The expected celebration of women in STEM | Culture

0


[ad_1]

Why should we celebrate women in STEM? Well, there are a multitude of reasons. Women in STEM are often overlooked when faced with adversity, as we saw in the hit movie “Hidden Figures” where Taraji P. Henson stars as Ms. Katherine Johnson. Being the only black woman, she has to run to the other side of the building just to use the bathroom. She always had a few sideways glances from men, but she was a role model who showed women in all STEM majors that being successful in a male dominated field is possible in all aspects.

Women in STEM are not only overlooked when it comes to adversity, but also in the workplace, and even during historic events. Women make up less than half of the STEM workforce, let alone in managerial or managerial positions. As young women yearn to embark on this task of delving into these male dominated fields, what advice do we give them to encourage them?

How to instill in them the necessary strength to face the difficulties, prejudices and inconveniences of the workplace? We need more positive role models to make young girls look like Ms. Katherine Johnson.

Southern University student Raelyn Henderson graduated in Mechanical Engineering from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She is president of the Society of Women Engineers and a member of the board of directors of the National Society of Black Engineers. Recently, Henderson was shortlisted for the Olay x Ebony STEM Queen Award. According to Henderson, what drove her to enter the STEM field were her role models in her family who are all engineers themselves, and she is regularly encouraged by a strong desire to help people.

“Don’t be afraid to be the only women in the room. Don’t let fear limit you, ”said Henderson when asked what advice she would give to other young girls trying to work in this field.

In the workplace, there are occasional events where women do not receive the same treatment as men. Various women have had a negative experience or witnessed the circumstance of bias in the workplace. Courtlynn Thomas, a senior civil engineer from Opelousas, Louisiana, said she had noticed that “men sometimes get more attention.”

Another woman in the STEM field, Amber Hickman, an accounting / math major from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, feels like she doesn’t have the same opportunities as men. She even said, “Sometimes no, I don’t feel like I have the same opportunities because some people think I can’t do as good a job as my male counterparts. Which is not true, I can work as hard as them. Maybe even harder. She goes on to say that one way to solve this problem of prejudice is to “have more support from our male counterparts than we are as good as any other man in the field.”

Still not convinced of why we should celebrate women in STEM? It is minorities who break the box of stereotypes. Women have had an equally big impact in STEM fields, and just because light isn’t shed on so much contributions in history doesn’t mean it should erase their accomplishments or make them less. precious.

[ad_2]

Leave A Reply

Your email address will not be published.