As a parent of an incredibly talented daughter who is now at the crossroads in deciding her curriculum pathway to University, this resonates with me beautifully. It really does stagger me that we must have such conversations still today. My daughter is 16 and I encouraged her to undertake work experience (I'm not sure if that's a thing in the US) in a variety of fields so that she gets a real vs academic view only of what life is like in these fields. She chose Radiology (because she has interest in Orthopedic surgery as a field), Law and Media - I was proud of her diverse selection to reflect upon. Now for the tough choices she must make with our encouragement as parents. The bottom line is, she can do what ever she sets her mind to, she'll make sure of it - I just hope the world catches on!
You are such a great dad and human. It doesn't surprise me that the apple doesn't fall very far. There is enough career support for the younger folks in the USA. Even worse, they invest in expensive education, which they will probably pay well into adulthood. DEI initiatives are great, but fulfilling quotas to check a box is not a realistic hiring method. I've seen more women enter tech in the last decade, but they are quickly chased away by bad behavior. But this problem goes way back. I love her profession of choice. Kudos to her :)
Thank you so much for your kind words Neela. I think we must create the best possible foundation on which our next generation can flourish. I agree with you, I have never been a fan of quotas because all they do is cause resentment and don't achieve what is sought - ie truly diverse and inclusive workplaces. Part of the key here is going right back to your article, ensuring a strong pipeline of talent is coming through from our talented girls/women and that they are not put off pursuing these occupations due to male dominance. I appreciate you!!
ha ha hopefully not David!! lol And I hope to not need her services should she become an Orthopedic surgeon... though if she chooses law, I'll gladly secure her services to sue Mrs Magoo who sent me flying! :)
May I add how beautifully this is written? Your words jump off the page, as always. And that's important with this being a topic so close to my heart 🩵
When I started at EDS in 2000 I met a lady who was receiving her award for 25 years of service, she cut her teeth on COBOL, most of the BA's were women and they had a fairly even balance of men and women across technical roles. I think there were more men in sales. I just didn't see an imbalance at the turn of the century in my area of the world. You were either into tech or not regardless of gender.
Maybe down this part of the world we are so short on people that we can't afford to let the Tina's miss out. I tried looking up some stats on women in STEM and according to our 2018 census 48% are involved so that sounds right to me - only 30% are CEO's in NZ but I think our politics are 50/50 - tell Tina to come to NZ Neela she'll get a job in STEM but like the rest of us won't be able to afford a house, food or power
Those are interesting stats. It's not only Tina who needs to move. I need to move as well. I will bring the entire Caribbean with me. While we have plenty of female leaders in Trinidad the careers of choice are still very much gender influenced and it will take a few generations to change the thinking.
I plan to explore this more globally. I wanted to let you know that the stats you provided piqued my interest. As always, thank you so much David.
Happy Wednesday, Salima. I meant to message you on IG. You were on my mind this past weekend, and I'm not sure why. I hope you are well. Here's hoping our societies evolve.
Couple weeks ago I attended an event (for work) from the University that focused on exactly this. There was a panel of women who had thriving careers in STEM and also women who had gone into trades. It was so cool to hear them share their stories. And even cooler was seeing all the young women ask questions and actually considering these pathways as careers!
I love that Sophie. It helps when women advocate for women. DEI initiatives are great but it falls short in many areas. I hope you had a good week. Have an amazing weekend.
Holy mackerel. That was a one-two counter punch of thought-provoking data and clearly defined passion, Neela! Oof. One of my favorites in this (although in something written this well it is difficult to pull out just one thing to highlight):
"Building more inclusive, opportunity-enriched science curriculums and classrooms is an obvious start. But the real heavy lifting happens at home." NS
You also laid out some great tools for parents to put into their toolbelt. Well done!
We can implement initiatives until the sun comes down, and those will work to a point, but I've seen companies filling those DEI quotas with unqualified individuals just to check a box. We don't have enough women in these fields in America. It's improving, but we have a long, long way to go.
As a parent of an incredibly talented daughter who is now at the crossroads in deciding her curriculum pathway to University, this resonates with me beautifully. It really does stagger me that we must have such conversations still today. My daughter is 16 and I encouraged her to undertake work experience (I'm not sure if that's a thing in the US) in a variety of fields so that she gets a real vs academic view only of what life is like in these fields. She chose Radiology (because she has interest in Orthopedic surgery as a field), Law and Media - I was proud of her diverse selection to reflect upon. Now for the tough choices she must make with our encouragement as parents. The bottom line is, she can do what ever she sets her mind to, she'll make sure of it - I just hope the world catches on!
