NEWIEE on Campus
Last year, BBC America and the Women’s Media Center conducted a study titled SuperPowering Girls and found that better onscreen representation can help close the confidence gap for girls and allow them to see themselves as leaders and heroes and to seek out careers in traditionally male-dominated fields. The study served as an affirmation of the truism “if you don’t see it, you can’t be it,” and the findings are as unsurprising as they are optimistic in this era of shifting female representation in pop culture and in STEM fields.
Recent examples of women-led, STEM-leaning blockbusters (Gifted, Hidden Figures, even Marvel’s Black Panther) are conversation-shifting steps in the right direction. NEWIEE has been taking strides toward changing the perception of women as environmental and energy leaders since 2008. Moreover, we know how important it is for young women to feel represented not only onscreen, but in the classroom, boardroom, laboratory, tech start up… We could go on, but I think we’ve driven home the point that representation matters.
That’s why we hosted our first NEWIEE on Campus panel in 2015. Since then, the series has organized more than a dozen panels at colleges and universities throughout New England. Featuring our own rising professionals and member volunteers, we estimate that the series has introduced more than 500 students to what we do as professionals in these fields. In the last year alone NEWIEE has hosted four on campus panels, featuring 15 panelists from a diverse sampling of energy/environmental careers and reaching approximately 175 students.
This back to school season, we’re excited to pick up where we left off last spring. We’ll be at the University of Rhode Island on October 16, and we’re heading to Greenfield Community College on October 24 to help celebrate their annual STEM week. Our goals for the series include reaching even more public colleges and universities, and exploring how we can build the energy and environment pipeline by introducing our incredible members to young women and girls even before they reach higher ed. In addition to telling our own stories and answering student questions, NEWIEE on Campus has provided resources like “Salary Negotiation 101” and networking skills labs. These panels are inspiring, enlightening, and FUN for attendees and panelists alike and we’re excited to see how many campuses we can visit this semester.
They say “never meet your heroes,” but here at NEWIEE, we disagree… In fact, we’d like you to come meet some of ours at our next on campus event!
If you know of a school that would like NEWIEE members to come share their career stories, or if you would like to volunteer to talk to undergraduates about your career, please let us know! Write to us at newiee@newiee.org.
© 2024 New England Women in Energy and the Environment (NEWIEE). NEWIEE is a non-profit, tax exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
