Historically, many STEM fields have been heavily male-dominated. With pushes for increased equity and roles for women in STEM, we have seen a rise in the number of women pursuing jobs in these fields, for which NSU has resources.
According to Kate Gittleman, the director of STEM Initiatives and Outreach, “One of the organizations that [Dean Kevorkian] has put a lot of interest towards is the Anita Borg organization. She is one of the founding women in technology that really made strides in developing professional groups. That’s something that really encouraged us to promote women in STEM [to our students].”
The Anita Borg organization provides resources and opportunities in STEM fields in addition to helping to promote women in technology.
Gittleman says that NSU has made an effort to support representation in STEM fields for underserved students and provide opportunities for them.
“Our whole job is around student success in STEM fields. A large part [of that], because we are a Hispanic serving and a minority majority [institution], is about making sure that we have all the resources. So, whether it be for undergraduate or graduate females that are struggling to find themselves in the culture of a certain STEM fields, whether or not it’s just the disparities in certain coursework or different things, all the supports that are needed,” said Melanie Kevorkian, associate provost of NSU and dean of the College of Computing and Engineering.
According to Gittleman and Kevorkian, there are many resources on campus to help and promote women in STEM fields. Due to COVID-19, many of these resources have moved to a virtual setting for students to have easier and safer access to them. For students that wish to visit the Cortex Labs Center of Opportunities in Research and Technology Emerging Experiences, the labs are located in the Mailman building.
One of the upcoming events from the College of Computing and Engineering, is the UKG “Hack for Good” Hackathon in partnership with the Title V Grant from the Department of Education. An opening information session for this event will be held on March 11 at 12:30 p.m. via Zoom. Interested students can register at https://nova.joinhandshake.com/login?utm_campaign=uni_targeted_emails&utm_content=764093&utm_medium=email&utm_source=mass_mailer
Aside from resources that are focused on STEM fields, Kevorkian also recommends that students take advantage of their access to the Writing and Communication Center on the fourth floor of the Alvin Sherman Public Library. The Writing and Communication Center is a great resource for students that need help writing, editing or proofreading any type of writing that they need to. Whether that is lab reports or technical write ups, you can get help at the Writing and Communication Center.
