
The students are from diverse races, backgrounds, cultures, and faiths. An added element to the school’s success is their STEM and STEAM programs. STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. The same goes for STEAM, but with the addition of Art. These have traditionally been male-dominated fields, and, in a co-ed environment, girls tend to fall behind, but not due to any lack of ability. An article in Microsoft Philanthropies’ “Closing the STEM Gap,” documents that “Middle school girls who participate in STEM clubs and activities are more than twice as likely to say they’ll study physics in high school, and nearly three times as likely to say they’ll study
