CWU event helps Yakima fourth-graders learn about STEM careers

The CWU College of the Sciences hosted hundreds of fourth-graders from Yakima on Friday, May 19, for Step Into STEM, giving them a glimpse into what a career in science, technology, engineering, and math might look like.

Many Yakima elementary school students come from farm-working or low-income families, and not all of them are aware of the career paths they can pursue.

Oscar Godinez, a migrant career readiness coordinator for Educational Service District 105 in Yakima, said events like the one at CWU open students' eyes to what opportunities may be available to them someday.

"The biggest question that they get once they get to their senior year is, 'what are you going to do, what are you going to study, where are you going to go?' And a lot of them say 'I don't know nobody's ever asked me that question, I don't really know what's out there,'" Godinez said in a news feature that appeared on KIMA-TV.

Godinez and his ESD 105 colleagues hope the Step Into STEM event at CWU may one day help make Yakima a new hub for the high-paying jobs that are prevalent in science- and technology-based fields.

"It's just a part of starting them off super young and working with them so they go, 'oh hey, we know what that is,' and making that a key moment in their life," he said.

During their visit to Ellensburg, the Yakima students learned how to construct their own straw rockets. Godinez said activities like this help kids space to be creative and show them any career path is possible.

"Jobs in the STEM field are fun, and that's what we want to showcase to our students," he said.