and I believe it will pay off in the long run . Also , having a mentor there to critique you and assist you with the lowstakes environment this opportunity provides will give me the experience I need to one day conduct my own research confidently .”
STEM Education undergraduate research fellows presenting at the conference included :
A Summer in STEM : Increasing Middle School Students ’ Interest and Engagement in STEM Through a One-week Summer Camp Shelby Albers and Mollie Williams Faculty Mentor : Margaret Mohr-Schroeder Graduate Student Mentor : Maureen Cavalcanti
Correlating Professional Noticing and Attitudes Towards
Mathematics Mallory Bickett and Meredith Davis Faculty Mentors : Molly Fisher , Jonathan Thomas , Cindy Jong
Professional Noticing of Middle and Secondary Science
Teachers Fallon Olexa and Kelly Corrigan Faculty Mentors : Rebecca Krall and Brett Criswell
Sixth-grade Students ’ Chemistry Understandings Prior to
Formal Instruction Dakota Yates and Brittany Guido Faculty Mentor : Jennifer Wilhelm Graduate Student Mentor : Merryn Cole
WOMEN & STEM UK Group Working to Bring Equality Into Field
Female students are less likely than their male counterparts to pursue careers in the fields of science , technology , engineering and math ( also known as STEM ), but a group of women at the University of Kentucky are trying to change that .
In partnership with the American Association of University Women ( AAUW ) Kentucky branch , a group of UK students , faculty and staff have launched the # IAmAWomanInSTEM initiative this semester , bringing together over 160 female student ambassadors to encourage the study of STEM and health care among women at UK and empower them to persist in those fields .
“ Time and time again we hear and read about the challenges and barriers women in STEM have overcome to get where they are today ,” said Margaret Mohr-Schroeder , an associate professor in the Department of STEM Education in the UK College of Education and steering team member . “ While the success stories are inspiring , what about those that are facing those challenges and barriers right now ? The # IAmAWomanInSTEM initiative seeks to provide a variety of opportunities for women who are majoring in STEM at UK to be supported , inspired , empowered and retained throughout their major . Our hope is that with this multimodal approach , we ’ ll be able to reach out to more women in STEM on our campus and retain and empower them as STEM majors .” In addition to the increasingly popular social media campaign around the # IAmAWomanInSTEM hashtag , the initiative focuses on a mentoring program that connects the student ambassadors with female faculty members and women in business and industry who have STEM and health care backgrounds .
“ Our hope is that ... we ’ ll be able to reach out to more women in STEM on our campus and retain and empower them as STEM majors .”
— Margaret Mohr-Schroeder Associate Professor , STEM Department
“ I feel it is important for female students at UK to have a mentor and support system in STEM because the academic climate for women in STEM is not always so welcoming ,” said Shelby Albers , a UK senior majoring in mathematics and minoring in computer science , who serves as student leader of the initiative .
“ The challenges and pressures of pursuing a STEM degree are overwhelming on their own and female students often face additional barriers that add to the stress of performing well . Having a mentor in STEM allows female students to have a role model who can be a source of encouragement during these hardships as well as a resource for potential
See , WOMEN , page 19
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