You may have noticed a group of girls traversing campus last month and sporting bright, lime-green t-shirts. The eighth through 12th graders are alumni of the Gaining Options: Girls Investigate Real Life (GO-GIRL) program, and they returned to campus for four days as part of the Just Breathe summer academy.

Funded by a grant from the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Just Breathe explored air quality and related health and social justice issues.  

In 2011, Sally K. Roberts, assistant professor of mathematics education in the College of Education, received a $1.7 million, five-year grant from the NIH to fund the academy and other initiatives aimed at increasing the interest of metropolitan Detroit area girls in health-related STEM disciplines.

Stephanie Brock, professor of chemistry; Monica Brockmeyer, interim associate provost for student success, and associate professor and interim chair of computer science; and Ke Zhang, associate professor of instructional technology,  are co-principal investigators on the project. 

Faculty and staff across campus contributed to the fun and learning. Wayne State’s Office of Environmental Health and Safety, College of Nursing, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and the Eugene Applebaum College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences all hosted interactive courses for the girls. 

In addition to academics, participants experienced a full range of activities, including yoga, Zumba, volleyball, scavenger hunts, art trail walks and campus dining. 

Twenty Wayne State female undergraduate students who are enrolled in STEM programs served as mentors during the academy and will continue to keep in touch with their mentees through social networking during the academic year.  

A new group of former GO-GIRLs, donning red t-shirts, will be on campus from August 4 to 7 for the In a Heartbeat academy. 

For more information about the GO-GIRL program and the summer academies, visit gogirls.wayne.edu.