Free BLING! camp part of STEM grant

Photo courtesy of GEMS Camp

Thanks to a generous gift from Lyda Hill Philanthropies, Texas Women’s Foundation awarded $638,844 to 29 Dallas/Fort Worth nonprofit organizations to increase usage of the IF/THEN Collection. The IF/THEN Collection is the world’s largest free resource of authentic and relatable photos, videos and biographies celebrating diverse, contemporary women in STEM careers and roles. Designed to help build tomorrow’s workforce, the complimentary series — with dialogue in English and Spanish — is expected to reach 250,000 students this year in classrooms, nonprofit organizations and homes across Texas. One nonprofit, GEMS Camp, used its grant to support more than 300 high school girls of color through a program called BLING!, a STEM Pathways Institute program that teaches networking skills and STEM related lessons at virtual and in-person gatherings. — Juliette Coulter