The downtown Los Angeles campus of Mount St. Mary's College is hosting Expanding Your Horizons in Science and Mathematics, a daylong conference on March 27, designed to spark an interest in the fields among girls.

Parents and educators also are encouraged to attend the event to learn more about career options for the girls in science in mathematics. The day is sponsored by Math/Science Interchange, a group of women who are professors, teachers, and working in the private sector in math and science fields.

"This program does expand their horizons and help them see the kinds of things they can do with math and science," said Eleanor Siebert, chair of the Physical Sciences and Mathematics Department at Mount St. Mary's College and vice president of special events for Math/Science Interchange.

The conference brings girls in grades six through 10 to the Doheny Campus to participate in hands-on workshops and discussion sessions. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m.; the cost of $15 a person includes lunch.

Among the workshops planned, girls will learn about anatomy by dissecting pig hearts and hear about efforts to clean-up contaminated groundwater from a local water official. They also will discover how crime scene investigators use science to examine evidence.

For information, call (310) 338-2774.