UC women in engineering event connects high school students to STEM
On Nov. 5, more than 100 high school students came to the University of Cincinnati’s campus to participate in the College of Engineering and Applied Science’s (CEAS) Women in Engineering & Technology Day. The daylong event highlighted the many opportunities for students interested in STEM: science, technology, engineering and math.
“We’re giving these students the opportunity to learn more about women in engineering,” said UC Recruitment Coordinator Costina Luc, who organized the event. “As an engineering college, it’s our goal to work towards people. It’s our responsibility to enroll and educate students on the importance of engineering.”
Luc organized the day to reflect both the academic and industry experience for UC engineering students. The young women asked questions at student and industry panels and toured UC’s engineering facilities. Additionally, UC faculty led department breakout sessions that involved presentations and hands-on activities. Most of these sessions were coordinated by female faculty.
“The whole day was there for us to help inform them about what engineering was like, what that pathway looks like,” said Luc.
As an engineering college, it’s our goal to work towards people. It’s our responsibility to enroll and educate students on the importance of engineering.
Costina Luc, UC recruitment coordinator
Since all the students attending were juniors and seniors in high school, the day was also an opportunity for students to learn more about the college application process and important deadlines.
“UC is the first point of contact for many of these high school students, so it’s our responsibility to make them feel comfortable and confident with coming to UC and entering a traditionally male-dominant field,” said Emily Rawers, CEAS director of undergraduate enrollment.
“I met so many empowering women, and all of the speakers were so helpful,” said one attendee. “This event really helped shape my goals for what I want to get out of college.”
The day concluded with a keynote speech by Ashley Paz y Puente, PhD, assistant professor of materials science and engineering, who shared her experience as a woman in the STEM field and gave advice to future engineering students.
“You don’t absolutely have to love math and science classes to be a successful engineer,” she said. “If you’re interested in problem solving and making the world a better place, engineering might be for you.”
She ended her talk by encouraging the students to pursue what they love, no matter what obstacles they may encounter.
“You do you. If you want to be an engineer, rocket scientist, math teacher, you go for it. It’s worth it to love what you do.”
This is the second Women in Engineering & Technology Day that CEAS has hosted this year. As more women enter the STEM field, UC will continue to ensure this population has the support and confidence they need to succeed at UC and beyond.
Editor's note: The following faculty supported the event: Shaaban Abdallah, Mandy Albrecht, Angela Boronyak, Rashmi Jha, Yonjee Park, Allyn Phillips and Sarah Watzman. Additionally, engineering and technology demonstrations were supported by the following labs: Biomedical Colloid & Interface Laboratory (Park), Energy Conversion Materials Laboratory (Watzman), MIND Laboratory (Jha) and Structural Tissue Evaluation and Engineering Laboratory (Gruber).
The following students supported the event: Stacey Gruber, Alex Jones, Andrew Rush, Bethany Casperez, Ann Chapko and Christina McGovern.
UC professor Nora Honken arranged the industry panel.
Featured image at top: Engineers share their experiences and answer question during the industry panel session. Photo/Brandon Pytel/CEAS Marketing
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