Record Number of Female High School Students Turnout for EXP’s 4th Annual WOMEN in STEM Career Day
The air was bursting with energy and inspiration last Friday, February 21st, at EXP’s 4th Annual Women in STEM Career Day held at California State University Dominguez Hills (CSUDH).
A total of 370 female high school students from 13 underserved high schools in Southern California learned about future career possibilities in science, technology, engineering and math – a 48 percent increase over last year. The event featured 100 accomplished women professionals from a variety of STEM fields, who shared their experiences and advice. Students further engaged with 21 industry exhibitors that provided interactive technology demonstrations and information. The day included an exclusive tour of CSUDH’s mobile FAB Labs, as well as an inspirational talk with Keynote Speaker Raquel Nuno, a Ph.D. candidate in Planetary Geology at UCLA, who is also on the Science Team of the Diviner instrument onboard NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) spacecraft.
“The career fair today was really eye-opening. I didn’t know, and my friends didn’t know, how many opportunities there are out there for jobs and for everybody’s different interests,” said one student. “It was definitely inspiring for most of the girls here, I can say.”
The event was made possible through the strong support of major sponsor Marathon Petroleum Corporation. It also attracted sponsorships by Edison International, SoCal Gas, LADWP, Skanska, Watson Land Company, BYD, Phillips 66 and Torrance Memorial Medical Center. To highlight their commitment, Marathon rounded off the event by presenting EXP with a $100,000 donation to support year-round STEM programming.
Bob Devine, Manager of Marathon Engineering & Special Projects, presented the grant and expressed appreciation for the company’s partnership with EXP to continually support local high school students and deliver on high quality events like the Women in STEM Career Day.
Beyond encouraging young women to pursue STEM careers, the event aids the industry in closing the workforce gap in numbers of female employees. “Today, there are only 17 percent of women in professional STEM fields even though women make up 52 percent of the workforce,” said Nicole Martin Huezo, EXP’s Director of Programs and Strategic Partnerships. “The career day is about providing representation so that young women can see themselves in those careers in the future.”