Our Mission
Providing a platform for girls and young women to “Be Good & Be Hopeful”
Scientella is a student-run, adult-guided fiscally sponsored non-profit organization empowering the next generation of women STEM innovators by matching young women with real-world career discovery experiences, impact-minded leadership development opportunities, and scholarships.
Our History and Cause
There is a clear gender gap in STEM. Despite making up approximately 50% of the US workforce, women comprise only 25% of STEM jobs. Women hold less than 20% of executive STEM positions, a pay gap of 15% still exists, and women earn 38% of STEM bachelor’s degrees yet only 40% of these graduates enter the STEM workforce. These trends persist despite proven business benefits from accelerated DEI initiatives. For instance, public companies headed by women have had nearly 1.5x the returns of those headed by men over the past decade.
The STEM gender gap is perpetuated early in middle school and high school where girls suffer from gender stereotypes, male-dominated cultures, and fewer role models. Teenagers search for career opportunities, but many have trouble finding them due to gender bias, socioeconomic means, no prior experience, or lack of connections. Such problems can be addressed by corporations, yet many do not offer programs for high schoolers. Most companies have not fathomed that minors can add unique perspectives to innovation efforts, hence missing out on fostering a pipeline of bright young talent.
Enter Scientella, a fiscally sponsored non-profit founded in August 2020 to close the representation gap by promoting greater youth, female, and minority involvement in STEM fields. We aspire to provide young girls with an influential career exploration platform that bolsters development of professional soft skills, leadership potential, and widespread networking. Scientella inspires the next generation of women in STEM, thereby increasing female representation across STEM fields to shape a more inclusive and diverse future.
Our Value Proposition
Through innovative, virtual experiential learning programs called “matches” (student consulting projects, 1-on-1 mentoring, webinars, and in-person company visits), true impact-leadership responsibilities, and rich interactions with role models, young women gain the resume, skills, and confidence to thrive in the careers of their choice to narrow the STEM gap.
Partner corporations are provided with an effective way to match volunteers to the women in STEM cause, foster a pipeline of teenage talent for future college internships and jobs, and tap into unique youth perspectives for market insights.
Scientella has impacted more than 500 students, completed 900 matches, engaged 60 professionals, holds 15 global high school chapters, and raised $150,000 in donations.
Our Uniqueness
Student-Run and Adult-Guided: a combined Headquarter (HQ) team called the “Steministas” consists of volunteer student leaders and adult role models (both female and male allies) that work together to manage the organization and jointly fulfill our mission.
Career Exploration + Impact Leadership: we are a novel type of STEM non-profit that balks the savior mentality, recognizing that the teenage years are pivotal to career discovery and a “be good, be hopeful” impact-leadership mindset. Young girls start as beneficiaries for career matches as general Scientella members, then can enhance their leadership as Chapter Leaders, and finally HQ Leaders. Members pay-it-forward to other kids, promoting a “Kids for Kids” service-minded mentality.
Impact Scholarships: whereas other non-profits may offer need-based or merit-based scholarships, Scientella offers a unique “Impact Scholarship”. These are annual incentive-based rewards for students having significant involvement and leadership contributions that bolster pursuit of our mission.
Testimonials
"The way that Scientella sets up their interviews makes it very easy for the student and the mentor to interact. When I met Lisa I instantly felt like I was talking to a friend, and she answered every question I had perfectly. The way she connected her career and her experience together made it easier to understand what I was getting into. Scientella is set up perfectly!" - Paulina Martinez, Junior - 1 on 1 mentoring
"Scientella's consulting project was eye-opening and a unique experience to be a part of! I learned valuable career skills, and had the opportunity to work directly with companies to develop solutions. This project has allowed me to broaden my scope of possible career paths, and was an overall memorable experience!" - Audrey Shao, Junior - consulting project
“I had the opportunity to debrief with the mentee following this conversation and she was SO fired up! Kudos to Scientella for creating such a powerful tool for connecting our future women scientists to amazing mentors.” - Dawn Mattoon, Quanterix Senior VP of Research Products Business, Strategic Marketing & Assay Technologies - 1 on 1 mentoring
"Scientella provided me with an extremely rare opportunity to gain hands-on experience in the business world of the STEM field. I was able to learn about a super relevant issue and about a career which I could see myself pursuing in the future while surrounded by peers who were just as interested and engaged as me. It was an amazing experience and I'm so grateful to the program!" - Avery Mattoon, Junior - consulting project
"Being part of a student consulting project was fantastic! I was able to collaborate with like-minded girls and received guidance from an experienced industry professional. This project gave me an opportunity to explore STEM through a more business-oriented lens. I feel much more confident and excited to pursue an interdisciplinary field in the future." - Anjana Shriram, Junior - consulting project
“The Scientella student consulting projects are the epitome of a better future. Built upon trust and guidance to youngsters, it empowered and challenged this amazing young group of women to be innovative, productive yet efficient. It cemented the fundamentals of the next generation of thinkers and leaders. Thanks for letting me contribute that little to such a great program.” - Xavier Soler, MD, Ph.D. Associate professor of medicine, UC San Diego Health. Medical director, COPD Foundation and respiratory consultant - consulting project
"It was very valuable to be able to gain more insight about the field and what her job looks like on a day to day basis. I also enjoyed receiving advice on what I should do now as a high schooler before applying and entering into college." - Liana Ahyuen, Senior - 1 on 1 mentoring
"Such an honor to work with this incredibly capable group of young women. Scientella has created a vehicle for fostering collaborative, experiential learning while cultivating the next generation of women STEM leaders. Congratulations to Raquel, Sachel, Maggie, Audrey, Avery, Anjana, and Emily for their excellent work on this project!" - Dawn Mattoon, Quanterix Senior VP of Research Products Business, Strategic Marketing & Assay Technologies - consulting project
"It was both an honor and a reward to have served as a project sponsor to these ambitious young women who are eager to learn, grow, and make their mark on the whole. I was thrilled to have broadened their exposure to potential fields of interest and so impressed by the outcome of their project (even with no prior corporate experience or college education). I highly recommend Scientella to both sponsors and students.” - Lyndsay Toll, former HP Inc., ResMed Sr. Mgr. New Business Creation - consulting project
“Raquel, Elizabeth, Ray, Emma, Audrey, & Sanjana, It was a pleasure to work with you. And I am truly impressed with the final report. We will definitely use the learnings there to improve our chances of success.” - Jeff Coleman, BrainLeap Technologies CEO/Co-Founder - consulting project
Sponsors & Partners
Scientella is fiscally sponsored by Mission Edge San Diego. Our network of corporate sponsors and community partners allow us to offer an unparalleled collection of career exploration and leadership development programs.
