Welcome
to the May issue of the FLATE Focus, our blog newsletter where we share our
work, announce events we
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are involved in, and highlight great programs and
people across the state who are working hard to enhance and grow manufacturing
education in the state. For the past few
years, we have used the May issue of the Focus to celebrate and promote women
in Manufacturing. No matter how you slice and dice the data, there remains a significant gap between the number of women vs. men across all
aspects of many manufacturing companies. The story in Florida mirrors the national picture. Where are the
girls in manufacturing?
Of
course, there are the historical, societal reasons and analyzing them is
important to develop strategies that can be successfully implemented. Before
delving into the ‘why,’ we have to answer two questions. How do we get them
into manufacturing? And, how do we keep
them there? We sometimes think we know what to do, or know what can attract and
retain women in these fields, but it’s good to get these perspectives from
experts who can help pinpoint solutions.
A 2015
report, “Solving the Equation,” the Variables
for Women’s Success in Engineering and Computing, published by the American
Association of University Women (http://aauw.org/)
finds that “women are making significant contributions to the fields of
engineering and computing, yet are still a distinct minority in these fields”.
Furthermore, the report concludes that “stereotypes and biases lie at the core
of the challenges facing women in engineering and computing.” Educational and
workplace environments are therefore dissuading women who might otherwise
succeed in these fields. Increasing the number of women in engineering and
computing will require focused attention by employers, educational institutions,
policy makers and individuals to create welcoming work environments for women.
Some
targeted actions suggested in the report can be used for all STEM disciplines
including manufacturing to:
- Combat stereotypes and biases
- Emphasize social relevance
- Cultivate
a sense of belonging in colleges and workplaces
- Change the environment in colleges and workplaces
The work
has to be fun, exciting and challenging. It also has to be socially relevant, including
how
manufactured goods help people, our society, or our environment. Work and
college environments have to respect and honor everyone equally as well as
being enriching and supportive. Sometimes, we can artificially create a
respectful and supportive space and place with mentoring programs for young
women in STEM fields. This can work well until they get grounded and confident and/or
their numbers rise in colleges and in work places. It will take all of us to
attract and retain women in manufacturing careers. It will most likely take
some training of the current workforce, and it will take a lot of persistence. Using
your own version of the strategies above let’s all start helping some young
woman today.
Please
celebrate with us as we share some great stories about women and girls making
their mark in manufacturing and STEM careers. Read about the ‘all girls’
electrathon team at Middleton High School who are out there competing in a predominantly
male dominated student competition. We also have stories of two programs one at
St. Augustine in St. Johns County, the other right here in our backyard at the
University of South Florida in Tampa that focuses on getting at-risk and
underrepresented students, particularly girls, interested in STEM.
Wanting
to focus on getting more young girls into your programs? Join us on May 27 at 3 p.m. EST for the Recruiting Girls: Practitioners
Perspectives webinar where we
learn about successful programs from local K-12 instructors (and more!).
Register today at http://www.matecnetworks.org/webreg/?client=1011. We’ve cracked the answer to last month’s sTEm puzzle, so give yourself a
pat if you got it right!
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