Sweet Briar invites high school girls to explore engineering and computer science

Math professor Raina Robeva helps a participant during the Explore Computer Science weekend in spring 2017.


Registration is now open for two upcoming Explore weekends at Sweet Briar: Explore Engineering on March 30-31 and Explore Engineering and Computer Science on April 13-14. Both events are open to high school girls in their sophomore, junior and senior years.

Explore events are ideal for beginners and advanced students alike, as they work in teams with Sweet Briar faculty and undergraduates on several fun and creative projects. The March weekend will be devoted exclusively to engineering, while participants in the April event will investigate the intersection of computer science and engineering through hands-on learning experiences that combine programming, engineering, creativity and teamwork. Over the past nine years, more than 400 students have attended an Explore Engineering event — including our fall and spring weekends and the weeklong summer course — designing and building such things as computer-controlled smart wearables, an automatically refilling pet bowl and sustainable building materials.


Explore Engineering students work on a project during the summer 2017 design course.


Both Explore events begin at 4 p.m. Friday with an optional campus tour, followed by dinner and an event introduction. Participants stay overnight with engineering student mentors and spend all day Saturday working on their group projects. The weekend culminates in a final project exhibition at 5 p.m. on Saturday.

Priority registration ends on Feb. 1 for Explore Engineering and on March 1 for Explore Engineering and Computer Science. The total cost for each event is $65, which includes room and board, snacks, supplies and a T-shirt.

For more information, contact Rebecca Girten at rgirten@sbc.edu or 434-381-6447. To learn more about Sweet Briar College’s complete EXPLORE series, including upcoming weekends for students interested in the arts, chemistry, history and environmental science, visit sbc.edu/explore.