Transcript

STEM · Divas That Care Network

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SPEAKER_00: It's Divas That Care Radio.
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SPEAKER_00: Right now, though, stay tuned for another jolt of inspiration.
0:30
SPEAKER_01: Hello to all.
0:34
SPEAKER_01: Welcome to Divas That Care Network today.
0:37
SPEAKER_01: I am Joyce Benning, and I am your host for this robust lifestyle show.
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SPEAKER_01: Please check out our website, divasacare.com, and see all the amazing hosts and their shows of women they are interviewing around the world.
0:54
SPEAKER_01: I am so super excited today to have a new young diva, Simran Patel, with me, and she is going to speak about STEM, which truly sounds very interesting.
1:07
SPEAKER_01: Simran Patel, could you please introduce yourself and tell us a little about yourself?
1:13
SPEAKER_02: First, thank you so much for having me.
1:15
SPEAKER_02: Hi, I'm Simran Patel, and I'm a rising senior in the Grimsley High School.
1:21
SPEAKER_02: And I'm also a vice president of the Girls in STEM Club at our high school.
1:25
SPEAKER_02: We have been doing a lot of exciting things this year, even just held a virtual camp to introduce young girls to STEM.
1:32
SPEAKER_02: I'm really passionate about different STEM fields and showing all the girls how much opportunity STEM has to present a lot of different kind of people.
1:44
SPEAKER_02: No matter where you come from, what your background is, STEM has something that you can be interested in, and there's a lot more opportunities for young girls now than there have ever been.
1:56
SPEAKER_01: Oh, my goodness.
1:58
SPEAKER_01: Oh, wow.
1:58
SPEAKER_01: How exciting.
2:00
SPEAKER_01: Oh, goodness.
2:02
SPEAKER_01: Well, could you please share with our listeners today, in case someone is not aware of what STEM is?
2:11
SPEAKER_01: What exactly is STEM?
2:15
SPEAKER_02: So STEM is just science, technology, math, and engineering.
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SPEAKER_02: That's what it stands for.
2:21
SPEAKER_02: STEM is just different career fields that introduce people to science, math, technology, and engineering.
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SPEAKER_02: There's a lot of different things that people can do once they go into these fields.
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SPEAKER_02: There's doctors, there's scientists.
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SPEAKER_02: There are a lot of different things that you can do.
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SPEAKER_02: Combined science and math projects, combined science and technology math projects.
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SPEAKER_02: It allows people to use their skills and knowledge in all these different things and combine it together in order to have their careers and have different opportunities, create new things and inventions and stuff.
3:00
SPEAKER_01: Oh, wow.
3:01
SPEAKER_01: Wow.
3:02
SPEAKER_01: What a great explanation of that.
3:04
SPEAKER_01: Oh, my goodness.
3:05
SPEAKER_01: It opens up all kind of career opportunities for individuals then.
3:11
SPEAKER_01: Oh, how exciting.
3:13
SPEAKER_01: Well, why is this cause so near and dear to you, this STEM program that you're involved in with the Grimsley's Girls?
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UNKNOWN: Yes.
3:25
SPEAKER_02: I'm really passionate about this program because when I first joined this program, I was unaware about what I want to do with my life.
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SPEAKER_02: And this program really helped me know more about all the opportunities that I could have in the future and really let me decide what I wanted to do with my future.
3:42
SPEAKER_02: And I think there are a lot more girls like me who might be confused at this point.
3:47
SPEAKER_02: But knowing these opportunities, knowing that they have these potential opportunities can really help them decide what they really want to do.
3:55
SPEAKER_02: That's how I felt when I first joined this club, and it's really doing amazing things, and I'm really grateful to be a part of this club.
4:04
SPEAKER_01: Oh, goodness.
4:05
SPEAKER_01: Wow.
4:06
SPEAKER_01: So it's really preparing you for the future being involved in this STEM club and giving you...
