100+ Women Strong
A marginal lack of female representation in STEM and many other fields remains a challenge at many institutions – one with downstream consequences that lead to short fallen career growth, readiness, and access to post-grad job security for our female populations. Here at The Beach, we have worked extensively to change this narrative for the generations ahead.
This past academic year, the College of Engineering’s expansive efforts at the Beach Women in Engineering Conference exemplified these efforts. The event convened over 150 students from CSULB, local community colleges, and high schools to connect with over 60 industry pioneers. A 100+ Women Strong initiative, the conference expanded learning opportunities and career support for future engineers.
Thanks to CSULB’s partnerships with local industries, attendees were encouraged to embrace their engineering identity and develop a growth mindset around personal and professional success. The annual conference continues to expedite our goal of reaching equitable representation and the opportunity to launch the next generation of engineers at a more rapid pace than competing institutions.
In the same vein, an initiative aimed at expanding access to career readiness, resources, and support for our Asian-American and Native-American Pacific Islander students launched this past year in the College of Engineering. Three faculty were awarded the ASCEND: AANAPI Student Success & Development program grant, a $1.5 million, 5-year award from the US Department of Education that benefits 2,000 AANAPI STEM students on our campus who come from underserved backgrounds.
ASCEND’s goal to foster a supportive and inclusive environment that allows all campus individuals to actively engage in academic achievement and social justice proudly aligns with our strategic endeavors to address the unique needs and strengths of our students. Our vision of access caters to student needs as a guide for instructional and career-based approaches. Through this initiative, we aim to improve the STEM student graduation rate by offering academic and living support, encourage STEM student life-long success by integrating future-based career, professional, and leadership development workshops, and improve our campus climate on diversity, equity, inclusion, and access (DEIA) with active DEIA workshops for our AANAPI campus populations. Between 2022 and 2027, the grant will supply an influx of eclectic scholarships, tutoring, and DEIA training for students, staff, and faculty.
Expanding opportunities for learning and research experiences, as well as career support, is a tenet of our mission at The Beach to increase access for our campus constituents. The College of Engineering has taken meaningful steps to open doors to new learning and career opportunities, paving the way to boost social mobility and set up students for lifelong success.
