“Strong, smart and bold.”

This was the statement declared by six amazing girls who dove into the space industry in a unique internship program this summer at Space’s Waterton Campus in Littleton, Colorado.

The high school freshman and sophomore interns were a part of Eureka!, a unique, national STEM program founded by Girls Inc. Eureka! is a comprehensive STEM program for girls that begins the summer after 7th grade and continues through high school graduation. In Denver, just 30 girls are selected each year to participate in this five-year program every year. The mission of the program is to increase confidence and skills through hands-on learning, interactive experiences, and mentorship.

Lockheed Martin has a national partnership with the Girls Inc. nonprofit, and Space has a local partnership with Girls Inc. of Metro Denver through programs including an after-school aerospace STEM curriculum. Girls Inc. has a mission to inspire all girls to be “strong, smart, and bold through life-changing programs and experiences that equip girls to navigate gender, economic, and social barriers and grow into healthy, educated, and independent adults.”

These high schoolers spent 25 hours a week at Waterton for three weeks this summer completing tasks regarding moon habitat creation, 3-D printing, manufacturing solutions and satellite industry research. But, the experience did not stop there. The Girls Inc. interns took tours throughout the facility, went through VR experiences, had hands-on lab training and even got to meet with Space leaders including Executive Vice President Rick Ambrose.