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SPEAKER_01: Opening doors for opportunities that you may not have seen if you had not been involved in the STEM club.
4:25
SPEAKER_01: Oh, that is exciting.
4:27
SPEAKER_01: Well, where did the aha moment come then where you thought, okay, this is something I want to be involved in?
4:36
SPEAKER_01: Was there an aha moment that made you go in this direction?
4:43
SPEAKER_02: I think the aha moment for me was our first STEM conference that we held with the AAU youth group for girls.
4:52
SPEAKER_02: And it was just a conference where young girls came in and we talked to them.
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SPEAKER_02: We held tours.
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SPEAKER_02: We did different kinds of activities with them, told us about our experience.
5:03
SPEAKER_02: of the STEM who learn more about their experience with STEM.
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SPEAKER_02: And it was really just a great and wonderful day for me.
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SPEAKER_02: And it really opened my eyes to how many new experiences I could get and how many new opportunities there are.
5:16
SPEAKER_02: And there was just a lot of new people I met.
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SPEAKER_02: And it was really great to know so much more and get all this new knowledge and information about different things and all these different things STEM has.
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SPEAKER_02: And it was a really fun day.
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SPEAKER_02: And I think that's when I realized that STEM has a lot of potential for girls.
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SPEAKER_02: And a lot of people should be involved but don't know exactly how to be involved or what they can do.
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SPEAKER_02: And if...
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SPEAKER_02: being involved helps them.
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SPEAKER_02: So this was really just something that I thought is important.
5:49
SPEAKER_01: Oh, wow.
5:51
SPEAKER_01: Yes.
5:51
SPEAKER_01: Oh, my.
5:52
SPEAKER_01: That was quite an aha moment to become involved in that way and see all the opportunities that were out there for you.
6:01
SPEAKER_01: That is awesome.
6:02
SPEAKER_01: Well, I was on the Grimsley's Girls website in STEM, and I saw that you have just completed an online summer camp that you offer to other girls.
6:16
UNKNOWN: That's right.
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SPEAKER_01: Would you please tell our listeners a little more about this online camp?
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SPEAKER_01: That sounds really exciting.
6:25
SPEAKER_02: Sure.
6:25
SPEAKER_02: So it was a week-long online camp from Monday to Friday.
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SPEAKER_02: We had different sessions for science, technology, engineering, and math, and a combined session for technology and engineering and science and math on Friday.
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SPEAKER_02: So what we did was we planned different activities in each session.
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SPEAKER_02: All of our officers were trained.
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SPEAKER_02: leading each session.
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SPEAKER_02: I was the one leading the engineering session.
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SPEAKER_02: We had different girls coming in every day, about 10 to 15 girls each day for one session, and we had about four sessions every day.
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SPEAKER_02: So we told these young girls more about our specific letter, as in I had engineering, so I told them more about the opportunities they could have as engineers, like all the different types of engineers they could become.
7:13
SPEAKER_02: And we had a fun activity every day, like building something.
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SPEAKER_02: We built a bridge from pencils and rubber bands.
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SPEAKER_02: We had different kinds of activities.
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SPEAKER_02: We played online games and learned a lot of new stuff from each other, as well as the games and the materials.
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SPEAKER_02: So it was really a fun camp for all the people to be introduced to STEM.
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SPEAKER_02: It was for rising sixth graders to rising ninth graders who were just enrolling in middle school and high school.
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SPEAKER_02: We were able to expose them to STEM.
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SPEAKER_02: So if in the future they want to be more involved, they could have a better path.
7:48
SPEAKER_01: Oh, wow.
7:49
SPEAKER_01: Oh, that sounds like a really fun camp.
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SPEAKER_01: And I love how you had different instructors in each one of the individual, like science, technology, the engineering, and mathematics.
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SPEAKER_01: So the upcoming sixth graders and ninth graders could choose which activities they wanted to be involved in.
