Working alongside University of Auckland student, Mikayla Stokes, and mentor, Dr Michelle 'Nanogirl' Dickinson, Amelia aims to tackle the lack of access, education and diversity in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) sector through STEM Box.
STEM Box is an online learning platform that teaches children about coding and electronics irrespective of their location, socio-economic situation, gender or race. Students are provided a box of equipment which assists with their learning over a four month course taught by Amelia and Mikayla and by the end of the course, they would be able to design their own website, develop their own app and create a sensor to monitor the temperature of their bedroom.
As mentioned during their recent interview on the AM Show, the origins of STEM Box began in 2019 when Mikayla and Amelia decided to "give back and get more girls into STEM" after identifying the lack of representation in the field. They organised TechGirlsNZ, an event for teenage girls in Auckland to learn about STEM, and were so successful that they approached Dr Dickinson, looking to take their initiative to the next level and make it available to all students in New Zealand.
Now with $30,000 from the "TSB Good Stuff!" grant and backing from Dr Dickinson's Nanogirl Labs, Amelia and Mikayla are on track to turn this goal into a reality. With their newfound funding, they plan to remove the financial barriers of pursuing STEM by providing equipment free of charge to students who would not be able to afford it otherwise.
The College congratulates Amelia on her recent success and looks forward to seeing her develop STEM Box and achieve further success in this field.
Click here to watch Amelia's full interview on the AM Show.
