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SWE Public Policy Activities
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| Educational Efforts | |
| July 21, 2009: The House Committee on Science and Technology Subcommittee on Research and Science Education held a hearing entitled, "Encouraging the Participation of Women in STEM Fields." Ms. Barbara Bogue, Co-Founder and Co-Director of the SWE Assessing Women and Men in Engineering (AWE) Project, testified on behalf of SWE. Ms. Bogue provided an overview of the SWE AWE project, including the metrics and methodologies used to assess and evaluate the effectiveness of programs designed to increase girls participation in STEM, and also spoke about her experiences as head of the Women in Engineering program at Pennsylvania State University. More information about the hearing can be found here. | |
| June 23, 2009: Betty Shanahan, SWE Executive Director and CEO, attended a White House roundtable commemorating the 37th anniversary of Title IX. Speakers included: Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett, Education Secretary Arne Duncan, and an all-star line-up of women athletes and scientists, including Billie Jean King and Dominique Dawes. In addition to the roundtable participants, 30 local high school girls were in the audience. The White House YouTube video of the roundtable can be found here. | |
| May 20, 2009: SWE co-sponsored a briefing entitled, "Bringing Innovative Computing Curricula Across the Digital Divide." The primary sponsor was the Association of Computing Machinery (ACM), and the other co-sponsors included: Microsoft, the Computing Research Association, Computer Science Teachers Association, IEEE-USA, and the National Center for Women and Information Technology. The briefing was held in conjunction with the House STEM Education Caucus and the Congressional Black Caucus, and approximately 70 people attended the event, including key Congressional staff. More information about the briefing can be found here. |
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| April 28-29, 2009: Eleven SWE leaders participated in the 2009 Science Engineering and Technology Congressional Visits Day (CVD), which SWE co-sponsored. Twenty-one Congressional visits were conducted with the leaders' local Members of Congress (House and Senate) and/or their staff. In addition, SWE President Virginia Connolly, P.E. was one of the principals who participated in a CVD press conference with the Congressional Research and Development Caucus Co-Chairs. As the only diversity group co-sponsoring CVD, the focus of SWE President Connolly's message was the need for U.S. commitment to a more diverse and inclusive U.S. workforce, which can help fuel innovation. More information about SWE's participation in CVD 2009 can be found in the June 2009 Washington Spotlight and in the SWE Public Policy Community. |
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| February 24, 2009: SWE held a Congressional briefing in conjunction with the House Diversity and Innovation Caucus entitled, "The Dearth of Women in Academic Science and Engineering: Proactive Strategies for Improvement." More than 100 representatives from Congressional offices, federal agencies, nongovernmental organizations, industry, and academia attended the event, and SWE President Virginia Connolly, P.E. served as moderator. More information about the briefing can be found here. | |
| November 7, 2008: During WE08, the SWE Government Relations and Public Policy (GRPP) Committee held a breakout session entitled, “SWE Public Policy and You: How to Communicate with Congress.” The session discussed SWE’s current public policy goals and activities, and how individual SWE members can get involved. Then the session provided attendees with an overview of how to communicate with Congress and discussed other opportunities in Washington, D.C. More information, including speaker presentations, can be found on the SWE Public Policy Community. |
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| September 18, 2008: Patricia Eng, P.E., member of the SWE Government Relations and Public Policy Committee, testified before the National Academies’ Committee on Women in Science, Engineering, and Medicine (CWSEM) during their “From Doctorate to Dean or Director: Sustaining Women through Critical Transition Points in Science, Engineering, and Medicine.” SWE’s testimony focused primarily on the major finding of the SWE retention study, which dealt with STEM industry retention for women. Ms. Eng’s testimony can be found in the SWE Public Policy Community. |
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| August 29, 2008: A joint AWIS-SWE letter was sent to the two Presidential candidates, Senators Barack Obama (D-IL) and John McCain (R-AZ), which asked the candidates seven specific questions on their views on issues related to women in science and engineering. Both candidates have recently responded. View a side-by-side comparison of their responses. | |
| July 23, 2008: SWE hosted an evening reception in honor of the House Diversity and Innovation (D&I) Caucus, recognizing their efforts over the past year. At this reception, SWE presented its first-ever President’s award to Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX) for her work to ensure a diverse and inclusive STEM workforce. Additional information can be found here. |
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| May 21, 2008: SWE FY 2008 President Michelle Tortolani spoke in support of the "Enhancing Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Act of 2008" at the bill's introductory press conference held by Representative Mike Honda (D-CA). Photos from the press conference and Tortolani's remarks are now available for your review. image1; image2; Tortolani's Remarks | |
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February 28, 2008: SWE responds to House Diversity and Innovation Caucus questions related to what barriers women and under-represented groups face entering the STEM workforce, what institutional policies or practices are in place that can mitigate these challenges, and what Congress and the federal government can do to promote and ensure a more favorable environment. |
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October 18, 2007: SWE held a Congressional briefing in conjunction with the House Diversity and Innovation Caucus entitled, “The Leaky Science and Engineering Pipeline: How Can We Retain More Women in Academia and Industry?” Summary of Congressional Briefing: October 18, 2007 |
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June 28, 2007: SWE held a Congressional Briefing entitled, “The Importance of the Diversity Issue to the Competitiveness and Innovation Debate.” The briefing was the inaugural opportunity for attendees to hear from members of the new Congressional Diversity and Innovation Caucus. Summary of Congressional Briefing: June 28, 2007 |
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June 19, 2007: Testimony of SWE Past President Margaret Edith Layne, P.E., to the House Education and Labor Subcommittee on Higher Education, Life Long Learning, and Competitiveness. The hearing was entitled, “Building on the Success of Thirty-Five Years of Title IX,” and Layne’s testimony discussed the relationship of Title IX, its impact in the past 35 years and the discrimination still existing in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields.
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February 28, 2007: SWE held a roundtable discussion on the topic of gender equity in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields at the National Academies. Thirty-eight representatives from twenty-two science and engineering professional organizations and women’s groups were in attendance. Roundtable Summary |
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September 26, 2006: SWE held a Congressional Briefing in conjunction with both the House STEM Education Caucus and the Congressional Caucus for Women’s Issues entitled, “Are More Women and Diversity Needed in the STEM Workforce?” Summary of Congressional Briefing: September 26, 2006 |
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February 21, 2006: During Engineers Week 2006, SWE held a Congressional Briefing in conjunction with the House STEM Education Caucus entitled, “ Strengthening the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Workforce: Connecting Educators to Engineering” Summary of Congressional Briefing: February 21, 2006 |
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