Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, April 29, 1994                   TAG: 9404290144
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: A-11   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

DAUGHTERS GO TO WORK AGAIN

The event, involving thousands more employers than last year's hastily organized debut, was designed to boost girls' self-esteem and expand their career horizons.

``These girls are so different when they know we're focusing on their dreams, when they're not competing [with boys] for attention,'' said Marie Wilson, president of the sponsoring Ms. Foundation.

Girls visited workplaces from the White House, where more than 200 daughters gathered for lunch, to a Cincinnati house where a stay-at-home mom prevailed over a school principal who said homemaking wasn't a job.

At BP America's headquarters in Cleveland, girls mixed chemicals to make slime. At the Aurora Fire Department near Denver, girls wrestled with fire hoses. At the New York law firm of Debevoise & Plimpton, girls sat through a seminar called ``Thinking Like a Lawyer.''

A few employers, including the Chrysler Corp. and the city of Bellevue, Wash., refused to participate, saying the program wasn't fair to boys.

``We believe it would be fairer to sponsor events that would welcome all children to explore career options,'' Chrysler spokeswoman Karen Stewart said.

Other employers did just that, inviting boys and girls.

``There's been a lot of interest expressed by sons, and they've asked to be included,'' said Jennifer Wold at ABB Environmental Services in Portland, Maine. ``We have tried to broaden our approach.''

But organizers said they would stick to their emphasis on girls.

``When boys and girls are together, in the classroom or on field trips, boys get more attention,'' said Nell Merlino at the Ms. Foundation. ``Until we figure out how to balance that, we do need to periodically separate girls and boys for experiences like this.''

Studies have shown that from ages 9 to 15, girls' self-esteem drops in comparison to boys', and their sense of competence in math and science erodes. Psychologists blame a society that emphasizes a woman's appearance and quiet demeanor rather than ability.

Merlino said her estimate of 3 million participants this year, half girls and the other half parents or other hosts, was based on the inquiries - up to 2,000 a day - that have flooded her office since March.