 Taylor Howard earned her degree in Mathematics and Statistics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Here she shares a little about her career and the inspiration behind it.
What is your specific area of STEM? Statistics, Computer Science How would you explain your STEM field to young girls? I analyze numbers and try to identify trends or patterns. What traits might a child possess that may indicate an interest or aptitude for your STEM field? Loving math, solving problems. What did you know about your STEM field when you were a child? I knew there were accountants and mathematicians but not much beyond that with math. I was inspired by NUMB3RS, a television show where the main character is a mathematician. Why did you choose your STEM field? Were you inspired by someone? Math was my favorite subject in school. What are some really cool things that people in your profession work on? Attend hackathons, go to conferences, get a glimpse of new technology. What inspirational message would you give young girls to inspire them to pursue STEM? Keep trying no matter what! Thank you for contributing, Taylor!
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 Victoria Miller is pursuing her degree in Computer Science and Mathematical Decision Sciences at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Here she shares a little about her career and the inspiration behind it.
What is your specific area of STEM? Business, with concentrations in finance and consulting How would you explain your STEM field to young girls? I make programs that do all sorts of cool things such as helping other people have better lives or things that help others have fun! What traits might a child possess that may indicate an interest or aptitude for your STEM field? Strategy games What did you know about your STEM field when you were a child? I realized I was really good at math and loved it. It made a lot of sense to me and I was the best in my class at it so it made me feel good about myself. Why did you choose your STEM field? Were you inspired by someone? I took computer science as a prerequisite for my major and realized it was something I truly enjoyed. What are some really cool things that people in your profession work on? I made a Chrome extension that helps disabled people that don't have full function of their hands use Facebook. Others have done things like create their own servers for Minecraft. Some people have done artificial intelligence to make software more like humans! What inspirational message would you give young girls to inspire them to pursue STEM? Be brave! Perfection is not the goal. Struggling is going to happen, and trial and error is what makes some of the world's best things! I always struggle which makes me feel even better when I finally get it. It's a great reward! Thank you for contributing, Victoria!  Lisa Dunleavy earned her degree in Business Administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Here she shares a little about her career and the inspiration behind it.
What is your specific area of STEM? Business, with concentrations in finance and consulting How would you explain your STEM field to young girls? A field where you use your skill set in order to solve problems. What traits might a child possess that may indicate an interest or aptitude for your STEM field?
What did you know about your STEM field when you were a child? My older brother really liked math and my whole family does business, so focusing on math homework was encouraged in my house. I also had very inspirational and great math teachers. They would make math relatable to every day life while making it fun. Imagine saying that - math is fun (my teacher had a poster that literally said that in the classroom). Having a great math teacher makes all of the difference. My teacher knew most people when they grew up were scared of fractions, so she did an exercise where we all screamed for 2 minutes about fractions. This made it fun, and I loved fractions after that. Using analogies like "you can't break up the brother and sister" would help as well. I'm not going to lie, anything computer-related freaked me out. It wasn't until college when I took a computer science class that I became less freaked out. I wish I had learned more about it when I was younger. Why did you choose your STEM field? Were you inspired by someone? I think it was just the teachers I had that made math fun. Then I started getting involved with Mu Alpha Theta (math competitions) with my friends which were a ton of fun! I think being at a certain school and where it's fun and cool to "be nerdy" is awesome. What are some really cool things that people in your profession work on? Consulting and finance technically don't really fall under "STEM", but I've had really great opportunities in those areas. Accounting may fall under STEM. With audit (there's not really a cool way to put this) it's making sure that companies report their finances correctly in order to prevent fraud or misrepresentation to people who are invested in their company. What inspirational message would you give young girls to inspire them to pursue STEM? Pursuing a career in STEM will allow you to shape the future of the world we live in. It allows you to come up with creative solutions to the world's problems and help others. Thank you for contributing, Lisa!  Jill Gostin earned her Master’s in Mathematics from Georgia Tech. Here she shares a little about her career and the inspiration behind it.
