Tech Trek and STEM Programs – AAUW Healdsburg Branch
Sonoma State University, 1801 E Cotati Ave, Rohnert Park, CA 95448
About
Tech Trek and STEM Programs – AAUW Healdsburg Branch offers hands-on activities in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), including a Galileo scopes workshop and Astronomy night with a tour of the Whirlpool Galaxy, Ring Nebula, and other celestial objects. The program includes Professional Women’s Career Panels focused on careers in STEM and multiple STEM-related field trips to places such as Keysight Technologies, Medtronic, Canine Companions, Pixar, Bodega Marine Laboratory, and local hospitals. It also includes a one-day, hands-on workshop conference that exposes 7th and 8th grade girls to STEAM careers requiring a math and science background.
• Ages: 12–18 years old
• Schedule: Tech Trek is a week-long academic residential camp
Founded in 1881, AAUW promotes equity for all women and girls, lifelong education and positive societal change, and the Healdsburg Branch, founded in 1975, serves the Cloverdale, Geyserville, Healdsburg and Windsor communities. Tech Trek is a week-long academic residential camp for girls entering 8th grade, and 7th grade girls are nominated by their teachers and then go through a selection process that includes application essays and interviews by the Branch Selection Committee. Camps are located on university and college campuses across California where campers are immersed in the full campus experience, and instructors include teachers and professional women in STEM related careers. In 2024, the Healdsburg Branch sponsored eight girls from Cali, Windsor, Cloverdale and Healdsburg schools to attend Tech Trek Camp Franklin at Sonoma State and provided six class monitors for core classes and field trips. AAUW member Dr. Mary Barsony organized an Astronomy night attended by 90 girls in partnership with Robert Ferguson Observatory, which provided the tour of the Whirlpool Galaxy, Ring Nebula, and other celestial gems, as reported in the San Francisco Amateurs Astronomers newsletter.
The Tech Trek Alumni Group (TTAG) is a new AAUW Healdsburg program that focuses on encouraging Tech Trek alumni to stay connected to STEM talented, like-minded girls from middle school through high school and builds on the work of GEMS (Girls Engaged in Math and Science), one of the core STEM programs. Past GEMS activities have included Professional Women’s Career Panels and multiple STEM-related field trips, and AAUW mentors guide TTAG participants in planning and hosting their own programs and community events related to STEM. Expanding Your Horizons (EYH) is a national organization that has merged with TechBridge Girls, and for over 30 years the Sonoma County EYH chapter has hosted an annual one-day, hands-on workshop conference exposing 7th and 8th grade girls to STEAM careers requiring a math and science background, with local AAUW branches including Healdsburg, Petaluma, and Santa Rosa supporting the conference with donations and volunteers.
AAUW’s mission is to advance gender equity for women and girls through research, education and advocacy. Membership in AAUW is open to people who hold an associate degree (AA, AS) or higher, and to students working toward a degree, and there are no barriers to full participation based on gender, race, religion or creed, sexual orientation or gender identity, disability or class. The 2025–2026 Healdsburg Branch Board of Directors includes President Nancy Jane Andrews, Vice President Celeste Plaister, Secretary Pam Jones, Treasurer Renee Simi, Communications (open), Fundraising Julie Hanamura, Scholarships Ann Elston, Membership Donna Campoverde, Mission Based Programs Cathy Mock and Cristi Cameron, Public Policy (open), Social Activities Mary Newman, STEM Anna-Laura Jansma, and Past President Laura Tredinnick. For Tech Trek program information, the contact is Debbi Crapeau; for sponsorship information, the contact is Mary Barsony; for TTAG opportunities, the contact is Karla Rosen, TTAG Chair; and for EYH and EYH opportunities, the contact is Nancy Haiston, EYH Chair. Participants are instructed to bring a brown bag lunch, which is optional.
Last updated March 28, 2026.
• Ages: 12–18 years old
• Schedule: Tech Trek is a week-long academic residential camp
Founded in 1881, AAUW promotes equity for all women and girls, lifelong education and positive societal change, and the Healdsburg Branch, founded in 1975, serves the Cloverdale, Geyserville, Healdsburg and Windsor communities. Tech Trek is a week-long academic residential camp for girls entering 8th grade, and 7th grade girls are nominated by their teachers and then go through a selection process that includes application essays and interviews by the Branch Selection Committee. Camps are located on university and college campuses across California where campers are immersed in the full campus experience, and instructors include teachers and professional women in STEM related careers. In 2024, the Healdsburg Branch sponsored eight girls from Cali, Windsor, Cloverdale and Healdsburg schools to attend Tech Trek Camp Franklin at Sonoma State and provided six class monitors for core classes and field trips. AAUW member Dr. Mary Barsony organized an Astronomy night attended by 90 girls in partnership with Robert Ferguson Observatory, which provided the tour of the Whirlpool Galaxy, Ring Nebula, and other celestial gems, as reported in the San Francisco Amateurs Astronomers newsletter.
The Tech Trek Alumni Group (TTAG) is a new AAUW Healdsburg program that focuses on encouraging Tech Trek alumni to stay connected to STEM talented, like-minded girls from middle school through high school and builds on the work of GEMS (Girls Engaged in Math and Science), one of the core STEM programs. Past GEMS activities have included Professional Women’s Career Panels and multiple STEM-related field trips, and AAUW mentors guide TTAG participants in planning and hosting their own programs and community events related to STEM. Expanding Your Horizons (EYH) is a national organization that has merged with TechBridge Girls, and for over 30 years the Sonoma County EYH chapter has hosted an annual one-day, hands-on workshop conference exposing 7th and 8th grade girls to STEAM careers requiring a math and science background, with local AAUW branches including Healdsburg, Petaluma, and Santa Rosa supporting the conference with donations and volunteers.
AAUW’s mission is to advance gender equity for women and girls through research, education and advocacy. Membership in AAUW is open to people who hold an associate degree (AA, AS) or higher, and to students working toward a degree, and there are no barriers to full participation based on gender, race, religion or creed, sexual orientation or gender identity, disability or class. The 2025–2026 Healdsburg Branch Board of Directors includes President Nancy Jane Andrews, Vice President Celeste Plaister, Secretary Pam Jones, Treasurer Renee Simi, Communications (open), Fundraising Julie Hanamura, Scholarships Ann Elston, Membership Donna Campoverde, Mission Based Programs Cathy Mock and Cristi Cameron, Public Policy (open), Social Activities Mary Newman, STEM Anna-Laura Jansma, and Past President Laura Tredinnick. For Tech Trek program information, the contact is Debbi Crapeau; for sponsorship information, the contact is Mary Barsony; for TTAG opportunities, the contact is Karla Rosen, TTAG Chair; and for EYH and EYH opportunities, the contact is Nancy Haiston, EYH Chair. Participants are instructed to bring a brown bag lunch, which is optional.
Last updated March 28, 2026.
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