Denver paleontologist recalls childhood dreams, hopes to inspire others as STEM mentor for Girls & Science

This year CBS Colorado is celebrating the 10th anniversary of Girls & Science which connects girls with women mentors in STEM careers and a possible future career in science, technology, engineering, arts, and math. Sadie Sherman is a paleontologist at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. 

"Our job is to clean up the bones and remove all of what we call the matrix, which is just the dirt and the rock that's covered up the bones," said Sherman as she focused on fossils from the project she oversees as the Denver Basin Project Fossil Preparator. 

Sherman's parents have told her it's a career she had her sights set on since she was a toddler, "My mom says that as a 3-year-old, I would like wander around the house. And I would say I'm going to be a paleontologist."

Sherman said it took more than childhood dreams to get to where she is and that it wasn't easy being one of the few women in classes. But now that's changing. 

"A lot of my professors and even our chief preparer here in the lab were women. And that has been very encouraging in helping me break into the field," said Sherman. 

She said it's that feeling of giving back that makes being a mentor for Girls & Science so special, "I feel like I now get to step up and kind of take on that role and be that mentor figure for the next generation of potential scientists."

Sherman said that STEM is the driving force behind everything that is done in the fossil preparation lab. That includes intentionally choosing what is brought back to the collections and prioritizing the collection of specimens that can be used for current in-house research. The specimens are used to answer scientific questions about the history of life on Earth.

Her advice for potential scientists is to just go for it, "Don't be afraid to ask for help and to reach out to people in your life who are in positions where they can give you assistance. Nobody gets where they are alone. I've had a lot of help from people in my life."

Another important fact about Sherman, her favorite dinosaur is the Stegosaurus, which is Colorado's state fossil. 

CBS Colorado's Girls & Science Kick-Off is taking place at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science starting at 4 p.m. on Friday, March 1, and First Alert Meteorologist Lauren Whitney will be there, along with Sherman. It's a chance for girls to get inspired by women in STEM.