U.S. Department of Labor and Illinois Institute of Technology to host conference on career and educational opportunities for women and girls in science
The Women’s Bureau of the U.S. Department of Labor and Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) will sponsor a regional conference in Chicago on July 27 to promote career and educational opportunities for women and girls in science, engineering and technology.
The conference, entitled “Expanding the Pipeline: Women and Girls in Science, Engineering and Technology,” will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. in IIT’s Engineering 1 building at 10 West 32nd St., Chicago. The co-sponsors of the conference are the University of Illinois-Chicago, Center for Research on Women & Gender and IT Empowerment for Women and Girls Initiative.
Shinae Chun, director of the Women’s Bureau, is scheduled to speak at the conference. Other speakers include representatives from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, University of Wisconsin--Madison; Ford Motor Company; Eli Lilly and Co.; Women in Science & Engineering Program, University of Michigan--Ann Arbor; and the Society for Women Engineers, Chicago Regional Section. Other speakers will represent the Office of Learning and Information Technology, University of Wisconsin System; Lucent Technologies, Professional Learning & Business Relations; Illinois Institute of Technology, Electrical & Computer Engineering Department; Northwestern University and the Zoology Department of the Field Museum of Natural History.
The conference will focus on obstacles facing women and girls in science, engineering and technology; solutions to help them overcome barriers; and best practices. Participants will address ways to encourage girls to take math and science courses, and will examine the ways to help women advance in these traditionally male-dominated fields. Roundtable discussions will explore ways women can work together to expand the pipeline that leads to high-paying, highly skilled jobs.
Nancy Chen, regional administrator of the Women’s Bureau in Chicago said, “Networking and mentoring are very important in advancing women’s careers. At the conference, the Women’s Bureau will introduce its girls’ e-mentoring program to promote increased interest in science, engineering and technology career opportunities.”
The conference is open to anyone--especially educators, advocacy organizations and women in college--concerned about the need to promote girls’ interest in science, math and technology education and ways to attract women into these careers. Girls 12 to 17 years of age may attend through partner organizations. The conference will provide an opportunity to network and exchange ideas.
The Women’s Bureau was created by Congress in 1920 with a mission to improve women’s working conditions, to eliminate barriers that restrict women in reaching their full potential in the workplace and to promote women through advocacy, outreach, research and demonstration programs. The Bureau is working to make a real difference in the lives of young girls and women by implementing initiatives to increase their participation in the education pipeline leading to jobs in science, engineering and technology.
Founded in 1890, IIT is a Ph.D.-granting technological university awarding degrees in the sciences, mathematics and engineering, as well as architecture, psychology, design, business and law. IIT’s interprofessional, technology-focused curriculum prepares the university’s 6,200 students for leadership roles in an increasingly complex and culturally diverse global workplace.
