News archives 2010-2021

Program helps girls get excited about science

July 29, 2015

Tanya Clayton

Reprinted from the Daily News-Miner
By Kjerstan Matson




Kjerstan Matson (girl in blue-rimmed sunglasses) joins in one of many group discussions that helped the girls build trust in each other so that they could work as a team in conducting their field studies of the glacier. Photos courtesy of Girls on Ice.
Kjerstan Matson (girl in blue-rimmed sunglasses) joins in one of many group discussions that helped the girls build trust in each other so that they could work as a team in conducting their field studies of the glacier. Photos courtesy of Girls on Ice.

Kjerstan Matson was one of nine high school girls from Alaska and the lower 48 who spent over week exploring an Alaska glacier as part of the free Girls on Ice program. Erin Pettit, a glaciologist from the University of Alaska Fairbanks’ College of Natural Science and Mathematics, created the program “to share the inspiration, self confidence, self awareness, and love of science that I have gained from field science expeditions and my own personal trips exploring the mountains and wilderness areas.” Here’s what Matson said about her own experience:


A few weeks ago, I was sitting at the base of an icefall at who knows what time in the morning lacing up my crampons. I was pretty stoked to be there. The night before, a small team of girls and two instructors decided to make the journey up what we call “The crouching tiger Nunatak,” a rocky ridge to the right of a glacier in the Alaska Range. It was a bit of an ambitious idea considering today was also the day that we would be hiking back down from the glacier to the trail head where our trip began, but none of us could dream of passing up the opportunity.




We went up in groups of two tied together by ropes taking wide, sideways steps for stability. On my way to the top of the Nunatak, I reflected upon my time as a part of the Girls on Ice Alaska program. I remembered how tired and nervous I was when my plane finally arrived in Fairbanks, and how I was greeted by outgoing and cheerful girls. I thought about my first night out in the wilderness and how I was hardly able to fall asleep because of the relentless shining of the Midnight Sun. I smiled when the other girls reminded me of the time when we were caught in a hailstorm on our way back to low camp, and how we all laughed through it.






The program Girls on Ice is all about getting off the beaten trail, learning by doing, gaining self-confidence, and getting high school girls interested in science. The program offers two sessions - one in Alaska and one in Washington where the program originated about a decade ago. Photo courtesy of Girls on Ice.
The program Girls on Ice is all about getting off the beaten trail, learning by doing, gaining self-confidence, and getting high school girls interested in science. The program offers two sessions - one in Alaska and one in Washington where the program originated about a decade ago. Photo courtesy of Girls on Ice.

Now I felt comfortable with these girls, but on the first few days of the trip I was terrified. I had never been so far into the back country, nor with so many other girls before. My experience with Girls on Ice allowed me to learn my place within a social structure with only other women. I had the opportunity to challenge myself socially and physically in a safe and supportive environment.





Before I left for Girls on Ice, I definitely received a lot of doubtful comments, even from my own friends and family. Of them all, perhaps the most hurtful was, “Are you sure you’re cut out for that? I mean, isn’t this something your brother should be doing?”





After I recalled that encounter, I was pulled out of my thoughts and brought back to the beautiful scenery around me. As I lifted my gaze, I saw strong, motivated, intelligent young women more than capable of becoming whatever they want. We had climbed up this ice fall and arrived at the Nunatak in great time, and I don’t think any of us had doubted our capability to reach the lookout previous to achieving it. Being in an environment with so many inspiring women was empowering, and the same support system enabled me to learn that I was capable of much more than was assumed of me before the trip.





Girls on Ice definitely provides a one of a kind experience for girls to get a chance to explore someplace new. Had it not been for Girls on Ice, I might never have been able to go to Fairbanks, and absolutely never would have met some of the young women who I can now say I call my friends. I know that the memories of all I saw and everyone I met will stay with me for the rest of my life.






The nine girls in Girls on Ice and one of their instructors pose for a group shot in front of the glacier that they were studying. Many of the girls said the program was about more than science - it enabled them to make life-long friends and develop an appreciation in their own abilities. Photo courtesy of Girls on Ice.
The nine girls in Girls on Ice and one of their instructors pose for a group shot in front of the glacier that they were studying. Many of the girls said the program was about more than science - it enabled them to make life-long friends and develop an appreciation in their own abilities. Photo courtesy of Girls on Ice.

Of everything I learned from my great Alaskan adventure, one lesson stands out to me as being particularly noteworthy. Before I went to Alaska, I always had the impression that life was like climbing a ladder. That we are born, and then expected to climb from rung to rung until we can climb no longer. However, now I know that there is no need to rush through life. I realize that I am in control of my destiny. My point? I now think life is less like climbing a ladder, and a whole lot more like climbing a mountain.





Kjerstan Matson is a Girls on Ice Alaska 2015 alumna. She is 16 years old and lives in a small town along Puget Sound. She enjoys being out in nature, writing poetry, and tending to her garden.