On April 25, 2015 the GO-GIRL Class of 2015 graduated! Check out what the GO-GIRLs did over the winter camp!

To see the GO-GIRL Photos, go to Flickr or https://flic.kr/s/aHskaoD3vQ

Here is the Class of 2015 Graduation Video!

If you would like to save the link please go to YouTube or https://youtu.be/aostjBD5WdE

Class of 2015 Surveys!

It is hard to believe that another GO-GIRL Winter Session is already coming to a close. This semester, the GO-GIRL Class of 2015 has been working on the issue of "Food Deserts" and have recently designed surveys to gather data on this topic. There are six brief surveys and detailed instructions listed below. If you could spare just a few minutes, completing these surveys will aid the girls in their data collection and give them insight into how to write proper survey questions in the future.

The GO-GIRL Class of 2015 Food Desert Surveys!

To take the surveys please go to esurvey.inspiredata.com and then enter the Survey ID's that are provided below:

Group 1:
528422

Group 2:
703824

Group 3:
928323

Group 4:
136911

Group 5:
950687

Group 6:
200091

Feel free to forward this email on!

Welcome Go-Girls and families!

A week 7 recap:

This Saturday was a very special day at Go-Girl. What am I saying, every Saturday is special day at Go-Girl as the young ladies paid a visit to the Detroit Eastern Market. Excitement filled the air as the young ladies couldn’t hardly wait to get off the bus and start exploring around the Eastern Market. The young ladies were introduce to several tour guide who couldn’t wait to show the group everything that the Eastern Market had to offer. During the introduction one of the peer-mentors discovered that one of the tour guides used to be a teacher at her school. Goes to show that any day at Go-Girl can become a magical one indeed.

As the young ladies where showed around the market, a tour guide started to talk about a program that allow those with an EBT card to get fresh produce. Those with an EBT card could go to a located booth at the Eastern Market and swipe their card to receive tokens. Those tokens could be used to buy fresh Michigan grown produce only. After the tour the young ladies walked around to the different booths and talked to local vendors. Some of the young ladies stopped market shoppers to ask them a few question from their “food desert survey” that they been working on in class. Team 2 asked a young couple why they shop at the Eastern Market. The couple replied, “The prices are affordable and plus we want to support local businesses.”

The young ladies seemed to really enjoy their time at the Eastern Market. Many of them didn’t want to leave, but as the saying goes, “time fly’s fast when you’re having fun.” Many of the girls said, “That they look forward to coming back to the Eastern Market with their parents and love ones in the near future.”

Week 6

Hello families and happy pi day! Our GO-GIRLs had a very creative day today! We began our day with a community building exercise.  Afterwards, our girls focused on their InspireData surveys. They began compiling 12 questions focusing on age, ethnicity, household income, and other demographics to gain various data points about who goes grocery shopping  in other families. This data will expand upon our original subject matter of "Food Deserts in Detroit". Afterwards the girls went to the campus recreation center and played a variety of games prepared by our great student volunteers! Can't wait for week 7 in two weeks!

Week 5 at WSU GO-GIRL!

Hello GO-GIRLS and families,

Woo hoo! Week five was a success!

During the parent cafe, over delicious danishes and doughnuts, Dr. Sally introduced many interesting topics. First, she emphasized the importance of taking on challenging math classes throughout our children's education. Being ahead in math, by taking on the advanced placement courses, proves to be very advantageous by being with other students who are just as motivated, as well as helping get ahead in college courses. Next, a Go Girl mentor, Ashley, came and introduced to parents the positive aspects of utilizing Facebook as a tool of communication. By "liking" Wayne State Go-Girl, you can find out a lot of fun facts and information while staying in the loop with your girls! Afterwards, a Wayne State librarian brought all of the parents to the computer lab and took them on a virtual tour. The most important and useful thing that the parents learned was MEL (Michigan Electronic Library) and how many resources that can be obtained via MEL. Check out the website available to all Michigan residents: www.mel.org

Our Go-Girls learned many different things today, too. What was discussed during our second half of class was the meaning of demographics and characteristics of a population. Out of several which were listed, the most agreed upon for the food desert survey was employment, transportation, number of household members and the distance of their homes from stores. The girls were then brought to the library and created a questionnaire on "InspireData" which they will be using to create their surveys next week.

