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Diversity in STEM
Do you want to code a snowflake? (Mashable)
Can a girl love programming as much as Frozen? Disney Interactive and Code.org certainly hope so. They've built a charismatic programming tutorial to draw in the girls YouTubing "Let It Go" covers and dressing up as their idol Queen Elsa. In the tutorial, female tech role models including Microsoft engineer Paola Mejia and app developing model Lyndsey Scott talk participants through basic programming concepts. Then the fun begins as new students write code to move Anna and Elsa around and etch patterns onto the ice. The program uses colorful, simplified blocks of code that snap together like virtual lego pieces.
15 feminist-improved pages for the computer engineer Barbie book (Mashable)
Only the Internet can save Barbie from misogyny. In the book I Can Be a Computer Engineer, Barbie wants to be, as the title states, a computer engineer � which is a fantastic premise, in theory. In actuality (and in the book), Barbie needs the help of two men to code a computer program for her instead of doing it herself. Cue massive eye roll. Tumblr site Feminist Hacker Barbie is turning the groan-worthy story on its head by letting users submit their own, improved versions � complete with programmer lingo. Not only is Barbie doing her own coding, she's taking everyone to school. 
Industry
TCS�s goIT Student Technology Awareness Program Strengthens STEM Skills for 2,000 Teens in Toronto (TCS)
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) elebrated its first Canadian goIT Student Technology Awareness Program at Cedarbrae Collegiate Institute today. TCS worked with the Toronto District School Board to implement the innovative program in ten Toronto schools this fall. �TCS believes strongly in impact through empowerment,� said Akhilesh Tripathi, Head, TCS Canada. �Not only will these young people have more career choices, Canada�s ICT industry will also benefit from having a local skilled labour force.� goIT is an in-class, hands-on curriculum for grade eight and nine students to learn about computer programming, coding and robotics, and gain an understanding of possible careers in [STEM].
Biogen Idec Funds TFA to Add STEM Teachers to America�s Schools (NPQ)
Teach For America has received a five-year, $5 million grant from the Biogen Idec Foundation to provide recruitment, training, and professional development opportunities to its corps of STEM teachers, as well as high-quality STEM educational opportunities for students in under-resourced communities. Efforts to respond to the STEM Crisis have been at the forefront of national and local educational improvement efforts. The shortage of qualified teaching personnel has been identified as one of the major factors contributing to poor educational achievement which handicaps future job and economic opportunities for graduates.
Government
Tech Reacts To The Demise Of Partial NSA Reform In The Senate (TechCrunch)
The failure of the Senate to advance NSA reform in the current Congress isn�t too popular with the technology community. The demise of the USA FREEDOM Act � a half-measure at best � in the Senate is another loss for the technology industry, which saw many of its leading companies repeatedly call for the bill�s passage. The FREEDOM Act was aimed at ending the NSA�s collection of American�s telephone metadata, a controversial program that the Snowden leaks uncovered. The Act was no panacea, but it did appear to be an achievable piece of legislation.
Obama Plugs Science, Math Education at Ceremony (AP)
President Barack Obama said Thursday that 19 scientists, researchers and innovators who received the country's highest honor for their life-changing work embody the spirit of the nation and its "sense that we push against limits and that we're not afraid to ask questions." "When that spirit, that sense of possibility, is truly unleashed, then you get the remarkable men and women that you see here today," Obama said at a White House ceremony recognizing the newest recipients of the National Medal of Science and the National Medal of Technology and Innovation.
Higher Education
Two Engineering Professors Selected for Symposium on Engineering Education (The University of Arkansas)
Chase Rainwater, assistant professor of industrial engineering, and Douglas Spearot, associate professor of mechanical engineering, attended the National Academy of Engineering�s Frontiers of Engineering Education symposium in October. The symposium was a meeting of faculty members who are developing and implementing innovative education approaches. The participants, who were nominated and selected by members of the National Academy of Engineering, spent two and half days sharing ideas, research and best practices in engineering education. Each participant made a poster presentation with subjects ranging from 3D printing in the classroom to online education to the use of art and music in engineering education.
Viewpoints
Padmasree Warrior: Innovation Can Come From Anywhere (Cisco)
Innovation can be an overused word, but it�s a hot topic for a reason. The pace of change compels businesses, large and small, to reinvent themselves. Cisco�s innovation strategy is multifaceted and focuses our efforts both internally and externally. Last week we announced a new Cisco IoE Innovation Center in Tokyo. This is the seventh IoE Innovation Center that Cisco has opened worldwide � joining Rio, Toronto, Berlin, Songdo, Barcelona and London. Our IoE Innovation Centers enable us to co-innovate vertical solutions with regional customers, partners, governments, universities and startups.
Section Size is a STEM Concern Too (Harvard Crimson)
For nearly a year, the Harvard Teaching Campaign has been seeking to cap section sizes at 12 students apiece, and since its inception, most of the support for the campaign has come from non-STEM fields. A simple look at the campaign�s endorsements shows that while the philosophy, sociology, and English departments all support smaller section sizes, there has yet to be a STEM field to follow up. Thus far, the list of faculty signers is missing STEM faculty. I�m a science concentrator and pre-med. And I believe that students like myself need to express a vested interest in this campaign too.
