A Stellar 1st day of GO-GIRL!

Saturday, February 2nd, 2013

Well, we are off and running! Just looking at the girls in their groups by the end of the day today, you would never know that they were perfect strangers this morning.

The day was spent getting to know one another and the mentors.  What better way to do get to know one another than to play icebreakers!

One of the icebreakers was called, "Honey if you love me, will you please smile for me?" In this exercise, all of the students stood in a circle while one student went to someone she hoped she could make smile (the point of the game being not to smile, but that was near impossible for everyone-the giggles were contagious!). If the participant smiled, the smiler (then "it") would continue to ask someone else this question and hope that the next person would smile. This activity broke the ice between girls who were not to familiar with each other and were out of their comfort zone. It was a very easy-going first day that helped the girls get comfortable with everyone and their new environment. By the end of the day, the girls went from being strangers to forming long-term friendships! The laughing and giggling was heard from every classroom throughout the day as more games and icebreakers ensued.

Also, the girls learned about graphs and how to analyze and interpret them, which will come in handy later in the semester as the girls will be researching a topic, administering surveys, and analyzing data. At noon, the girls enjoyed a buffet-style lunch in the Towers dorm dining hall. After lunch, the girls went back to their classrooms, paired up with a partner and were given a Macbook. They used the computers to take an online survey regarding futures careers and other interesting topics.

Finally, the girls came up with team names for their groups. We're proud to present our GO-GIRL groups for the Winter 2013 semester:

Group 1 (Mentors Becky & Taylor): Queen Bee Yellow Jackets
Group 2 (Mentors Macy & Radha): Invincible Investigators
Group 3 (Mentors Jodi & Mary): TTYL (Talented Team of Young Ladies)
Group 4 (Mentors Fayzha & La'Shana): FBI Girls (Fabulous, Beautiful, Intelligent)
Group 5 (Mentors Nina & Sarah): SM&ART (Science, Math, and Art)
Group 6 (Mentors Melissa & Terrel): H4 (High Heels High Hopes)

Looking forward to our 2nd day! :)

G^3 Cyber Fall 2010

Saturday, November 6th, 2010

Our second G^3 Cyber was such a smash! The day started out in the WSU Welcome Center with a fun "Find Someone Who..." activity which was actually showing us how data mining works (how Google and other online sites sort our "likes" and "dislikes"). From there we moved to the Computer Science labs in State Hall where we started to dabble in learning the SCRATCH program. Each GG was armed with a cute, purple GO-GIRL wristband flashdrive complete with their individual iPhoto photo, and were all able to take the program and their work home with them for later! Parents met in the morning for a Parent Cafe in the UGL where they discussed career opportunities in Computer Science and explore ways they they can support their daughters as they continue to plan their path to college. Then we enjoyed boxed sandwich lunches and took turns checking out demonstrations by computer science students. The students had taken apart computers and showed us how hard drives worked and they answered our questions about computer science college degrees and jobs. We took tours of the 3D Movie labs in the Woodward Bldg. and finished the day with a fun prize-filled round of Cyber Jeopardy!

Next weekend: GO-GIRL Graduation

GO-GIRL: Gaining Options – Girls Investigate Real Life™
Project Presentation and Graduation
Winter 2010

Date: May 1, 2010
Location: Wayne State University


Schedule of Events

9:00 – 9:20 Girls arrive, prepare for final presentations
9:30 – 11:00 Parent Café- Room 10 College of Education
11:00 – 11:30 Parent welcome and Presentation of Final Projects
1st Floor College of Education Building
11:30 - 1:00 GO-GIRL Luncheon and Graduation
2nd Floor Ballroom Student Center Building

PLEASE NOTE: Due to limited seating, there is a 2-guest limit for each GO-GIRL


Questions? Please call Saundra Sumner at 313-577-0991
or
Email us at: gogirl@wayne.edu

Day 8

Saturday, April 17th

Today the GGs, in preparation of next Saturday's data collection from their surveys, learned about data collection and analysis. Specifically, they covered topics from categorical data vs. quantitative data, descriptive statistics, mean, median, and mode. They practiced analysis with graphs and discovered which graphs answered their research question. The software used to conduct the surveys and analyze the results, InspireData, was used to further explore the concept of mean and they practiced with the software how to find mean in data. After lunch, the GGs let loose on campus with their Campus Road Rally. 2 teams combined into 3 groups and the GGs were led on a wild chase around WSU's campus as they completed a university campus scavenger hunt where they took photos as proof of their findings. Though it was chilly, fun was had by all and the exercise was much needed after a tough morning of data analysis! :)

G^3 Cyber

Saturday, March 27th, 2010

Today was GG's second Operation Keeping in Touch event: GO-GIRL Goes Cyber (G^3 Cyber), and it was a success!

