"If
your
dreams
do
not
scare
you,
they
are
not
big
enough."
From
an
early
age,
this
quote
by
Ellen
Johnson
Sirleaf,
Africa's
first
elected
female
head
of
state,
inspired
Charles
J.
Colgan
Sr.
High
School
freshman
Rania
Lateef
to
push
herself
to
succeed.
It
was
through
her
success
in
math
and
science
competitions
that
she
began
noticing
a
trend;
she
was
often
the
only
female
competitor.
"I
knew
I
could
not
be
the
only
girl
who
was
able
to
love
and
excel
at
science,
technology,
engineering,
and
math
(STEM)
-
now
I
just
needed
to
figure
out
where
the
rest
of
the
girls
were,"
said
Lateef.
Lateef
credits
her
Marshall
Elementary
School
teachers
along
with
Benton
Middle
School
science
teacher,
Debra
Peterman,
for
inspiring
her
to
create
the
science
fair
project
that
eventually
led
to
the
study
of
growth
mindsets.
The
Journal
of
Emerging
Investigators
recently
published
the
study
co-authored
by
Lateef
and
Peterman.
Her
curiosity
led
her
to
develop
a
study
focused
on
whether
mindset
could
affect
a
student's
future
career
choices
and
whether
this
effect
differed
based
on
gender.
In
the
study,
Lateef
found
that
in
a
growth
mindset,
people
believe
that
their
most
basic
abilities
can
be
developed
through
dedication
and
hard
work,
while
a
fixed
mindset
assumes
that
a
person's
character,
intelligence,
and
creative
ability
are
static
givens.
"I
found
that
girls
who
had
a
growth
mindset
were
much
more
likely
to
consider
future
STEM
careers
compared
to
girls
who
had
a
fixed
mindset,"
said
Lateef.
"I
was
stunned
because
some
of
these
girls
[in
the
study]
were
very
young
and
only
in
elementary
school."
"It
is
important
to
instill
academic
self-confidence
in
students,
especially
young
girls,
when
it
comes
to
tackling
fields
like
science
because
historically
these
areas
tend
to
be
male-dominated,"
said
Peterman.
"Sponsoring
young
Benton
women,
like
Rania,
shows
our
students
that
you
can
achieve
your
goals
if
you
really
believe
in
yourself
and
your
work."
Read the published study "Can the Growth Mindset Encourage Girls to Pursue "Male" Careers?" on the Journal of Emerging Investigators website.