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WOODINVILLE – Congresswoman Suzan DelBene (WA-01) today visited local science classes to mark Ada Lovelace Day, which celebrates the contribution women have made to science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

DelBene spoke with two 6th grade classes at Hollywood Hill Elementary about the importance of science and technology. One of the classes was working on robotics, while the other was working with technology to detect viruses and germs.

“Children, and especially young women today, need to feel like they can succeed in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). Thankfully growing up, I had a strong female role model, my mother, who showed my sisters and me that we could do anything we wanted in our professions. And I chose to start my career in science as a biomedical researcher,” DelBene said. “Unfortunately, women remain dramatically underrepresented in high-earning STEM fields. For our country to remain a leader in innovation we’ll need a diverse, creative workforce full of people with different backgrounds. It’s our job to ensure all students have access to STEM learning opportunities like the ones I saw today.”

Ada Lovelace Day – the second Tuesday of October – aims to increase the profile of women in STEM and highlight role models who will encourage more girls to enter STEM careers. Currently, less than 25 percent of students taking the Advanced Placement (AP) computer science test are girls.

“We are incredibly grateful to be able to provide our students technology and STEM practices that grow her/his critical thinking, creative thinking, collaborative and communication skills,” said JoAnn Todd, Principal of Hollywood Hill Elementary. “This opportunity is thanks to the support of our dedicated staff, our generous parent community, the Northshore School District and The Northshore Schools Foundation.”

DelBene recently helped introduce the Computer Science for All Act (H.R. 6095) to authorize grants to help K-12 schools expand students’ access to learning opportunities in computer science, particularly for girls and students of color. She also led a letter signed by 65 House members in calling for a $100 million investment in computer science education.

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