Picture a Scientist Week to highlight diversity, equity in STEM beginning Feb. 6
Picture a Scientist Week, jointly sponsored by the Eberly College of Science and College of Earth and Mineral Sciences, will feature events focused on celebrating diversity and equity in the STEM fields in conjunction with Black History Month. Virtual events will begin on Feb. 6 and will continue through Feb. 16.
Image: Penn State
Picture a Scientist Week to highlight diversity, equity in STEM beginning Feb. 6
January 27, 2021
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. Just under half of the workforce in the United States are women yet they hold only 26% of the jobs in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Underrepresentation is even more pronounced in Black or African Americans, and Hispanic or Latinx who comprise only 7% and 9% of the STEM jobs, respectively.
University Park and nine other Commonwealth Campuses across the state will host events, according to Penn State.
At University Park, events like the Selma March incentive will run the entirety of February. The annual event is sponsored by Campus Recreation and encourages people to get out and run, bike, or walk 54 miles over the course of the month to represent the length of the marches from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama in March 1965.
Other events over the course of the month will include keynote speakers like Nikolas Gaines, Myron Floyd, Johnathan Jones, and other prominent members of the Black community. Those will take place via Zoom.
Feb. 22, at 4:30 p.m., via Zoom (register) Being Black in Bridgerton: An Examination of Race, Colorism, and Stereotyping, hosted by the Gender Equity Center. The hit Netflix series Bridgerton has been praised for its casting of Black characters in the roles of English royals, nobles, aristocrats and tradespeople. However, when we examine the characters and their storylines, is such casting as progressive as it seems on the surface? Join us for clips of the series and a discussion of race, colorism and stereotyping, and the impact on the storylines of the people of color in the series.
Feb. 23, at 7:30 p.m., online