Fourth Annual STEM Career Day Inspires Students

FOURTH ANNUAL

STEM Career Day INSPIRES STUDENTS

By ANNA TAYLOR • PUBLIC AFFAIRS SPECIALIST Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY) hosted high school students from Chesapeake and Norfolk on April 14 and 16 for its fourth annual Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) Career Days. The purpose of these STEM Career Days is to inspire young minds by enhancing student interest in STEM related educational opportunities and careers at NNSY. This year, students from Western Branch High School and Granby High School were invited to participate.

Among the more than 80 attendees were members of Granby’s Girls in Engineering (GOE) club, a three-year-old award-winning program created to inspire girls to pursue careers in engineering.

Last year, the club built an underwater Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) and placed second at a regional Marine Advanced Technology Education (MATE) ROV competition. “We made it to the international competition,” said Deborah Marshall, Department Chair of the Career and Technical Education program at Granby. “We were the only girls there and we placed 27th out of 550 [participants].”

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NNSY’s STEM Days were open to students of all grade levels who currently participate in their school’s Robotics, CHROME, and/or Math and Science programs. It’s an important way for educators and NNSY employees to increase student engagement as partners in learning and development through STEM-related opportunities.

“We are really interested in exposing our students to more opportunities,” said Melissa Jones, a Career Technology Education Teacher at Granby who helped arrange the field trip. “Not every child is college-bound, and we can bring kids who are considering multiple possibilities.”

"The students were able to ask real-world questions and receive answers from those who work in their particular fields of interest," said Millicent Lee, a Career Counselor at Western Branch. "The students left with a realization that they could see themselves being future employees. Our students were able to hear great advice from such a competitive workforce."

PHOTOS BY TONY ANDERSON • NNSY PHOTOGRAPHER

“It’s another avenue of education,” said Marshall. “[The shipyard is] in their own backyard to offer them jobs in their own neighborhood. Not everybody when they graduate high school is ready to go to a fouryear institution, so what else is there that you can walk out of high school and do; walk into a training facility, walk into an apprentice program, walk into a job, and be successful?”

Vanessa Collado is a sophomore at Granby and also the Engineering Officer for GOE. “I want to be a mechanical engineer,” she said. “I feel like that will open a lot of doors for me. Plus it’s not really common for girls to be in engineering so I want to be different.” Collado is considering the Coast Guard Academy, but wants to keep her education options open, part of the reason she thought it would be wise to attend the STEM Career Day at the shipyard. “I wanted to meet other engineers. I wanted to learn about different varieties to open up more ideas of what I want to do.”

The two STEM Career Days were organized by Valerie Fulwood, NNSY’s Outreach Program Manager. “Western Branch and Granby showed a lot of interest in what we’re doing [at the shipyard],” she said.

“The students asked a lot of questions. The seniors were very inquisitive about how they can move forward with college, but if not college, coming into the apprentice program.”

The students were given a windshield tour of NNSY before proceeding to Building 1575 where several codes were set up with educational materials and eye-catching displays, along with the Rapid Prototype Lab, Paint Simulator, and Welding Simulator, to answer questions posed by the young potential yardbirds. “The goal is to let them know what their options are here at the shipyard and with the government,” said Fulwood. “Part of what we do is making sure we give them all the tools they need to move forward with whatever they decide to do in life. To have the STEM Career Days is just one of those tools.”

WHY IS STEM SO IMPORTANT FOR OUR KIDS? If the United States is to maintain its global leadership and competitive position, we have to motivate students to pursue careers in STEM fields. In 2009, the United States Department of Labor listed the ten most wanted employees. Eight of those employees were ones with degrees in the STEM fields: accounting, computer science, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, information sciences and systems, computer engineering, civil engineering, and economics and finance. These professionals are in charge of solving the complex problems of today’s world and ensuring its future, something demonstrated in the work we do at NNSY on a daily basis.

For more information on the importance of STEM programs, visit www.ed.gov/stem or www.sciencepioneers.org.

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