STEM Representation

Nia Brown

November 11, 2016

COLLEGE PARK, M.d. Education and participation in science, technology,

engineering and math is growing. Increases in STEM jobs and funding have resulted in a
steep rise in involvement in STEM majors.
Universities, businesses and the government have all encouraged participation. Even
President Barack Obama weighed in on STEM growth.
[Science] is an approach to the world, said President Obama in his speech during the
2015 White House Science Fair. It is a critical way to understand and explore and
engage with the world, and then have the
capacity to change the world, and to share
this accumulated knowledge.
During the fair, President Obama announced
new STEM investments upwards of $240
million from businesses, schools and
foundations across the country. These
investments were continuations of the
Educate to Innovate campaign launched
by the White House in 2010.
Despite the nationwide growth, this advance
President Obama at 2015 White House Science
is not reflected across all demographics.
Fair (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
Representation of women and minorities,
both in STEM classes and career fields has been well under the population of white males
for decades.
According to TechRocket statistics showing science and engineering occupations in 2013,
white men make up 51% of all science and engineering jobs.
STEM at the University of Maryland, College Park is no different.
I feel like there is a huge lack of representation in my field, said Ayanna Garland,
senior cell biology and genetics major. Usually, I am one of the few black people in the
room and there are even less black women.
Garland is not the only student that has recognized the lack of diversity in STEM classes.
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Im not a STEM major, so Im not sure what upper level classes look like, said
Michelle Durham, sophomore romance languages major. However, my general
education classes were mostly all white males. I had maybe three women in my natural
science discussion.
When looking specifically at UMD engineering, according to the Baltimore Sun,
researchers have found that only 20% of undergraduate engineering students are women.
The article also stated that women have higher representation in bioengineering, chemical
and civil engineering and lower representation in electrical, mechanical, aerospace and
computer engineering.
This distribution is strikingly similar across all STEM fields. However, one field is
defying the odds on campus.
UMDs statistics department enrollment is on the rise. The math track has grown 57%
since 2011. The representation of women has followed the upward trend.
There are definitely more girls in my stats classes than the pure math classes, said
Sophy Yang, senior economics and mathematics major in an email to the Diamondback.
UMD, like many universities, has recognized the lack of representation and made steps to
close the gaps.
The university hosted an inaugural Diversity in Computing Summit for the Maryland
Center for Women in Computing November 7. The summit was designed particularly to
address women and minorities in computer science. It offered a number of speakers and
breakout sessions focusing on topics such as Mentoring for Diversity.
The summit itself represents the strides made toward a more diverse and integrated future
for STEM education. The university hopes that meetings like the summit along with
revision of admission procedures and specialized summer programs for prospective
students will encourage a diversity increase.
However, many students feel that the issue of representation has to be addressed much
earlier than college.
I think that the media and school systems fail to showcase the achievements of minority
individuals, said Gabriella Hammer, junior biology major and business minor. Students
are not even aware that minorities have been highly successful in STEM. Perhaps if the
media and school system demonstrated female and minority excellence more often, youth
in general would be more inclined to pursue STEM.
Universities should not be left to build interest for STEM fields. According to many
students, the answer to fixing gender and racial gaps is prior representation and
education.
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More representation of women and minorities in STEM would encourage other women
and minorities to participate in the field as well, said Imani Rickerby, senior public
health science major. Especially if those who are already in the field participate in
mentoring programs. As mentors, they can share their journey and experiences of being
in the STEM field. They could also share insight about dealing with discrimination or
barriers.
UMDs efforts have definitely eased the STEM gap on campus. But, this academic and
career disparity stretches throughout universities, high schools and corporations across
the country. The weight is on us all universities, employers and individuals alike to
challenge the current educational system and integrate diversity into STEM and fields
like it.

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