Clayton all-girls robotics team advocate for women in STEM in Washington D.C.

CLAYTON, N.C. (WTVD) -- An all-girls robotics team from Clayton took a trip to our nation's capital in hopes of inspiring the next generation.

Formed in the summer of 2022, the G-Force Robotics team sat with women from around the world about its efforts to get girls more involved in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

The representation of women in STEM continues to be low across the state.

In 2021, the North Carolina Department of Commerce reported it had 300,000 STEM jobs, but women account for only 28 percent of them.

The numbers are similar internationally too. The Global Gender Gap Report found in 2023, women make up only 29.2% of the STEM workforce across 146 nations.

The G-Force Robotics team includes 12 high school girls representing public, charter and home school communities.

ABC11 talked with a few of the members last April when the team was preparing to compete in the FIRST Robotics World Championship in Texas.

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"I like (that) we're really breaking the mold and proving that anyone can be at STEM," team member Kaitlyn Nolte, then 10th grader, said.

The team has upcoming district competitions in March.