What is your specific area of STEM? Math/Computer Science/Applied Math How would you explain your STEM field to young girls? I analyze data and apply mathematical techniques to understand the data. What traits might a child possess that may indicate an interest or aptitude for your STEM field? The ability to focus, problem solving, curiosity. What did you know about your STEM field when you were a child? When I was in kindergarten, my oldest sister was studying computer science in college (and would bring home punch cards for me to play with). I was already doing and enjoying math problems for fun, so my parents encouraged me by buying me math work books. Teachers later saw my aptitude and continued to encourage me to work math and logic problems. Why did you choose your STEM field? Were you inspired by someone? I was told I was good at it, so I decided to major in math in college. There, I took classes that gave us real-world problems to solve mathematically -- I saw real applications of math, that could impact the world! I was inspired to continue studying. What are some really cool things that people in your profession work on? Watch the movie, Hidden Figures, for one example of "cool" stuff that mathematicians can do. Mathematicians help solve the world's problems with food/water shortages, traffic congestion, the spread of disease. We help keep us safe by contributing to missile tracking, and helping to develop sensors to detect threats around us. At the basis of all technology is mathematics. What inspirational message would you give young girls to inspire them to pursue STEM? The best way to positively impact humanity, to create a better world for everyone, is through technology -- the STEM fields. Thank you for contributing, Jill!  Annie Jones-Wyatt earned her Ph.D. and Master’s in Aerospace Engineering from Georgia Tech, and her Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Rice University. Here she shares a little about her career and the inspiration behind it.
What is your specific area of STEM? Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering How would you explain your STEM field to young girls? I use science and math to design airplanes and the technology that goes inside them. Aerospace engineers make decisions about the shape of the wings, how high and how fast they can fly, and how they interact with other air and ground vehicles. What traits might a child possess that may indicate an interest or aptitude for your STEM field? Curiosity about the natural world - why is the sky blue, etc.; enjoying building/taking apart things, or arts & crafts (design). Constantly asking questions, even if you annoy your parents (I'm channeling my younger self here). What did you know about your STEM field when you were a child? My parents were always encouraging; we regularly visited science museums, children's museums, went to air shows, and watched documentaries/history programs. My father is a scientist, and my mother is an accountant (good at math). I had a very influential high school physics teacher who helped me towards the path of physics/mechanical engineering in undergrad. I didn't really know about the various engineering disciplines until I reached college; until then, my understanding was that it was all pure physics/math, even though I was exposed to scientists all around. Why did you choose your STEM field? Were you inspired by someone? I was always interested in science of some sort. In elementary school I wanted to be an archaeologist or paleontologist from reading National Geographic. I volunteered at a nature center, so in middle and early high school I wanted to be an environmental biologist. When I did high school physics and robotics, I shifted towards mechanical engineering, and towards the end of undergrad decided I wanted to pursue a postgraduate degree in aerospace engineering. I grew up around NASA but it wasn't until 7 years after we moved away from Houston that I really dove into aerospace engineering. What are some really cool things that people in your profession work on? In an internship, I got to work on parts for the International Space Station. In another internship, I did mechanical engineering work for the James Webb Space Telescope. Since then it's been more nuanced work, but in general, aerospace engineers design airplanes, helicopters, and rockets, which I think is pretty darn cool! What inspirational message would you give young girls to inspire them to pursue STEM? Always ask questions, learn about the physical laws governing the universe around you, and then draw/sculpt/design/build your own inventions and creations! Thank you for contributing, Annie!  Ifigeneia Metaxa earned her doctorate and undergraduate degree in Chemical Engineering from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece. Here she shares a little about her career and the inspiration behind it.
What is your specific area of STEM? Chemical Engineering How would you explain your STEM field to young girls? I coordinate everything that happens in research and development projects, factories, organise multi-national teams, work in a challenging and inspiring environment. What traits might a child possess that may indicate an interest or aptitude for your STEM field? Do you like construction toys? Did you enjoy looking through the microscope? Do you get that thrill when you got the right answer in math? What did you know about your STEM field when you were a child? My father encouraged me to play with "boy toys", so toys like Legos, Playmobil and other construction and battle toys. All of this alongside with more "girl toys". So, avoid labels! A teacher who loved chemistry inspired me to look into this poetic world (yes, chemistry). Also, everyone who told me that chemical engineering was not for girls, encouraged me to prove them wrong! Why did you choose your STEM field? Were you inspired by someone? I was inspired by teachers, I asked women of the field about their experiences (please do that!). I wanted to choose a profession that was versatile and would offer more job opportunities. What are some really cool things that people in your profession work on? Want to turn used cooking oil to fuel? How about playing with reaaaally small (nano) diamonds? Are you in to mobile app development? Do you want to work with cool technologies, such as Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, Robots interacting with humans, voice to text, blockchain (behind bitcoin), decision support systems, semantics? It gets exciting! What inspirational message would you give young girls to inspire them to pursue STEM? Find what you are passionate about and go for it! STEM is not difficult, it is exciting and rewarding. You just need to learn the way to approach this wonderful world. Oh, and yes, it is cool! Thank you for contributing, Ifigeneia!  Amanda Belding is completing her engineering physics degree, with a concentration in mechanical engineering, from the Ohio State University. Here she shares a little about her career and the inspiration behind it.
