Play Like a Girl: Sports Skills Propel Girls into STEM Careers

In a world often focused on immediate gratification and visible metrics, Dr. Kimberly Clay's journey with Play Like a Girl reveals a profound truth: lasting impact is forged through sustained effort, strategic community building, and a deep understanding of the long-term consequences of opportunity, or its absence. This conversation unpacks how a personal need for belonging, amplified by the power of sport, can catalyze a national movement. It highlights the hidden advantage of focusing on early intervention, particularly for girls in STEM, and demonstrates how a commitment to service, even without immediate reward, creates a powerful ripple effect. Those who seek to build sustainable, impactful organizations, foster genuine community, or understand the critical role of early opportunity in shaping future leaders will find a roadmap here, one that prioritizes depth and durability over fleeting wins.

The Unseen Architecture of Belonging: How Sport Builds STEM Leaders

The narrative surrounding girls in STEM often focuses on a leaky pipeline, with girls dropping out at alarming rates. Dr. Kimberly Clay, founder and CEO of Play Like a Girl, reframes this challenge not as a series of individual failures, but as a systemic issue rooted in a lack of belonging and confidence. Her organization leverages the inherent lessons of sport--resilience, teamwork, confidence--to create pathways for girls into male-dominated STEM fields. This isn't about simply getting girls into science classes; it's about equipping them with the psychological and social scaffolding to not just participate, but to thrive and lead in competitive arenas.

Clay’s own experience as a doctoral student at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, an African American woman from the rural South navigating a predominantly white, male academic environment, birthed Play Like a Girl. It began as a personal support network, a "sister friend group," born from a palpable need for connection. This origin story is critical: the organization's core tenet is addressing the lack of belonging, a foundational element often overlooked in traditional STEM outreach. The immediate solution was social, but the downstream effect, as Clay recognized with her husband's encouragement, was the potential for systemic change.

"The truth that had created me to be who I am today... so today Play Like a Girl is a national 501 c3 organization... we specifically leverage the skills that girls gain from sport to help propel them into male dominated careers competitive careers where men outnumber women."

-- Dr. Kimberly Clay

The strategic pivot to focus on STEM was driven by compelling data: girls drop out of both sport and STEM at twice the rate of boys between middle school and high school. This shared dropout point is not coincidental. Clay posits that the skills honed in sport--confidence, resilience, the ability to bounce back from failure, team management--are precisely what are needed to navigate the competitive and often unwelcoming landscapes of STEM. The science, as highlighted by a study from ESPN and Ernst & Young, reinforces this: 94% of women in C-suites played sports, and 56% played through college. This isn't just correlation; it's a powerful indicator of the enduring advantage gained from athletic participation.

The organization's evolution from a community-based model to a school-based one, particularly post-pandemic, illustrates a keen awareness of system dynamics and adaptation. Recognizing declining participation and the broader trend of defunding equity work, Play Like a Girl strategically embedded its programs within girls' schools. This move addresses the immediate need for consistent engagement but also creates a more controlled environment where the core message of confidence, connections, and career readiness can be deeply cultivated. The long-term vision extends beyond individual programs, aiming to impact entire school bodies through events like the Girls Rock STEM Summit and Play Like a Girl Field Days, further embedding a culture of empowerment.

"The other reason that we chose STEM to be the academic outcome is because STEM actually represents the one set of fields where women are almost at parity in pay. So when thinking about true impact over the long term of the work that we do what we really wanted to see is that we break the intergenerational cycle of poverty for many girls and women."

-- Dr. Kimberly Clay

This focus on STEM as the academic outcome is not arbitrary. It’s a deliberate choice to target fields where, despite historical underrepresentation, women can achieve near parity in pay. This directly addresses the intergenerational cycle of poverty, offering a tangible pathway to economic empowerment. The establishment of a college scholarship program, funded in memoriam to a dedicated volunteer, further solidifies this long-term impact, providing crucial support for African American women pursuing STEM at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). Witnessing the first graduates complete their degrees and enter professional fields like pharmacy and medicine underscores the profound, delayed payoff of this sustained investment in early opportunity and support.

Navigating the System: Actionable Pathways to Impact

Play Like a Girl’s strategic approach offers a compelling model for anyone looking to create lasting change. The organization’s success hinges on understanding systemic levers, building robust partnerships, and fostering a culture where service is paramount.

• Embrace the "Why Not Me?" Mentality: Recognize that personal experiences of exclusion or lack of belonging can be the genesis of powerful solutions. Dr. Clay's journey from a personal need to a national nonprofit exemplifies this.
  • Immediate Action: Reflect on personal challenges and identify areas where a "do-it-yourself" solution could benefit others.
• Leverage Sport as a Confidence Engine: Understand that the skills developed in sports--resilience, teamwork, leadership--are transferable and crucial for success in competitive fields like STEM.
  • Immediate Action: Encourage girls in your life to participate in sports, focusing on skill development and personal growth rather than solely on competition.
• Prioritize Early Intervention in Middle School: The critical window for influencing girls' interest in STEM and their confidence levels is before high school.
  • Over the next quarter: Advocate for or support programs that engage middle school girls in STEM and sports-related activities.
• Build Strategic Partnerships: Collaborate with corporations, sports leagues, and educational institutions to amplify reach and impact. Play Like a Girl’s partnerships with the NFL, NHL, and various corporations demonstrate the power of aligned interests.
  • This pays off in 12-18 months: Develop a partnership strategy that aligns your organization's mission with corporate social responsibility goals and community engagement initiatives.
• Rethink Program Delivery for Accessibility: Adapting to changing environments (like the post-pandemic landscape) by moving programs into schools ensures greater reach and consistent engagement.
  • This pays off in 6-12 months: Evaluate your current program delivery model. Consider how to integrate services into existing community structures (schools, community centers) for greater accessibility and sustainability.
• Cultivate a Culture of "Flash Mentoring": Offer flexible, episodic mentoring opportunities that leverage the skills of busy professionals without demanding extensive long-term commitments.
  • Immediate Action: Explore opportunities to offer "flash mentoring" or skill-based volunteer opportunities within your network or organization.
• Invest in Long-Term Impact Through Scholarships: Addressing the intergenerational cycle of poverty requires tangible financial support for higher education, particularly in high-earning fields.
  • This pays off in 4+ years: Consider establishing or contributing to scholarships that support underrepresented groups in STEM fields at the collegiate level.
• Embrace Service as a Core Value: Recognize that giving back, whether through time, talent, or treasure, not only benefits others but also fosters personal growth and creates reciprocal rewards.
  • Ongoing Investment: Actively seek opportunities to serve on nonprofit boards or volunteer in capacities that align with your skills, understanding that this effort compounds impact over time.