Spotlight on STEM: Education and careers for women and girls

Local middle school girls, high school girls, parents, teachers and community members gained insight and inspiration at AAUW’s “Spotlight on STEM” program on Thursday evening as panelists talked about their STEM educations, career paths, obstacles, challenges and success stories.

Dr. Aileen Baldwin, a research scientist specializing in virology, highlighted motivation as a key to a successful educational path. “All of the women that I went to school with were extremely motivated, which led to us excelling in our classes and labs.”

The predominance of males in STEM fields can be daunting. “I was very passionate about science and math,” offered Becky Warren, Executive Director of IT Services at MARSH ClearSight, “but it didn’t mean I always aced my tests and classes. I had to work very hard, and in college in the majority of my classes there were only a few females; it could be intimidating. Even as I moved forward in my career in information technology, the majority of my peers and my employees were male and I often to go above and beyond to prove my abilities.”

“Engineering is required for so many situations—the possibilities for growth are endless,” encouraged Michelle Allegretti, who earned a degree in electrical engineering and has gone on to found her own consulting business. “A degree in engineering opens many doors.

Discussion moderator Michele Vickery asked the panel how we, as a community of parents, educators and activists, might create a better environment for encouraging young women to pursue a STEM education and career. Julia Weigel, a recently-graduated chemical engineer, was emphatic. “Show students the opportunities available to them by being in a STEM field. Every day you use so many things that have been touched by someone in a STEM profession: from the obvious – cell phones, cars and computers – to the not- so- obvious – soap, juice, make up, toothpaste. It is important for young students to know that a career in a STEM field has so many options, and anyone can find a niche. Reach out to companies, colleges, and laboratories: often there are programs for community outreach that include hands-on activities for students. Facilitate field trips to manufacturing facilities or laboratories to show young women what a typical day of an engineer or scientist looks like. Encourage schools to offer more classes in computer science, engineering, computer-aided drawing, robotics, etc. and make sure those courses emphasize what is possible with a career in STEM.”

Michelle Allegretti concurred. “We need to show how interesting, exciting and rewarding these topics can be. On top of that, we need to make it ‘cool’ to be smart, and focus on role models such as Mae Jemison or Sally Ride or Jane McGonigal. There are a host of others and we should make sure our girls know them.”

AAUW advances equity for women and girls through advocacy, education, philanthropy and research, notes chairperson Gail Hahn of Burr Ridge. To read AAUW’s 2010 research Why So Few? Women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics(STEM) please visit http://www.aauw.org/research/why-so-few/ which presents in-depth yet accessible profiles of eight key research findings that point to environmental and social barriers — including stereotypes, gender bias, and the climate of science and engineering departments in colleges and universities — that continue to block women’s progress in STEM. ]\n