8:11
SPEAKER_01: Wow, that is incredible.
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SPEAKER_01: And it was all done online?
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UNKNOWN: Yes.
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SPEAKER_02: Yes, because of the condition right now, we had to switch it to online.
8:20
SPEAKER_02: Originally, we were going to do it as not a virtual camp, as an in-place camp somewhere, but due to the coronavirus, we had to do it online, but it was still a lot of fun.
8:31
SPEAKER_02: Oh,
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SPEAKER_01: I bet.
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SPEAKER_01: I bet it was.
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SPEAKER_01: Plus, it gave opportunities for girls that might have not been able to travel online.
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SPEAKER_01: They could be anywhere and be at the camp.
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UNKNOWN: Mm-hmm.
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SPEAKER_01: Now, is this the first camp that your club has held, or is this something you do on a yearly basis?
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SPEAKER_02: It's actually our first summer camp because the club started last year.
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SPEAKER_02: So the club is really newly starting right now.
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SPEAKER_02: So it is our first summer camp.
9:07
SPEAKER_01: Oh, my goodness.
9:08
SPEAKER_01: So this is just a brand-new...
9:11
SPEAKER_01: Oh, that is incredible.
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SPEAKER_01: It is all just a totally new experience for all of you.
9:18
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
9:19
SPEAKER_01: Oh, wow.
9:21
SPEAKER_01: How many girls are involved in your group, in your Grimsley's Girls in STEM?
9:30
SPEAKER_02: I think around 10 to 15 girls might be coming in for the meetings and be involved in the local school areas.
9:37
SPEAKER_02: I think about there are mainly...
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SPEAKER_02: about six or seven girls who always are there for these conferences and camps.
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SPEAKER_02: So right now it's a smaller group, but we're trying to expand it as the years go by.
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SPEAKER_01: Mm-hmm.
9:53
SPEAKER_01: Well, that's really a good number, though, for your very first year.
9:56
SPEAKER_01: That's incredible.
9:58
SPEAKER_01: Wow, that is really good.
10:01
SPEAKER_01: And then putting on a camp right away for the first year.
10:04
SPEAKER_01: That's even more incredible.
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SPEAKER_01: You girls are very organized to be able to do something like that and to conduct an online camp.
10:16
SPEAKER_01: I'm familiar through Divas.
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SPEAKER_01: It takes a lot of work to put all of that together, especially with the different topics and speakers Oh, I credit you.
10:25
SPEAKER_01: You have so much experience already behind you in what you are doing.
10:29
SPEAKER_01: That is super exciting.
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SPEAKER_01: From what I am hearing through STEM, it is totally preparing you for the future, the careers, and everything that you're looking at to help you in so many different ways.
10:44
SPEAKER_01: Wow.
10:47
SPEAKER_01: Well, I think you've touched on some of this, but...
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SPEAKER_01: What all do you do to support this cause of STEM?
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SPEAKER_01: Since you are so involved in the Grimsley's Girls in STEM, how do you support this cause?
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SPEAKER_01: A
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SPEAKER_02: great way to support this cause is just going out there and participating in all these events, the conferences, the camps.
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SPEAKER_02: We have set them so that we can participate in it.
11:17
SPEAKER_02: initiate other girls to participate.
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SPEAKER_02: We encourage everyone to participate in these clubs and raise awareness about how it is important to get more girls in the STEM field as well as get more girls in just experiencing these things about how STEM can change their lives.
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SPEAKER_02: So throughout our conferences and our camps, we have got more speakers.
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SPEAKER_02: We have other things that we have done.
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SPEAKER_02: Even in high school locally, we have done a lot of different things, like Halloween festing.
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SPEAKER_02: The young girls were able to come in, and we told them more about what STEM is and how they could get more involved in STEM and how really that they could use all these opportunities in front of them.
12:01
SPEAKER_01: Wow.
