Yorktown student starts STEAM program for young girls

A hands-on workshop created by a high school student in Yorktown is helping to inspire girls in the fields of science, technology, engineering, art and math.

"The gap between women in STEAM and males in STEAM really starts in middle school when girls start to drop off and they don't really feel as confident and I really want to give girls that confidence,” says Jothi Ramaswamy, the founder of Think STEAM.

Ramaswamy, now a Senior at Lakeland High School in Yorktown, says that she made it her mission to give girls such confidence when she was just 13 years old, around the same time that she created Think STEAM, which would go on to host hands-on workshops for girls.

"I've always really been interested in STEAM and computer science and I just wanted girls to feel the same way as well,” she says.

This weekend, Jothi invited professionals stop by Lakeland Copper Beech Middle School to offer lessons with drones, slime and more.

"Girls can become empowered and can learn more about technology,” says sixth-grade attendee Isaballa.

They may have a long time before they start their careers, but some attendees already say they're thinking about STEAM.

"All I really wanted when I started this organization was even just to inspire just one girl – because I know in that way I'll affect the rest of her life and I'll inspire her, give her the confidence to pursue STEAM,” says Ramaswamy. “And if I can even do [just] that, I mean, I've done my job,”