NASA Space Suit Engineer Will Be Special Guest At WITS Conference

Limestone College will host back-to-back Women In Technology & Sciences (WITS) Conferences on Thursday, March 16, and Friday, March 17, from 9 a.m. until 1:45 p.m. each day.

The guest speaker at each day’s luncheon will be Carly Meginnis (seen in accompanying photo), Technology Development Engineer, Crew and Thermal Systems Division at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, TX. Meginnis specializes in the development of advanced technology for space suit design.

An authentic white NASA space suit from the Johnson Space Center will be on display on March 16 and March 17 in Stephenson Dining Hall. The white space suits – like the one that will be exhibited at Limestone – are currently the only ones the United States uses as part of NASA’s work at the International Space Station. WITS Conference participants will be able to touch and photograph the space suit and its accessories.

Nearly 200 sophomores and junior girls from area high schools are expected to attend the conferences. Participants will be mentored by Limestone's female faculty and students through a series of training workshops.

“These are the best and brightest young women who have expressed an interest in science, math, technology, and health-related areas,” explained WITS Program Director Dr. Michelle Phillips-Meek, who is an Assistant Professor of Psychology at Limestone. “The College is well-suited to offer a conference such as this because half of the faculty in science and health-related disciplines at Limestone are women with terminal degrees.”

Registration will begin each day at 8:15 a.m. at Fullerton Auditorium, and Dr. Phillips-Meek will welcome participants at 9 a.m. Various workshops will take place across campus throughout each morning, followed by lunch in the Stephenson Dining Hall Banquet Room.

Participants of the WITS Conference are eligible for Limestone's McMillan Scholarship Program which is designed specifically for young women who have a high school grade point average of 3.0 or better. The scholarships are worth $8,000 annually for a total of $32,000.

The WITS Conference has received financial support from both Duke Energy and Broad River Electric Cooperative. In 2013, the Duke Energy Foundation provided $50,000 that was used to transform a Limestone science lab into one akin to those seen on the popular “CSI” television series as well as to provide additional high-tech equipment. Broad River Electric Cooperative’s gifts are made possible through its Operation Round Up. Via that program, the monthly balances of participating members’ accounts are rounded up to the nearest dollar. That extra change goes to a benevolent fund that assists organizations and goodwill missions in and around Broad River’s service area.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the STEM related job field is projected to grow by 17 percent by 2018, compared to nine percent in other fields. Employers, however, struggle to find qualified female candidates with degrees in STEM disciplines. In fact, a 2011 report by the U.S. Department of Commerce stated that women will fill fewer than 25 percent of STEM jobs.

For more information about the WITS Conferences or the McMillan Scholarship Program, please contact the Limestone College Admissions Office at (864) 488-4615.

Limestone College is a four-year, liberal arts institution in Gaffney, SC. Established in 1845, Limestone offers bachelor of arts, bachelor of fine arts, bachelor of science, bachelor of social work, associate of arts, associate of science, and master of business administration degrees through traditional and non-traditional educational opportunities.