12:02
SPEAKER_01: Oh, goodness.
12:03
SPEAKER_01: That is an awesome way to support it, definitely.
12:08
SPEAKER_01: Do you reach out to other schools then?
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SPEAKER_01: Are you mainly just involved in your own high school, or do you reach out to others?
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SPEAKER_02: This year, actually, we have tried to keep it to our high school.
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SPEAKER_02: We haven't had, around us, we haven't had many high schools with the same kind of club as us.
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SPEAKER_02: So we have, for now, it is are high school-based, but we will try to expand it in the future.
12:36
SPEAKER_02: Oh,
12:38
SPEAKER_01: that sounds awesome.
12:39
SPEAKER_01: You have goals and you have a vision that you've already seen expanding it into the future, and that is fantastic.
12:48
SPEAKER_01: That's incredible.
12:50
SPEAKER_01: Well, what difference do you feel that STEM has made in your life?
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SPEAKER_02: I think the biggest difference it did make in my life was giving me a clear direction as to what I wanted to become in my life.
13:04
SPEAKER_02: Before I joined Frozen STEM, it was unclear to me what I would want to do as a profession, as a career.
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SPEAKER_02: But joining there, knowing more about all these different types of that were available for me.
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SPEAKER_02: It really helped me narrow down my options and see what I would be really interested in versus what I might think I might be interested in.
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SPEAKER_02: It really helped me talk to a lot of more people who might be like me, might be confused, might be clear about it in their experiences.
13:32
SPEAKER_02: Just knowing their experiences helped me learn more about opportunities that I could get and learn a lot more about myself.
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SPEAKER_02: And leading these sessions I mean, all these experiences really helped me learn more about myself and all the things that I could do and gain new skills.
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SPEAKER_02: So it's been a great journey.
13:54
SPEAKER_01: Wow.
13:55
SPEAKER_01: Yes, yes.
13:56
SPEAKER_01: And just from hearing you speak, I can tell you have learned leadership skills.
14:02
SPEAKER_01: You've learned creative thinking of ways like to put on this online camp, communicating with other people.
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SPEAKER_01: Wow, what assets to be able to use in your future.
14:15
SPEAKER_01: That is just awesome.
14:17
SPEAKER_01: I love that.
14:19
SPEAKER_01: How would you recommend other young girls to get involved in STEM?
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SPEAKER_02: I think a great way to be involved is start from home.
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SPEAKER_02: You can start from your own high school, your own middle school, and your own local clubs.
14:35
SPEAKER_02: There are a lot of places where you can volunteer.
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SPEAKER_02: If you go online and search for STEM events, opportunities for girls to volunteer in STEM events.
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SPEAKER_02: There are a lot of things that might come up, and the first step could be volunteering and then being more involved.
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SPEAKER_02: As you get more involved, you can start leading.
14:53
SPEAKER_02: You can become a part of something more than just volunteering.
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SPEAKER_02: There are a lot of different ways, like joining clubs like I did, or if you don't have a club, try to initiate a club at your own high school.
15:08
SPEAKER_02: I know a lot of Oh, yes.
15:26
SPEAKER_01: Definitely.
15:27
SPEAKER_01: Wow.
15:28
SPEAKER_01: Well, that kind of fits in with what is on your website, how you girls say you can see all the new opportunities we offer from events, volunteering, and new leadership positions.
15:40
SPEAKER_01: So, wow, you've just kind of summed it up that way.
15:43
SPEAKER_01: That is really, really great.
15:46
SPEAKER_01: Love that.
15:48
SPEAKER_01: So what is your secret to balancing all your high school work and with your STEM and and still giving back to others and helping other girls expand in their future to see what's available for them.
16:04
SPEAKER_01: How do you balance all that?
16:07
SPEAKER_02: I think prioritizing my work is just something that I would say is really helpful to me.
16:13
SPEAKER_02: I know what I need to get done, know my goals clearly, and then work my way to doing them.
