Conference gives the opportunity to hundreds of girls to learn about the many available careers in STEM and other fields

On Friday, hundreds of students participated in the 9th Annual Young Women’s Career Conference at Girls Academic Leadership Academy (GALA) in South Los Angeles. This one-day conference is specifically organized during Women’s Empowerment Month.

The GALA conference gives female students – grades sixth through eight– direct access to trailblazing professionals in different careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) including  artificial intelligence, game design and much more.

Emma Hernandez, 16, said she enjoys the conference every year because she has the opportunity to hear from women who are working in the field she is interested in. 

“Someone from JPL (Jet Propulsion Laboratory) was talking to us about science and that was so exciting because I want to work in a place like that,” she said. “And seeing someone who is working in a place, doing the stuff that I’m interested in is truly inspiring."

Hernandez started at the Academy in  sixth grade, originally interested in the arts, but thanks to the opportunities GALA offers students every year, she changed her mind.

“When I was in eighth grade I went to one of the panels and there was an aerospace engineer, and she truly developed my interest in actually going into science,” she said. “Now I want to be a biochemist, either working with robots like at JPL looking at how there’s life science into planetary science or looking at how to create drug treatments.”

Parents work together for their children

Hernandez’ mother, Angie Gomez said she’s very proud of her daughter, but also of all the effort parents invest in such an event that takes thousands of hours to organize. The school has a little more than 700 students and about half of the parents have signed a volunteer agreement. 

She said some parents volunteer in person and others who can’t make it in person donate money to buy what’s needed for the conference. 

“In my case I’m here helping and my husband, [who] is the photographer,” Gomez said. 

Carla Ascarza, another parent volunteer, started getting involved in the conference last year when her daughter started eighth grade. She said she wasn’t sure about the event but got involved right away. 

“I like this conference because here they empower the girls. My daughter was very shy and timid and the school has taught her so much confidence,” she said. “This also allows her to decide what she wants to be in life. She hears from other women who became what they wanted and she learns.”

Tabitha Ascarza, 15, said she likes to explore her options because she’s still indecisive in what she wants to study.

“There are different panels of careers that you can choose. Last year I chose some with a doctor and this year I would like to try more and it will be a nice opportunity to learn more about [them],” she said. 

Mother and daughter said the drive is worth it from West Los Angeles to the school near USC. 

A school promoting success 

Principal and founder of the school, Dr. Elizabeth Hicks, said she was extremely proud of the parents who took the initiative to organize such a big event. 

“It actually started with a conversation with a parent 10 years ago on how to get role models in front of our girls,” she said. 

Currently, the Academy’s population is about 35% of Latino and it’s considered a very diverse school since students from all over the area have the opportunity to attend.

“We are a very diverse school, and geographically, the kids are coming from … [I] think we are up to 100 zip codes now,” she explained. 

Elizabeth Cohen said her younger daughter is in the class of 2030 but she started volunteering seven years ago when her older daughter attended the school. Now she enjoys every time she hears positive feedback from students.

“One of the best reactions I have is when a child goes home to their parents and says, ‘I never knew that career existed and now this is what I want to do,’” she said. “It really opens their eyes to what’s out there and what’s possible. 

The event included more than 100 accomplished women leaders who ignited ambition, allowing students to see themselves in leadership and innovation.

Students were able to rotate through career panels and hands-on workshops focused on financial literacy, interviewing skills, reìsumeì building, self-advocacy and leadership confidence.