Women in Engineering
Proving that “Black girls do Engineering” Paul J. Heney • Vice President, Editorial Director
Math and science are what first drew Kara Branch to engineering. As a child, she always excelled in her coursework, but it surprised her how good she was at math and science. Branch said she knew she was going to do something great in these subjects when she met her high school chemistry teacher, Mrs. Chapman. “She challenged us … and I was the youngest in that class,” Branch said. “She gave us an assignment one day and mentioned that whoever passed it would be exempt from our end of the year final. I was the only one in our class to pass this assignment — and the only person exempted from that final. This sparked something in me. Growing up in an underserved community, there was no role model to expose you to engineering, but this moment let me know I had a skillset that set me apart from others.” In college, Branch had a strong desire to major in dance, one of her loves. But her aunt, who was the only other person in her family to attend college, had a lot of involvement in her college decision-making process. When Branch mentioned how she wanted to major in dance, the aunt immediately dismissed that. “She told me to aim for another major,” Branch recalled. “I met with my freshman advisor and she mentioned the College of Engineering would be great for me. This is what led to me becoming an engineer.” Into the workforce Branch feels that her biggest engineering challenge was actually when she came out of college and transitioned into the workforce. “I did a lot of research in college, which made me such an avid writer. But I did not intern, so day one on
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