On Monday, March 6, Madison High School’s Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) program took 22 female STEM students to Lake Erie College for NEOSTEAM’23, a collaboration between the Educational Service Center (ESC) of the Western Reserve and Lake Erie College’s Schools of Art, Education, Humanities, Social Studies and Natural Sciences, and Mathematics. The symposium explored the intersections of Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM), and guided student dialogue and critical thinking.
This year’s NEOSTEAM expanded on the work begun with last year’s Women in STEM Symposium. Women are underrepresented in STEM education degrees and STEM training, with studies from 2020 showing that women made up only 28% of the workforce in STEM careers. According to the AAUW, an organization committed to gender equity, these gender gaps are especially high in some of the fastest-growing and highest-paid jobs of the future, such as computer science and engineering. This continuation of the 2022 Women in STEM Symposium expanded upon bringing together a multidisciplinary team of educators leading demonstrations for students and their teachers, including personal case studies about STEAM engagement’s impact on academic achievement, school climate, and student agency.
The event worked to engage young women’s interest in STEAM careers by focusing on what motivates and sustains our curiosity, with sessions on connecting to earth sciences, considering educational paths, and sparking curiosity through placemaking and creativity. Students participated in:
- Presentations by female panelists of multiple career types, including a doctor specializing in genetics, a medical artist, a manufacturer, and an engineer
- Design activity regarding “Design Thinking” with Lakeland Community College’s HIVE
- Print-making utilizing stamps with Lake Erie College’s Professor of Art
- Titration test using burets to determine the amount of metal in water from various sources, led by Lake Erie College’s Professor of Chemistry
Madison alumni Aaron Rose of 2004 and Glen Bailey of 2002 helped organize the event. Mr. Rose is currently in IT with the Cleveland Foundation, and Mr. Bailey is the Assistant Principal at Painesville’s iSTEM and a leader with NEO STEAM.
Madison is proud not only of our alumni for helping to organize this incredible event, but for our students for continuing their education and sharing their experiences back with us.