Looking forward to week six, GO GIRLS!

Week 4

Hi GO-GIRLS and families!

Week 4 was a success! The GO-GIRLs focused their attention today on two terms: mutually exclusive and exhaustive. They used technology to explain what surveys are and how they can be used in real life situations.  After lunch, the girls were introduced to a program called InspireData and learned how to set up graphs with a topic based off of various data points. The topic they focused on was the various features of cats. Also discussed today was a recap of the Venn Diagram. Next week, the teams will continue to work with InspireData to create their own surveys as a group!

GO-GIRL Winter 2015 Week 3 - Research and Ethics

Our GO-GIRLs began their educational adventure exploring Wayne State University Undergraduate Library. During their venture they received a hands on tutorial on finding relevant and reliable information from scholarly academic databases for their individual and GO-GIRL projects. The ongoing topic for our program currently is "Food Deserts" in the Metro Detroit area. After lunch the girls explored "what is ethical research?" This included the principles of right and wrong behavior, highlighting sets of standards in various occupations. The girls paired up and went over scenarios where they defined and declared what is ethical and unethical behavior in given occupational and research situations.  

GO GIRL Winter 2015 Week 2

Welcome GO GIRLS and families!

Week 2 was great. The girls related to one another through the learning of social science issues, how to make effective surveys, the hypothesis behind surveys and exploring the characteristics and solutions of food deserts.

When returning from lunch the girls were introduced to a sample panel of board members representing the community leaders. These leaders represented The Board of Education, convenience stores, full service grocery stores and a nutrition expert. The purpose of this was to show how community members have different view points and possible solutions to their community being a food desert. This week allowed the girls to explore their access to food in their own community and interact with one another in an exciting way!

GO-GIRL Winter 2015 - Week 1

Welcome GO-GIRLS & Parents!

Week 1 was a success! All of the girls interacted and got to know each other by using Venn Diagrams, bar graphs, and personality bingo! Before the girls went to lunch they chose their group names.

We are proud to announce the GO-GIRL Class of 2015!

Team 1: Teenage Genius'
Team 2: SUPER: Supportive, Unique, Pretty, Encouraging, Responsible
Team 3: The M&M's: Marvelous Mademoiselle
Team 4: Curie Girls: Curious, Unique, Ridiculous, Intelligent, Excellent
Team 5: CCPG Forever: caring, cute, positive girls
Team 6: Lil-JAYS: Joyful, Advanced, Young Sister

After lunch, the girls had a lot of fun! Some groups played games like "7-UP", "Why am I", and "Jeopardy".

Dr. Sally said during orientation, "the girls will be crying when you drop them off on the first day and during graduation they will be crying because they won't see each other until the summer academies." Well today the girls were very quiet at the beginning and at the end the girls did not want to go home!

Volunteering In Undergrad

Volunteering and extracurricular activities tend to be very important in high school. Often times it can be stressful and hard to balance. I’ve found that the key is finding volunteering opportunities that you’re actually interested in and can be passionate about, so it no longer feels like something you have to do. Furthermore, it’s better to take on less opportunities that you can better commit to than volunteering everywhere and stretching yourself thin.

So what are some opportunities to volunteer during your undergraduate degree? If you’re thinking about medicine, volunteering at a hospital can be really cool. With the right program, you can get some amazing experience. In high school, I was able to watch a C-section and other surgeries within the OGBYN unit. In college, I volunteered at Henry Ford hospital and made rounds, seeing units ranging from nephrology (kidneys) to postnatal care (after the baby is born). The great thing about Wayne State being in the heart of Detroit is that there are so many opportunities – Henry Ford, the DMC, Karmanos, Children’s hospital, etc. – you just have to find the one right for you!

Another opportunity I found was volunteering at a Senior home, specifically with hospice patients. This experience has been unexpectedly rewarding and honestly, completely life changing. Every time I stop by I leave feeling reenergized and connected back to the big picture. It helps me stop and realize the important things, and has helped me grow as an individual in ways I was not expecting. While many may think that this kind of work might be depressing, it’s truly not. Seeing the patients’ faces light up when I walk in, and they tend to be so talkative and hilarious.

Finding volunteering that is rewarding will remind you of the essence of volunteering, and help you understand how to be better in your future career, whatever it is that you may choose.

- Mentor Maisha