About 35 of our former GG alumnis from grades 8-12 reunited in the WSU Welcome Center, along with their families and friends, to join us for a fun day of cyber activity and Parent Cafe learning.

While the girls were busy working and playing, the GG parents joined us for a Parent Cafe which started off in the WSU Undergraduate Library. Here, with the help of WSU's librarians, the GG parents were introduced to MeL, the Michigan eLibrary. This great online resource can help parents and GGs in obtaining research and other useful information materials. Later, Dr. Sally brought parents up to speed on GG and upcoming GG events and opportunities. Finally, a WSU admissions counselor spoke with the parents about WSU and the college admissions process in general.

Meanwhile, the GGs were split into teams which traveled to different stations in State Hall, learning about how computers can be used to make meaning of very large amounts of data. They explored the power to create and share messages using animation software. Among other activities, the GGs learned about "data mining", made a game using the programming language Scratch, and learned about some of the things computer scientists do. After a midday break for a Subway lunch in the Welcome Center, the girls were back at play (work). They watched a video and toured the graphics & sensor network labs in State Hall. At the end of the day, we held a big game of BINGO using all of the terms we'd defined throughout the day. The GGs walked away with lots of knowledge, new computer expertise, prizes, and smiles from seeing their former GG friends.

We're so looking forward to our GG Reunion this upcoming Fall of 2010, keep an eye out for our postings as more information becomes available!!! :)

Thank you to all of our former GGs and families who attended, and thank you to the helpful and wonderful WSU Computer Science Department faculty & staff who made this possible, as well as Dr. Stephanie Brock, the WSU librarians, the WSU admissions counselors, and GG volunteers, it couldn't have been possible without you!

GG Day 6: Pharmacy Field Trip

Saturday, March 27th

A major day for GO-GIRL!

Our 2010 semester GGs took a field trip to the WSU College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences.

Each group of GGs had a pharmacy student lead them around the building. Each 5 sessions that the GGs attended exposed the girls to different fields in the health sciences.

In the Occupational Therapy (OT) session the girls made a bracelet or key-chain and tested how strong their fingers and hands are by squeezing a mechanism as hard as they could. Then they learned the average strength of girls their age. They learned why OT is important and why people do it.

In the Physical Therapy (PT) session, they learned about different exercises that they could do to work different parts of the body to improve their strength. They also watched a video about the different places that they could practice PT such as at schools with veterans.

In the Pharmacy the GGs learned what pharmacists do and they toured the CVS laboratory. They saw how drugs are prescribed and approximately how many different types of drugs there are currently on the market.

In the Analyzing session they practiced testing urine (actually Mountain Dew in this case), and they learned how to use test strips that test for diabetes. Here they got a chance to wear lab coats and lab goggles and learn about lab safety procedures.

Lastly, in the Physician Assistant (PA) session, the GGs learned what PAs do and they practiced their knowledge on a sample case about a man who didn't know what was causing him to have certain symptoms. After learning the symptoms of a stroke, the GGs were able to diagnose this man. They also heard a real heartbeat in order to monitor heart rate and use a stethoscope.

In each workshop there was a real doctor and WSU students studying those respected professions to assist the GGs in their learning.

Just a reminder: GO-GIRL will be meeting at its usual time on Saturday, April 10th: 9:30am-3:00pm in the College of Education.

At this time (Saturday, April 10th), we will also be holding a Parent Cafe to which all parents of GO-GIRLs are invited. The theme of the Parent Cafe will be Programs and Resources. Librarians will show you how you and your daughter can more effectively use library resources at home or online. In addition, we will discuss careers for your daughters that break gender molds. It should be an excellent chance to network and meet one another as well as have a rich conversation. The Parent Cafe will be held from 9:30-11:00am in the College of Education, Room #10.

Please note that the street/metered parking on WSU's campus is free on the weekends.

