KPU Pre-Med Club hosts Girls in STEM seminar to celebrate women in the fields
Featuring guest speakers, the event aims to inspire high-school students to pursue careers in STEM
Tisha Pann is the president of the KPU Pre-Med Club. (Submitted)
Kwantlen Polytechnic University’s Pre-Med Club will host a Girls in STEM seminar on Saturday at the Surrey City Centre library to highlight women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers and celebrate their achievements.
The event aims to provide an informal mentorship opportunity and serve as a source of inspiration for young high schoolers.
“A survey conducted by Junior Achievement, an organization [based] in the U.S., found that only nine per cent of girls between the ages of 13 and 17 are interested in STEM careers,” says Tisha Pann, president of the Pre-Med Club. “Even if that number is somewhat similar to Canada, there’s something so intrinsically wrong and sad about that statistic.”
Five speakers, each representing different fields in STEM, will be featured at the event. Angela Hutchinson, a doctor who won the Fraser Northwest Division Family Doctor of the Year Award for her work at Highroads Medical Clinic, will represent the science field.
Other speakers include Mandeep Pannu, chair of KPU’s computer science and information technology program, representing the field of technology. Ailene MacPherson, assistant professor of mathematics at Simon Fraser University (SFU) and Tier 2 Canada Research Chair, will represent the math field.
Bonnie Gray, who holds a PhD in electrical engineering from the University of California, Davis, and is conducting research in the field of biomedical engineering, and Katrina Honigs is a SFU assistant professor with a PhD in mathematics from the University of California, Berkeley.
The event will include a question-and-answer period where attendees will have opportunities to ask questions related to their careers or find out more about the speakers’ backgrounds.
Another activity is group discussion, where each mentor will be paired with a small group of attendees. The groups will be rotating, so all attendees will have a chance to network with each mentor.
Pann hopes the seminar allows attendees to hear the experience of successful women in STEM, learn the insights they have gained during their career paths, and understand the growth they have achieved and the mistakes to avoid.
“We also want to provide meaningful advice on how to succeed in the workplace,” Pann says. “We feel like that’s so relevant for youth attendees to be able to take away. I know the transition from high school to undergrad can be such a challenge, it’s hard to navigate.”
She adds that while the event highlights women and will be held on International Women’s Day, all participants, regardless of their gender, are welcome.
“One of my favourite quotes is by Gloria Steinem. She says, ‘The story of women’s struggle for equality belongs to no single feminist, nor to any one organization, but to the collective efforts of all who care about human rights,’” Pann says.
“That’s something that’s really special about our conference that I’m excited about, and hopefully it’ll be a rewarding experience for both high-school males and females attending.”
She adds that women’s contributions to STEM often concern creative ideas that may not be considered if the professions are male dominated.
“If we look at health care, for instance, the reality is a lot of the treatments that are available now for reproductive health [or] menopause, have only really become available because of input, research, and attention from female doctors,” Pann says.
“Being able to celebrate women who are making amazing strides in their own respective careers is so amazing. All of those efforts require acknowledgement, and that’s what we hope to do.”
For more information about the free event, which takes place from 1:30 to 3:30 pm, and to reserve a ticket, visit Eventbrite.