STEM Competitions
Chandler's Hamilton High enters STEM race car contest (AZ Central)
..the Chandler Unified School District launched its newest foray into [STEM] � with race cars. Formula One race cars to be exact. With assistance from SAE International, formerly the Society of Automotive Engineers, Chandler's Hamilton High School became the first school in the state to form a team to compete in F1 in Schools challenges. Based off the international racing group, F1 in Schools is an organization that is active in 40 countries and focuses on bringing STEM skills to students. Retired engineer and Chandler resident Don Robins spent his career with General Motors. Now he volunteers for SAE, helping expand engineering opportunities in Valley schools.
Philadelphia
10 of 40 Philadelphia charter school applications are STEM focused (Technically Philly)
The School District of Philadelphia plans to review 40 applications for new charter schools, at least ten of which have an explicit focus on [STEM]fields, entrepreneurship or both. It�s a stat that shows an increasing interest in building a STEM pipeline. This year was the first in seven years that the District accepted applications for new charters, as per a condition of the state law that allowed a $2-per-pack cigarette tax in Philadelphia. After the District reviews each application, each proposed school will get a public hearing and then will go to public vote by the School Reform Commission, which oversees the District.
STEM Food & Ag
Eric Schmidt�s Farm2050 Collective Will Back Agriculture Tech To Feed Earth�s Growing Population (TechCrunch)
.jpg) We�ll need to produce 70% more food by 2050 to sustain a world population expected to grow to 10 billion. Yet agriculture startups struggle to get the funding, manufacturing, and test facilities needed to build tech that could boost food production. To fix that disconnect, Google Chairman Eric Schmidt�s Innovation Endeavors and Flextronics Lab IX today launched Farm2050, a collective that will support AgTech startups with capital, design, manufacturing, and test farms to try out their inventions. The Farm2050 partnership includes Google, DuPont, Agco, UTC�s Sensitech, and 3D Robotics. Flextronics� Head of Lab IX Lior Susan tells me �It�s still not sexy to do agriculture. You don�t see IPOs and big acquisitions that pull Sand Hill into the game.� That�s why Farm2050 is necessary to foster an AgTech ecosystem.
This New Restaurant Is A Lab To Help Find Ways The Food Industry Can Fight Climate Change (Fast Co.Exist)
For most restaurants, "sustainable" food means some combination of organic and local and seasonal. And while that's not a bad thing, a new restaurant shows how much farther the food world can go in fighting issues like climate change. The Perennial, which will open in San Francisco early next year, calls itself a "laboratory of environmentalism." Each ingredient on the menu is carefully sourced. Normally known for its large carbon footprint, beef will come from ranches using a new process called "carbon farming" that uses cattle to actually increase carbon storage in the soil. Bread will be made with a perennial grain called Kernza, which has been naturally bred by researchers to store more carbon than something like wheat. |
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Number of High School Graduates Who Plan to Teach STEM Low, Unlikely to Meet Expected Demand
 Despite high interest in STEM overall, the number of 2014 high school graduates who plan to teach STEM subject areas is small and unlikely to meet future demand, according to The Condition of STEM 2014, a new report released today by ACT. Among the more than 1.8 million 2014 U.S. high school graduates who took The ACT�, nearly half�close to 900,000 students�were interested in STEM overall. Just 4,424 of those students, however, indicated they planned to teach math, while a meager 1,115 said they intended to teach science. �The numbers we�re seeing are not likely to meet the expected demand for future STEM teachers,� said Jon Erickson, ACT president.
The EdTech Weekly Report: November 19, 2014
 This week: Obama to host EdTech Summit for Superintendents as part of ConnectED initative, Google is driving a bus across India to teach digital skills to 500,000 students, study finds EdTech vendors often in dark on what districts actually need, Course Hero raises $15M for crowd-sourced study help, and much more!
100 Diverse Corporate Leaders in STEM - Kari Escobedo of T-Mobile
 Kari Escobedo is Vice President, Enterprise Systems Development for T-Mobile in Bellevue, WA She leads the team responsible for the development and delivery of solutions for the Enterprise Back Office systems that support the T-Mobile business. Kari has made it a key principle for her teams to make diversity a priority when hiring new employees from outside of the company as well as bringing up resources from within the T-Mobile ranks. In parallel to her leadership role at T-Mobile, Kari is heavily involved in increasing women�s roles in technology through Women in Leadership organization. "The greatest advice that we can provide to women and minorities coming up in the system is to believe in themselves and their ideas. One of the greatest weaknesses that a lack of diversity causes is a lack of differing opinions, ideas and solutions within the workforce."
100 Diverse Corporate Leaders in STEM - Tracy Faulkner of Shell
 Tracy Faulkner is Vice President of Global External Affairs for Shell�s Downstream business. "I mentor young people in STEM and non-technical roles, and I encourage others to do the same. Relationships cannot be legislated, so it is key to ensure there is rapport and the necessary time is taken to establish the mentor-mentee relationship. I view mentorship as a trust based relationship that offers mentees a safe place to discuss issues and explore solutions to challenges � all in the spirit of their development and growth, with the intent of strengthening their performance in the workplace." |