What is your specific area of STEM? Engineering Physics/Mechanical Engineering How would you explain your STEM field to young girls? Engineering Physics is about a deeper understanding of the engineering disciple you choose to focus on. I focused on mechanical engineering, when I learned how to build and design moving structures that solve a problem. In engineering you learn the equations for building and designing parts, in engineering physics, you learn why those equations work. The fundamentals are taught and focused on so that you can apply them to any problem you face. What traits might a child possess that may indicate an interest or aptitude for your STEM field? Problem solving, puzzles, playing with legos, taking apart systems to try to figure out how they work, learning about cars or bikes and how they are built. What did you know about your STEM field when you were a child? I loved math, physics, and taking apart things when they broke to attempt to fix them. From that my parents and teachers suggested looking at engineering and I went to engineering camp to get a better idea of what each discipline had to offer. Why did you choose your STEM field? Were you inspired by someone? I choose mechanical engineering because I really liked car engines. I found them fascinating and I wanted to understand how they worked. As I went through courses though I became frustrated when teachers would just hand us equations and expect us to accept them so I added physics to my disciple to get a deeper, fundamental understanding. What are some really cool things that people in your profession work on? I work on many projects. Some of the really cool ones include: design test structures for research on quantum computing and design mechanical components that are being sent out into space to collect weather data. What inspirational message would you give young girls to inspire them to pursue STEM? Just because one person may think you aren't smart enough does not mean you need to give up. Having a big brain is only part of what makes a great engineer. The other half is being a hard and passionate worker. If you enjoy learning something, never stop. Thank you for contributing, Amanda!  Katie Benner earned her civil engineering degree from Rose Hulman Institute of Technology. Here she shares a little about her career and the inspiration behind it.
What is your specific area of STEM? Civil Engineering How would you explain your STEM field to young girls? I get to solve puzzles every day. What traits might a child possess that may indicate an interest or aptitude for your STEM field? I enjoyed all building toys like Legos, Lincoln Logs, K'nex, but I also liked dolls. I preferred building houses and things for my dolls rather than use actual doll houses. Puzzles and games have always been a joy as well. Anything with problem solving (even video games) may show an aptitude for STEM. What did you know about your STEM field when you were a child? I didn't think about becoming an engineer until high school. For ages I thought I'd be an architect. My parents provided me building toys as a child. I had a natural aptitude for math, so my teachers put me in higher math classes since elementary school. And my parents heard about Excel, which was a one day per week accelerated learning class that I attended when I was in 5th and 6th grade. In 5th grade we focused a lot on building structures out of newspaper and bridges that had to carry load from Popsicle sticks. Why did you choose your STEM field? Were you inspired by someone? I've always been interested in architecture, but as much as I love art, I'm not a great artist. I figured the math side of architecture - structural engineering - would be a better fit. What are some really cool things that people in your profession work on? Engineers are needed throughout the world. I'm currently living in New Zealand because of my career. You can design Legos or become an Imagineer for Disney or develop games or send someone to Mars. You can construct something with your own hands or design something and watch it get created. What inspirational message would you give young girls to inspire them to pursue STEM? When you're in the STEM field you are only limited by your imagination. If something doesn't exist - you can create it. STEM jobs can take you anywhere in the world and even out into space. There are still so many thing that haven't yet been discovered or explained or utilized. With STEM you can build the world you want to live in. Thank you for contributing, Katie! Kathy Silver earned her engineering degree from Georgia Tech. Here she shares a little about her career and the inspiration behind it.
What is your specific area of STEM? Materials Science and Engineering How would you explain your STEM field to young girls? A materials engineer is someone who creates new materials or discovers new uses for old material. What traits might a child possess that may indicate an interest or aptitude for your STEM field? Any child is capable of an aptitude for math/science and we should assume all young children (particularly girls) have the ability to go into STEM fields. The bigger challenge (in my opinion) is convincing children of non-STEM parents that they are capable. Where I work, I am one of only a half dozen engineers who does not have at least one parent in a STEM career and I'm the only employee whose parents do not have college degrees. What did you know about your STEM field when you were a child? I didn't know much, though I recall a female ceramics engineer who came to talk on a career day that left an impact. Why did you choose your STEM field? Were you inspired by someone? As mentioned above, I remember the ceramics engineer and decided to follow "what I know". What are some really cool things that people in your profession work on?