We're looking forward to seeing everyone again this weekend after a nice holiday break, hope everyone had a great vacation! :)

GG Day 5

Today our GGs were able to exercise not only their minds, but also their bodies!

This morning the GG teams met to discuss survey questions. Some examples of the types of questions they examined were: open-ended questions, closed-ended, Likert-scale, multiple-choice, ordinal, categorical, and numerical. After filling out some surveys themselves, looking at some examples and identifying the different types of questions, the GGs had a chance to think of some rough draft survey questions that could possibly be used in the final creation of their team surveys.

Then, Subway subs helped us all rejuvenate after a long morning of QUESTIONS! The rest of our afternoon was spent playing volleyball and running around, altogether having a great time in the WSU Mort Harris Fitness and Recreation Center right here on campus. Everyone had a blast and we were able to let out some of our active energy!

Since next week is WSU's Spring Break, GO-GIRL will take a break and reunite on Saturday, March 27th at the College of Pharmacy. We're very excited to be able to spend the day in the Pharmacy and learn all about pharmaceutical science! See you then!

GG Day 4

Every day we are learning more about social science research here at GO-GIRL! Today was filled with activity! In groups, everyone discussed "bias" and how to identify bias in asking survey questions. Each group worked to acknowledge any potential bias in sample questions and then had a chance to test their knowledge and create their own unbiased survey question. Also, the GGs practiced putting answers into categories. This will help organize survey results of the final surveys for the semester. And finally, the GG groups put their heads together to work on their final research project. A few of the things they talked about were what populations they would want to survey to learn more about what they find interesting concerning this topic, what questions they could ask to learn more about the topic, how they think people they survey will answer these questions, and then they came up with a prediction statement. We'll keep working on these research topics every week but so far we've made some great progress!

GG Day 2

Saturday, February 13, 2010

What a fun-filled day at GO-GIRL! Today the girls and their teams discussed surveys and the who, what, why, where and how of them. Each team brainstormed a topic of interest for them. Although each team's survey and topic is in different stages of development, what they have come up with this week will get them thinking and going on further creating a topic for their eventual survey.

Because of all of the teamwork and brainstorming, today the girls seemed to come together and they got to know one another a little better. Each team began to create a team poster highlighting themselves with their team name, the team members, and adjectives to describe themselves. Wait until you see how creative they are! The sense of community is strong and always growing!

With this weekend off due to the school breaks, we hope everyone is resting well and preparing for a BUSY week next week. We're going to the Undergraduate Library (UGL) on Wayne State's campus and it is going to be so exciting to learn more about research from our favorite librarians! Hopefully everyone remembers to wear their GO-GIRL t-shirt so we can stick together and show our pride!

And, parents, don't forget about the GG Parent Cafe being held for you from 9:30-11:00am in Room 10 of the College of Education building. Our staff, university experts, and community resources persons will join us to provide opportunities for networking, share information and resources, and help you help your daughters.

We'll look forward to seeing everyone next Saturday, February 27th!

GG of the Week: Alexa I. Canady

Alexa I. Canady

Alexa Canady was born on November 7, 1950. She is an African-American Neurosurgeon.

Canady was the first Woman and First African American to become a Neurosurgeon in America. From Lansing Michigan, Alexa Irene Canady is the daughter of Elizabeth Hortense (Golden) Canady and Clinton Canady Jr. Her father was a graduate of the School of Dentistry of Meharry Medical College, practicing in Lansing. Her mother was a graduate of Fiasco University was active for years in civic affairs of Lansing. She also served as national president of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.

Young Canady and her brother grew up outside Lansing and were the only two Black students in the entire school. Despite the obstacles, Canady was an exceptional student and named a National Achievement Scholar in 1967. She attended the University of Michigan, getting her BS, degree in 1971. After this came the University of Michigan, Medical School, and her M.D. cum laude in 1975. Canady’s Interned at Yale’s New Hane Hospital from 1975 to 1976, and an example of her non-recognition due to being Black and a woman came on her first day of her residency at Yale New Hane Hospital. She was appointed as first female and first black to a residency in neurosurgery. As she began making her rounds a hospital administrator referred to her as "the new equal-opportunity package." Despite the remark, Dr. Canady viewed her accomplishment as a double achievement for herself and both women and African Americans.

