The Computer Science Office at LCPS hosted its’ final internship for the school year on May 19, 2021. During the internship fair, LCPS high school interested in Computer Science were able to attend sessions where they learned about internships being offered this summer and two career readiness sessions.
At one of our career readiness sessions, we had four panelists ( 3 professions and 1 student) who shared with our students about their experiences being women and being interested in STEM. Panelists answered a series of questions and we wanted to share the panelists’ response to these two questions.
Student Question: What are your next steps in both your academic and career path?
LCPS Student Sanjitha Prabakaran’s Response: “After high school, I would love to go to a 4-year university, preferably with great Computer Science and Entrepreneurship programs. What I am most excited about for college is to have the opportunity to learn about everything so cybersecurity, marketing, fashion, and design classes are all in my plans. After college, it would be great to get some industry experience at a technology company. But eventually, if the opportunity presents itself, I hope to found a company solving relevant and timely issues using technology. What exactly those solutions are, only time will tell!”
Non-student question: How do you see the STEM world-changing as more women obtain more leadership roles in the field?
Panelist Tobie Juleau’s Response:
“As women obtain more leadership roles in the field, I see more girls and women choosing to join those fields as well. I envision that younger generations will develop an interest earlier and earlier in their development as they see “someone like me” doing things that they may not have originally been encouraged to pursue. I see those technology fields becoming less intimidating as women project their natural tendency to nurture and guide others through their fields of expertise. I believe that everyone, not just women, will benefit from the cheerleader who is willing to support and grow the whole team collaboratively rather than in competition.
Of course, this ideal situation occurs when we have leaders who are willing to stand firm to change their environment, rather than changing themselves to fit the environment. This is why we have to remember to establish boundaries and refuse to let someone tell us who we can or can’t be; instead, go tell the world exactly who you are.”
Panelist Kara Bane’s Response:
“Personally, I’m already seeing this shift and it’s been awesome to witness. My early experience in this field was to see men in all positions, both leadership and non-leadership. Then things started to shift where more of my counterparts became women. Now, in my current role, the Director of my group is a woman, my two counterpart Supervisors are women, and a majority of the Analysts and Developers in our group are women.
I think this shift will help young women to visualize themselves in these types of roles in their own future. More women transitioning to leadership roles will provide examples of potential paths to follow and will hopefully help connect young aspiring STEM students with those with more experience, just like we were able to accomplish in the panel. Ultimately, I hope that this shift leads to more women entering and remaining in this field.”
If you are interested in participating in any future LCPS Computer Science events, please contact Mrs. Kristina Lee, kristina.lee@lcps.org and ways to get involved.