What inspirational message would you give young girls to inspire them to pursue STEM? Read, do well at school and attend STEM camps. Thank you for contributing, Kathy! What is your specific area of STEM?
Civil Engineering How would you explain your STEM field to young girls? I design and inspect bridges and culverts. What traits might a child possess that may indicate an interest or aptitude for your STEM field? Interest in building things and/or how things work and "fit" together. I had a big interest in Legos when I was little. Not just building sets from plans, but also coming up with my own ideas / ways of constructing other items. What did you know about your STEM field when you were a child? I knew very little about STEM fields until high school. My father noticed engineering traits in me and encouraged me to learn more about civil engineering. He helped me find an opportunity to job shadow our town's civil engineer. Why did you choose your STEM field? Were you inspired by someone? I always enjoyed building things. I think creating something useful is very fulfilling for me. After a couple engineering internships, I realized that I really enjoyed the design aspect as well. What are some really cool things that people in your profession work on? Personally, I have worked both in construction management and design. I've helped estimate, schedule, manage budgets, materials and crews for bridge and roadway projects. This includes trouble shooting design or construction flaws in order to keep projects moving. I've worked projects that were completely new - going through woods, empty fields and demolishing houses to put in new interstate and a new airport. As well as widening interstate and demolishing and reconstructing bridges and roads in a city. Some civil engineers help design and build skyscrapers and sports stadiums. Others might work utilities, water or roadways. What inspirational message would you give young girls to inspire them to pursue STEM? Engineering is an exciting and fulfilling career. If you are interested, you should look for more opportunities to experience it - ask other women to shadow them at work and about their careers. Engineers love to share what they do! Thank you for contributing, Erin!  Samantha Lie-Tjauw earned her Master’s in Public Health from Emory University and her Bachelor’s Degree in Biology from the University of Georgia. Here she shares a little about her career and the inspiration behind it.
What is your specific area of STEM? Biology and Public Health How would you explain your STEM field to young girls? Public Health is understanding the important role each of us play in keeping ourselves and each other happy and healthy. What traits might a child possess that may indicate an interest or aptitude for your STEM field? Interest in puzzles, numbers, putting things together and taking them apart, the natural world around them, always asking questions, etc. What did you know about your STEM field when you were a child? I did not know anything about my STEM field until college. However in regards to biology - I thought it was the study of the natural world around and all parts of it. Why did you choose your STEM field? Were you inspired by someone? I had a formative experience in Guatemala that opened my eyes to the importance of community health and the opportunity that preventative care could play in wellness and joy. What are some really cool things that people in your profession work on? We get to meet all different types of people and build relationship with them. We get to do ANYTHING because public health is everywhere - teach, work in a lab, travel the world, speak different languages, help people AND animals, etc. What inspirational message would you give young girls to inspire them to pursue STEM? Any STEM field allows you to explore and exploring is one of the greatest joys in life. Get out there and get to know the world around you! Thank you for contributing, Samantha!  Paula Gomez earned her Master’s degree in Architecture, Design Computing from Georgia Tech, and her Architect Degree from Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María (Chile). She is also a Fulbright Scholar and Ph.D. Candidate. Here she shares a little about her career and the inspiration behind it.
What is your specific area of STEM? Architecture, Design Computing How would you explain your STEM field to young girls? Pushing the world forward. What traits might a child possess that may indicate an interest or aptitude for your STEM field? Questioning the world, trying to understand how something works, play by implementing mechanisms. What did you know about your STEM field when you were a child? Nothing. I just explored and tried to learn myself. Why did you choose your STEM field? Were you inspired by someone? Just curiosity and movies. What are some really cool things that people in your profession work on? I am from Chile, and working for NASA has been a dream come true. What inspirational message would you give young girls to inspire them to pursue STEM? Be always open minded and creative to approach every problem, and you will see that the limits are not where people tell you. Thank you for contributing, Paula! Lisa Brezee earned her Electrical Engineering degree from Southern Polytechnic State University. Here she shares a little about her career and the inspiration behind it.
What is your specific area of STEM? Electronics Engineering How would you explain your STEM field to young girls? My field is involved in every aspect of your life from cell phones to refrigerators. We improve the quality of people's lives by making items used in daily life faster and less likely to break two months after you paid a gazillion dollars for it. What traits might a child possess that may indicate an interest or aptitude for your STEM field? Curiosity on how things work. Lego mindstorm. Desire to beat any video game. Any activity that involves teamwork -- sports, Girl Scouts, science clubs. What did you know about your STEM field when you were a child? My mom taught me the Ramblin' Wreck song (Georgia Tech) when I was in elementary school. And I took everything apart; much to my mother's dismay. But she supported it even though I could not always put everything back together. I liked everything that involved electricity. Why did you choose your STEM field? Were you inspired by someone? My brother went into electrical engineering via the military so I followed along. It looked like fun..and it was. What are some really cool things that people in your profession work on?
