The Mini Symposium on Women of Color in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics: Suggestions to CEOSE
On October 27-28, 2009, over 100 participants gathered in Arlington, Virginia for The Mini-Symposium on Women of Color in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM). Implemented by TERC and organized by Dr. Maria (Mia) Ong , this two-day panel and discussion forum advanced the current state of knowledge about complex challenges that women of color encounter in STEM and suggested strategies for enabling them to excel and assume advanced positions in the field.
The Mini-Symposium was a key opportunity for participants to share experiential knowledge and evidence-based findings, and to provide comments and suggestions about how the recruitment, retention, and advancement of women of color in STEM may be improved through research, practice, policy, and evaluation. Speakers and participants consisted of African American, Native American, Hispanic/Latina, and Asian American women graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, junior and senior faculty, and junior and senior professionals in STEM disciplines. Staff from NSF and other federal STEM agencies attended and presented, as did program leaders who serve to support women of color in STEM; policy experts and evaluation experts with an interest in diversity issues; and social science scholars who study factors that promote or hinder women of color in STEM education and careers.