From there she went to the University of Minnesota in neurosurgery, from 1976 to 1981. She also worked at the University of Pennsylvania Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Ped Neurosurg from 1981-82. Currently, Canady is the director of neurosurgery at Children's Hospital in Detroit and a clinical associate professor at Wayne State University. Her Areas of Expertise are Craniofacial Abnormalities, Epilepsy, Hydrocephalus, Pediatric Neurosurgery, and Tumors of Spinal Cord and Brain. She has also added to special research topics such as assisting in the development of neuroendoscopic equipment, evaluating programmable pressure change valves in hydrocephalus, head injury, hydrocephalus and shunts, neuroendoscopy, and pregnancy complications of shunts.

Besides Dr. Canady's position as the director of pediatric neurosurgery, she also works to change the perspective of how African Americans both how patients and physicians are perceived. She claims the major medical problem for Blacks stems from the scarcity of research targeting their specific health concerns and needs. Canady believes the issues will be better addressed now that medical schools are diversifying their student bodies and their faculties.

In 1975, Canady was elected to Alpha Omega Alpha Honorary Medical Society. In 1983, she was Teacher of the Year, Children’s Hospital of Michigan, and in 1991, Dr. Canady was honored as Alumni, University of Michigan.

Dr. Canady holds two honorary degrees: a doctorate of humane letters from the University of Detroit-Mercy, awarded in 1997, and a doctor of science degree from the University of Southern Connecticut, awarded in 1999. She received the Children’s Hospital of Michigan’s Teacher of the Year award in 1984, and was inducted into the Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame in 1989. In 1993, she received the American Medical Women’s Association President’s Award and in 1994 the Distinguished Service Award from Wayne State University Medical School. In 2002, the Detroit News named her Michiganer of the Year.

Dr. Canady is now retired and has more time to spend with her husband, and on working to change the view and assumptions about black patients and black medical personnel. She claims the major medical problem for blacks stems from the scarcity of research targeting their specific health concerns and needs.

Information originally from:
http://www.aaregistry.com/detail.php?id=2824

GG Day 1

Saturday, February 6, 2010

Today was Day 1 of GG 2010! First, the GGs paired up to get to know each other and work on Personality BINGO and "All About Us" venn diagrams. These activities allowed the GGs to explore some similarities and differences among themselves.

Once everyone was well-acquainted with one another, the GGs and their teams chose their team names, which are as follows:

Team 1 - Mentors: Michael & Nicole

S.W.A.G.G. (Super, Working, Awesome, GO-GIRLs)

Team 2 - Mentors: Tracey & Laura

B.O.U.N.C.E. (Beautiful, Outgoing, Unique, Nice, Cute, Educated)

Team 3 - Mentors: Kelli & Jennifer Lee

The Stinging Roses

Team 4 - Mentors: Stephanie & Michele

Blazin' Babes!

Team 5 - Mentors: Colleen & Sabine

G.I.A. (Girls In Action)

Team 6 - Mentors: Jen Lenk & Angela

The Shining Stars

After creating their wonderfully individual team names, the GGs and their teams created and completed a survey. Some of the themes of these surveys included after-school snacks and stores for shopping. This is only a taste of the kind of social research the GGs will conduct over the next 9 weeks.

The GGs also learned more about GO-GIRL by playing GG Jeopardy and watching a video montage of photos from last year's GG 2009 semester.

We're looking forward to a great second week! :)

Kicking off GO-GIRL 2010!

GG Orientation, Saturday, January 30, 2010

GO-GIRL got off to a great start last Saturday as the new batch of 57 GO-GIRLs and their parents, friends, and relatives met their new GO-GIRL mentors and team members. This semester's 57 GO-GIRLS proudly represent 16 different communities and attend 38 different middle schools.

Held in the cafe of the WSU Towers Residence Hall, the orientation included a meet & greet among GO-GIRLs and their new team members and mentors. Dr. Sally Roberts gave an uplifting opening speech during which parents and GGs snacked on cookies and sodas.

Whitney, a former GO-GIRL participant from the Class of 2003, has returned to support the new class of GO-GIRLs. She is now a sophomore at Wayne State University and is majoring in languages including Spanish, Chinese, and Japanese. We are so excited that she will join us this semester and know that she will be a source of inspiration to new GO-GIRLs.

GO-GIRL seems to have recurring faces, like Whitney, and sisters of former GO-GIRLs. This semester there are at least 3 girls whose older sisters have graduated from GG in the past. Our family of GO-GIRLs continues to grow!