Twitter Chat a Powerful Tool Toward STEM Equity

Twitter Chat a Powerful Tool Toward STEM Equity

The STEM Council’s operations team strives to employ a variety of tactics in striving for equity in Iowa STEM education and building bright futures for all Iowa students. On behalf of the STEM Council, earlier this month the operations team hosted a Twitter Chat to share perspectives and ideas for serving the underserved in STEM education.

Participants expressed universal commitment that STEM is for ALL, however one size does not fit all students. Getting to know students, meeting them where they are and helping them persevere can lead to a stronger education. As one participant shared, “It’s not a race, it’s a journey. There are multiple routes.”

There were many great responses and contributions to the STEM Twitter Chat. Some other takeaways include:

  • Focusing on students who struggle to find someone who looks like them in STEM fields.
  • Racial and ethnic minorities make up only five percent of the STEM workforce, fields that provide growing economic opportunities.
  • Identifying barriers to participation.
  • Identifying opportunities to connect underserved students to role models and mentors.
  • Encouraging a “give it a try” approach.
  • Continuing to educate key stakeholders including parents, employers and educators on why it’s critical to improve our support for underserved students in STEM, and how.

The STEM Council welcomes suggestions and additional thoughts by emailing info@iowastem.gov.

Join us every second Tuesday of the month at 8:00 PM for future STEM Twitter Chats. More information and archived chat can be found at IowaSTEM.gov/iastemchat-archives.

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