2014 Miss America To Speak at College’s STEM Career Night
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Anthony Twyman
Assistant to the President for Communications 610-325-2816
(Delaware and Chester Counties, PA)—Miss America 2014 Nina Davuluri will be the keynote speaker at the College’s Seventh Annual STEM Career Night, which starts at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, February 12, in the Academic Building lobby at the Marple Campus, 901 South Media Line Road in Media.
The first Indian American to win the Miss America pageant in its 92-year history, Davuluri will speak about cultural diversity and the importance of students pursuing educational opportunities that lead to Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) careers. Davuluri, 24, a Dean’s List and National Honor Society alumna of the University of Michigan, plans to attend medical school and become a physician. Celebrating diversity through cultural competency is a key aspect of her Miss America platform.
“We are delighted that Miss America Nina Davuluri will visit the College,” said Delaware County Community College President Dr. Jerry Parker. “STEM education is essential to the nation’s future, which is why we opened a STEM Center in 2010 and have some of the best and brightest faculty teaching STEM subjects.”
Since winning the Miss America crown last September, Davuluri has traveled across the country visiting schools, posing for photos and being interviewed by media outlets, including CNN, Good Morning America, National Public Radio, Fox News and The Arsenio Hall Show. In January, she visited Atlantic City High School and spoke to students about cultural diversity and the importance of pursuing a STEM education.
Careers in STEM fields are expected to grow by 17 percent between 2008 and 2018, much faster than the 9.8 percent growth projected for non-STEM careers, according to a July 2011 U.S. Commerce Department report. STEM workers also command higher wages, earning 26 percent more than their non-STEM counterparts.
But women are “vastly underrepresented in STEM jobs and among STEM degree holders despite making up nearly half of the U.S. workforce and half of the college-educated workforce,” says another 2011 Commerce Department report entitled, “Women in STEM: A Gender Gap to Innovation.”
Minorities also are underrepresented in STEM fields. According to a September 2011 Commerce Department report entitled, “Education Supports Racial and Ethnic Equality in STEM,” 72 percent of STEM jobs are held by non-Hispanic Whites, which is close to their overall representation of 68 percent in the U.S. workforce. By contrast, non-Hispanic Asians make up 14 percent of all STEM workers, but are only 5 percent of the U.S. workforce; while non-Hispanic blacks and Hispanics each account for 6 percent of all STEM workers, but are 11 percent and 14 percent, respectively, of the overall U.S. workforce.
The College’s STEM Career Night will begin with a keynote speech from Davuluri followed by a panel presentation from current students enrolled in a STEM major. Later, attendees will be able to take a souvenir photo with Davuluri and meet with representatives from local employers, including Boeing, Brandywine CAD, Covanta, DePuy Synthes, Eastern Controls Inc., Environmental Resources Management, Flowers Baking Company, PECO Energy, Pennsylvania Machine Works Inc., the Society of Manufacturing Engineers, Southco, Unidec, UPS and Urban Engineers Inc.
Admissions staff from some of the College’s four-year partner schools, including Arcadia, Drexel, DeVry, Immaculata, Penn State and West Chester universities, will be on hand to offer guidance on how a student can graduate from Delaware County Community College and then transfer into a bachelor’s degree program.
Delaware County Community College offers more than 20 STEM majors, including architectural technology, CNC programming, electronics technology, engineering, and machining. The College’s commitment to STEM education includes a state-of-the-art STEM Complex, comprised of the Advanced Technology and STEM Centers, that gives students access to the tools and technology they need to succeed. The Complex includes more than 11 science laboratories and 12 specialized labs for customized education and training.
The STEM Career Night is free and open to anyone interested in learning about a career in the STEM fields. Those planning to attend can register online at www.dccc.edu/STEM-career-night, or call the College’s Admissions Office at 610-723-4000. The event is made possible in part by the generosity of Boeing and Visual Sound.
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