Blog

By Brianna Roche

The Women Veterans in STEM project is funded by NSF to leverage strengths and address barriers that women veterans face in pursuing and persisting in STEM careers.  The project consists of two phases; first, gather thought leaders to conduct a landscape analysis of the current issues facing women veterans in STEM, and second, hold a convening where solutions and recommendations are generated and ultimately disseminated.  This November, upon the intersection of STEM week and Veterans Day, we released our series of white papers which were the culmination of the first phase of this important work.  The white paper series was broken down into five broad categories: women veterans, transition services, STEM workforce, STEM education, and health and well-being. 

The Convening

The Women Veterans in STEM white papers were released during a 5-part webinar series (webinar recordings and slides are posted on the Webinar Series page).  Each week a new paper was released and feedback was solicited from attendees to gather additional perspectives.  These generative conversations were instrumental in laying the groundwork for the convening, which will be held virtually over four days starting March 2, 2021.  A synthesis of the webinar discussions is currently being prepared so that the thoughts, opinions, and lived experiences of the webinar attendees can be incorporated into the convening discussions.

These findings will provoke national dialogue on the importance of policies and programs to support women veterans in seeking greater economic opportunities through STEM work. We can leverage the unique expertise of these individuals only by providing the additional support they need to be able to successfully join the STEM workforce. While such support exists in isolated pockets and instances, it is critical that our nation create opportunities for all female veterans.

The white papers were the product of the hard work of the Women Veterans in STEM advisory board, a group of 30+ members representing women veterans, non-profit organizations and federal agencies that serve veterans, universities, STEM practitioners, and STEM industries.  Two of those members, Kelly Greene and Robert F. Barrow, are both veterans and are also ITEST project members.  Greene is senior project staff on the Chief Science Officers program, and Barrow is the co-PI for the JROTC STEM Leadership Academy.  

We seek to bring key stakeholders together for this timely and critical discussion, and invite those who are interested to join us.  Sign up for our newsletter or connect through any of the channels below to learn more about participating in the convening.

Email: WomenVetsSTEM@edc.org 

Twitter:https://twitter.com/WomenVetsSTEM

Linkedin:https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-veterans-in-stem-convening/ 

Website:https://womenvetsstem.edc.org/

Newsletter sign-up:https://bit.ly/WomenVetsSTEMnewsletter

Brianna Roche specializes in research, evaluation, and the development of learning communities to improve educational, economic, and health equity. She brings a strong background in research, strategic dissemination, and project management to her work advancing college and career readiness in STEM for underserved youth.