You are such a great dad and human. It doesn't surprise me that the apple doesn't fall very far. There is enough career support for the younger folks in the USA. Even worse, they invest in expensive education, which they will probably pay well into adulthood. DEI initiatives are great, but fulfilling quotas to check a box is not a realistic hiring method. I've seen more women enter tech in the last decade, but they are quickly chased away by bad behavior. But this problem goes way back. I love her profession of choice. Kudos to her :)
Thank you so much for your kind words Neela. I think we must create the best possible foundation on which our next generation can flourish. I agree with you, I have never been a fan of quotas because all they do is cause resentment and don't achieve what is sought - ie truly diverse and inclusive workplaces. Part of the key here is going right back to your article, ensuring a strong pipeline of talent is coming through from our talented girls/women and that they are not put off pursuing these occupations due to male dominance. I appreciate you!!
Radiology will be really useful as you might need her services later on in your cycling career Alexander 🤗☕
ha ha hopefully not David!! lol And I hope to not need her services should she become an Orthopedic surgeon... though if she chooses law, I'll gladly secure her services to sue Mrs Magoo who sent me flying! :)
😂
Bravo Alexander!
Thanks Chason.
May I add how beautifully this is written? Your words jump off the page, as always. And that's important with this being a topic so close to my heart 🩵
This makes me so happy coming from you, Nadine :)
I am still testing content on this platform, and I now have a fair idea of where I should go. Your support helps :)
This article was repurposed, but it was boosted, and it did go viral on Medium several months ago :)
Happy Wednesday!
I can see exactly why. More eyes needed to read this!
When I started at EDS in 2000 I met a lady who was receiving her award for 25 years of service, she cut her teeth on COBOL, most of the BA's were women and they had a fairly even balance of men and women across technical roles. I think there were more men in sales. I just didn't see an imbalance at the turn of the century in my area of the world. You were either into tech or not regardless of gender.
Maybe down this part of the world we are so short on people that we can't afford to let the Tina's miss out. I tried looking up some stats on women in STEM and according to our 2018 census 48% are involved so that sounds right to me - only 30% are CEO's in NZ but I think our politics are 50/50 - tell Tina to come to NZ Neela she'll get a job in STEM but like the rest of us won't be able to afford a house, food or power
Those are interesting stats. It's not only Tina who needs to move. I need to move as well. I will bring the entire Caribbean with me. While we have plenty of female leaders in Trinidad the careers of choice are still very much gender influenced and it will take a few generations to change the thinking.
I plan to explore this more globally. I wanted to let you know that the stats you provided piqued my interest. As always, thank you so much David.
Your article reminds me so much of the STEM/STEAM programs that were implemented in my district and school.
I found the projects to be much more hands on and gave everyone an opportunity to explore the field, especially girls.
My lil niece is currently enrolled in an after school STEM program.
Yayyy to your niece and your community.
You are having a positive effect on her sis.
I love hearing these stories.
Enjoy your evening.
There are parts of world where women are not empowered enough to make personal choices.
Once these societies evolve I hope they work on this issue.
And you are right Neela, when a child receives nurturing environment at home they discover their potential and carve their own path.
Enjoy your week, Neela🤗🤗
Happy Wednesday, Salima. I meant to message you on IG. You were on my mind this past weekend, and I'm not sure why. I hope you are well. Here's hoping our societies evolve.
Thank you so much, and same to you too :)
Couple weeks ago I attended an event (for work) from the University that focused on exactly this. There was a panel of women who had thriving careers in STEM and also women who had gone into trades. It was so cool to hear them share their stories. And even cooler was seeing all the young women ask questions and actually considering these pathways as careers!
I love that Sophie. It helps when women advocate for women. DEI initiatives are great but it falls short in many areas. I hope you had a good week. Have an amazing weekend.
Holy mackerel. That was a one-two counter punch of thought-provoking data and clearly defined passion, Neela! Oof. One of my favorites in this (although in something written this well it is difficult to pull out just one thing to highlight):
"Building more inclusive, opportunity-enriched science curriculums and classrooms is an obvious start. But the real heavy lifting happens at home." NS
You also laid out some great tools for parents to put into their toolbelt. Well done!
We can implement initiatives until the sun comes down, and those will work to a point, but I've seen companies filling those DEI quotas with unqualified individuals just to check a box. We don't have enough women in these fields in America. It's improving, but we have a long, long way to go.
I appreciate you Chason :)