SF Toy Company Aims to Increase Girls' STEM Interest

Founded by Bettina Chen, Jennifer Kessler, and Alice Brooks, engineering students at Stanford University, a student start-up, Maykah, is creating toys designed to increase girls' interest in STEM.  Their first effort is "Roominate," a dollhouse kit which the youngsters construct, including lighting circuit boards, and then decorate.  The toy has been tested with focus groups and at the San Francisco Children's Creativity Museum; it has received crowd-financing and orders from around the globe.  Shipments of the dollhouse are expected to begin in a few months.  http://www.sfgate.com/technology/article/Maykah-builds-girls-interest-in-science-3793765.php

11/10/12 Update:  See a similar story regarding "GoldieBlox" toys headed by Debra Sterling, also a Stanford engineer.  http://www.forbes.com/sites/siliconangle/2012/10/15/women-engineers/