DR . AYODELE THOMAS
Ayodele Thomas , Ph . D .
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR ’ S MESSAGE
23 RD ANNUAL SCIENCE FAIR & AWARDS CEREMONY
DR . AYODELE THOMAS
Dear Greene Scholars Friends ,
As we celebrate the 23rd Annual Greene Scholars Science Fair , I ’ d like to salute all of our 186 Scholars and especially our 14 graduating seniors for their work today and throughout their years in the program . Our students regularly go above and beyond to excel in school , attend our Saturday workshops , hold practice interviews and complete research projects . All of this extra effort helps them become even more successful academically and stand out during the college application process .
I would also like to recognize all of the people who pull together to make our program so successful , today and every day :
• By committing to volunteer 40 hours per year , Greene Scholars families demonstrate their dedication to building a thriving and supportive community that believes in our Scholars .
• By sharing their time and expertise , volunteer judges , interviewers and panelists from the broader Bay Area community are helping to empower the STEM leaders of tomorrow .
• By investing their money , individual donors , corporations and foundations are proving they believe it is important to diversify the STEM workforce of tomorrow and trust the Greene Scholars Program to help bring this about .
During its 23-year history , the Greene Scholars Program has had numerous measures of success . Over 700 students have participated , 100 % of GSP grads have gone to college , and 71 % planned to major in STEM . Since 2016 , GSP has awarded over $ 250,000 in scholarships , and we are awarding more today !
For the past ten years , I have been honored to lead this organization as Executive Director . My daughter graduated two years ago , and my son graduates this year . It has been a phenomenal journey and I am looking forward to facilitating a successful transition for Greene Scholars first full-time executive director whom we hope to hire later in 2025 .
Thanks one and all for being a part of the Greene Scholars community , for believing in our students , and for helping them build STEM confidence and competence .
Sincerely ,
Ayodele Thomas , Ph . D .
Executive Director , Greene Scholars
Dr . Ayodele Thomas ( she / her ) serves as the Associate Vice Provost in the Office for IDEAL Advancement where she currently leads efforts to improve equity and inclusion . She was the inaugural Associate Vice President for Diversity , Equity , Inclusion and Belonging in University Human Resources at Stanford University from 2021-2024 . As a lecturer for two decades , she teaches a self-designed course for 1st year doctoral students focusing on the academic , psychosocial , financial and career issues that face graduate students . Ayodele earned her bachelor ’ s of electrical engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology . She received her M . S . in electrical engineering , and was the first Black female to receive a Ph . D . in electrical engineering from Stanford University . Ayodele is married to Jonathan Thomas and they have two children .
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