Miami AT&T HACEMOS High Technology Day Focuses on STEM Education

School used to be all about the 3 Rs: reading, ‘riting, and ‘rithmatic. But the future is all about STEM – Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. That’s why HACEMOS, AT&T’s Hispanic/Latino employee resource group, focused on introducing students to STEM education during its 20th annual High Technology Day on Oct. 18.

More than 2,500 middle and high school students participated in 35 High Technology Day events across the U.S. and Mexico, including nearly 350 students from these Miami-Dade County middle and high schools:

• Lawton Childes Middle School (Hialeah)
• John A. Ferguson Senior High (Miami)
• Miami Lakes Educational Center
• Miami Sunset Senior High
• Richmond Heights Middle School (Miami)
• John F. Kennedy Middle School (North Miami Beach)
• Miami Edison Senior High
• Jose Marti MAST 6-12 Academy (Hialeah)

HACEMOS High Technology Day exposes Latino youth to education and career opportunities in STEM, sparks discussion with STEM professionals and provides mentorship opportunities. This year’s theme was “SOMOS Tecnología,” or, “We Are Technology.” It centered around increasing Latino representation in STEM and getting students involved in the industry early on.

Students at the Miami HACEMOS High Technology Day event learned how to take a selfie without having to touch their smartphones. The project involved programming a chip set using a smartphone app, Bluetooth, and Microbit.

The Miami students were also given a drone demonstration and learned how AT&T is using the technology to help maintain its cell sites.

An activity many of the Miami students liked most was interacting with HACEMOS High Tech Day students in Puerto Rico and Tampa using telepresence technology.

In addition to hearing from AT&T network and retail employees about potential career paths, the Miami students heard from HISPA (Hispanics Inspiring Students’ Performance and Achievement) Role Model Development Director Rod Colon and Y-100 DJ Drew, who both encouraged the students to work hard in school and pursue their passion.

The STEM field suffers from a lack of diverse representation. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, an estimated 9 million STEM-related jobs will go unfilled by the year 2022. A lack of knowledgeable professionals in these roles will have far-reaching effects. But getting more Latinos and other underrepresented groups into STEM education and careers now can help ensure more of these jobs are filled.