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SPEAKER_02: And the good thing is that I really care about the work I do.
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SPEAKER_02: So it's not that I have to make time for it.
16:26
SPEAKER_02: It's that I am happy to have the time for it.
16:29
SPEAKER_02: So just hearing about an issue and then working towards it just helps you a lot more and prioritizing your way through it, making a schedule, making a timetable for yourself.
16:40
SPEAKER_02: to know that you have this time to work and this free time to do something that you are genuinely passionate about really helps you keep going and balance your work as well as things you really enjoy doing.
16:52
SPEAKER_02: Yes,
16:54
SPEAKER_01: that is a great way to balance it all, a great way to put it.
16:58
SPEAKER_01: Simran, I love that.
17:00
SPEAKER_01: Great.
17:01
SPEAKER_01: Well, what is next for you with you being a rising senior?
17:05
SPEAKER_01: What are your future plans and goals?
17:11
SPEAKER_02: I think for now, my biggest goal and my biggest dream is to get into NC State to study more about architecture.
17:17
SPEAKER_02: And as far as the Girls in STEM Club, I would like to do a lot more and be involved in high school next year.
17:26
SPEAKER_02: Even if it's not possible physically, I would like to be involved virtually and hold more conferences, more camps in order to get more girls into this club and find better leadership positions once we leave and make sure that the club can keep going on and sustaining.
17:43
SPEAKER_01: That
17:48
SPEAKER_02: is
17:50
SPEAKER_01: great.
17:53
SPEAKER_01: That is great.
17:54
SPEAKER_01: Those are some wonderful goals for you to have.
17:57
SPEAKER_01: How awesome.
17:59
SPEAKER_01: Well, this has been such a fun interview.
18:02
SPEAKER_01: I've loved learning all this.
18:04
SPEAKER_01: I've learned so much from you already about what STEM is.
18:09
SPEAKER_01: And As we come to a close on this interview, what are some thoughts, tips, or tools you would like to leave with our listeners today?
18:18
SPEAKER_01: I
18:20
SPEAKER_02: think the biggest tip is that don't be afraid of trying something new.
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SPEAKER_02: If I would have never tried the Girls in STEM Club, if I would have never joined, I might not be here where I am today.
18:30
SPEAKER_02: So just try to explore new things and don't be afraid to explore new things.
18:35
SPEAKER_02: because they might be something that in the future you might consider your biggest thing that you might have done the best thing for yourself.
18:44
SPEAKER_02: So keep exploring and try to always join new clubs.
18:48
SPEAKER_02: Look out for new opportunities.
18:50
SPEAKER_02: Take the initiative because that always goes the wrong way.
18:55
SPEAKER_01: Oh, wow.
18:56
SPEAKER_01: Those are some great thoughts and tools to leave with our listeners.
19:01
SPEAKER_01: Love all that.
19:02
SPEAKER_01: Oh, that is awesome.
19:03
SPEAKER_01: I want to thank you so much, Simran Patel, for being my guest.
19:08
SPEAKER_01: And I do hope you will return in the future.
19:10
SPEAKER_02: Thank you so much.
19:14
SPEAKER_01: You are so welcome.
19:16
SPEAKER_01: We definitely want to be updated on your STEM activities and your future college.
19:22
SPEAKER_01: And so I do hope you will return in the future on Divas That Care.
19:28
SPEAKER_02: Definitely.
19:28
SPEAKER_02: Thank you.
19:29
SPEAKER_01: You are very welcome.
19:32
SPEAKER_01: And I want to thank you all for listening to this interview with our new young diva, Simran Patel.
19:41
SPEAKER_01: Thank you.
19:44
SPEAKER_01: Thank you.
19:54
SPEAKER_01: Thank you.
20:03
SPEAKER_00: Thanks for listening.
20:04
SPEAKER_00: This show was brought to you by Divas That Care.
20:07
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