What inspirational message would you give young girls to inspire them to pursue STEM? STEM takes smarts, drive, guts and dreams. All qualities that at which girls excel. Thank you for contributing, Lisa!  Hilarie Warren earned her Master’s in Public Health from Emory University and her BS in Biology from the University of New Hampshire. Here she shares a little about her career and the inspiration behind it.
What is your specific area of STEM? Biology/Industrial Hygiene How would you explain your STEM field to young girls? My job is to use my knowledge about the human body to help people protect themselves at work from things that might make them sick. I use special equipment to measure things (particles in the air or the loudness of a noise) and then compare my results to numbers established by other scientists to make sure people who are working with chemicals or loud machinery aren't at risk for illness or injury. If my measurements show there is a danger to an employee, I use engineering methods to find a way to change the equipment or process so it better protects the person doing the job. We don't want anyone getting sick just from doing their job! What traits might a child possess that may indicate an interest or aptitude for your STEM field? Interest in taking things apart and putting them back together (puzzles, models); interest in how things work or are made; problem-solving ability; ability to see the whole/big picture – a systems approach. What did you know about your STEM field when you were a child? I knew nothing about the field of industrial hygiene as a child. I was given lots of opportunities to build and create (taking apart old telephones, for example, to see their inner workings) and emphasis on imaginative play, creativity and the arts were fostered and exemplified by both parents and teachers. I spent a lot of time outdoors, which instilled both a love of science and biology. Why did you choose your STEM field? Were you inspired by someone? I always knew I would work in science (it was my favorite subject in school from the beginning), but the idea to pursue something other than medical school came much later. I was lucky to have 2 opportunities to travel abroad and see working conditions in different parts of the world, and after those experiences I couldn't quite get them out of my mind. But I didn't know what to do with that information yet. The opportunity to work in occupational health/industrial hygiene came when a graduate school academic advisor suggested an internship opportunity in this field. She knew my interest in protecting the health of the most vulnerable people, and suggested this field might be a good fit. She was right. What are some really cool things that people in your profession work on? I get to see how things are made - every day! I go to companies that make everything from sugar to bicycles to apple orchards to airplanes to chocolate candy to sweatshirts! I get to stomp around on big construction projects and see buildings and roads designed and put together even before anyone else ever gets to use or drive on them! I get to meet lots of different people and hear about how they do their work - so every day is a little bit different. One of my favorite places I ever got to work was at an aquarium - I got to go behind the scenes and see parts of the facility (and animals!) that only people who worked there could usual go. If you like to see how things are made - and like to get a little dirty! - this is a great field to explore. What inspirational message would you give young girls to inspire them to pursue STEM? If you are excited and interested by a topic or a field - THAT's what matters the most. Don't be afraid to explore, ask questions, get your hands dirty - the world needs more people who are excited about the possibilities and potential of things, not just those who can "do" the job. STEM work is the best because it's never dull, it's fun, it's challenging, and it's rewarding. Thank you for contributing, Hilarie!  Nicole Kosoris earned her Master’s Degree in Computer Science from Southern Polytechnic State University and her BA in Mathematics from Thomas Edison State University. Here she shares a little about her career and the inspiration behind it.
What is your specific area of STEM? Computer Science How would you explain your STEM field to young girls? I make games that help doctors diagnose medical conditions. I also make tools that use your thoughts to control things, like quad copters. What traits might a child possess that may indicate an interest or aptitude for your STEM field? Determination! Problem solving ability. A desire to build, with or without instructions, or design/plan. An interest in science fiction or fantasy. Creative play with toys where they overcome challenges or build things. What did you know about your STEM field when you were a child? I knew nothing about my field as a child. I had some exposure to computers, but didn't regularly use one until High School. I was strongly discouraged (often) from pursuing interests or careers in computing. Why did you choose your STEM field? Were you inspired by someone? Because I loved books about magic, and programming is basically real-world magic spells. What are some really cool things that people in your profession work on? My projects are pretty cool. I build virtual reality games to help doctors diagnose medical problems like concussions or Alzheimer's. I also get to fly quad copters with my brain. What inspirational message would you give young girls to inspire them to pursue STEM? If you're passionate enough about anything, you can make a career out of it. Find what makes you happy to do, and then do it. Thank you for contributing, Nicole! |
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