A little known fact about me: when I was a kid, I loved math. I wasn’t good at it, but I loved it. I liked that it made sense and that it was stable. There was something therapeutic about fixating on an equation and running the numbers until the problem was solved. My elementary school teachers encouraged me by sitting at my desk, working over each problem until they were sure I understood.
Then I went to high school. Our math teacher was a bully. He yelled. He screamed. He said I wasn’t any good. I fell out of love with numbers. That was all it took. One teacher.
I wish that I had stuck with it. I wish that I had taken to heart the words of encouragement my elementary school teachers had offered. I wish that I had the resources available to me that girls and students of color have available to them today…
Skip ahead to 2013, and it blows my mind to see so many women and people of color working in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math. Head nod to my son, who will be joining the ranks of STEM scholars this fall… But still, we have a long way to go to encourage our men and women that they can do more and be more than athletes and singers. They have the potential to be creators…
From 2~20 December, NPR’s Tell Me More is highlighting African Americans in technology with a “Day in the Life” series on Twitter. Using the hashtag #NPRBlacksinTech, these African American innovators in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics {STEM} are sharing what it’s like for them on an average day.
I created a board on Pinterest to share resources for young people interested in STEM as well as for those who are looking to launch their own businesses. Check it out by clicking here.
Do you have resources or tips you’d like to share? Leave a comment below.
