Late winter and early spring at SWE were filled with focused energy and purpose — from celebrating Women’s History Month in March, to gaining a clearer understanding of COVID-19’s impact on women in STEM, April’s congressional visits, and more.
The annual State of Women in Engineering issue was released April 5 in a new digital format (https://magazine.swe.org), offering a print-on-demand option as well. In a typical year, copies of the State of Women in Engineering issue are left with the legislators’ offices following each congressional visit. With this year’s visits taking place virtually April 14–15, the link to the digital issue was included in the follow-up emails that thanked staffers and legislators for their time while restating SWE’s positions and legislative requests.
A key concern for women engineers and technologists — COVID-19’s impact on women and STEM — was addressed in both the State of Women in Engineering issue and in a Facebook Live event featuring SWE President Heather Doty and Roberta Rincon, Ph.D., SWE’s associate director of research. The two discussed the latest findings, including SWE’s research as well as research from the National Academies and other institutions, all of which were covered in the State of Women in Engineering issue. The Facebook Live event proved to resonate with a large swath of viewers, being among the top social media posts for the month.
As the spring months progressed, SWE was dismayed to see a rise in hate crimes against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. A statement condemning both recent acts of violence and the overall increase in hate crimes that have taken place against AAPI communities was released: https://bit.ly/33zTwPH
Reflecting SWE’s stated values of diversity, equity, and inclusion, the statement was a top post. As the statement concluded: “In times like this we are reminded of the Edmund Burke quote, made famous by John F. Kennedy, ‘The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.’ Let us all stand as good citizens by showing our support for the Asian American and Pacific Islanders in our SWE community and the global community. We are with you!”
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