The GEMS (Girls in Engineering, Math, and Science) program at Florida Gulf Coast University was held on Saturday, where middle school students (grades 6-8) participated in hands-on STEM activities led by FGCU STEM majors and faculty.This half-day event encourages all middle school girls to engage in hands-on activities related to engineering, math, and science."We find that a lot of girls lose interest in STEM or start to think they can't do it around this age, so we want to provide that extra support," Heather Skaza Acosta, director of the Whittaker Center for STEM Education, said.With the help of some FGCU undergrads like Katarya Johnson-Williams, the program is helping these girls find mentors early. "It's definitely been excitement, lots of smiles, and oh my gosh, this is happening, and the kids have been so excited and enthusiastic," Williams said.While a new generation of students are learning about STEM, instructors like Williams said this takes her back to the first time she fell in love with the field. "To see that excitement like that, they saw my passion, and it rubbed off on them, and by the end of it, the student put on the survey at the end that they wanted to be a software engineer," Williams said.It takes a village to create so much inspiration for 100 students in one day, and Williams's work didn't go unnoticed."Students like her are the reason this program even exists because there's no way that our little office could do this without their passion and drive," Acosta explained.The GEMS program is free to all participants. Registration is required, and parent permission is collected in writing.