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HeForSWE Spotlight: Collegiate Members and Sections

As a part of the HeForSWE Affinity Group’s spotlight month, SWE will be highlighting collegiate members, discussing their perspectives on allyship in STEM and how their sections are incorporating HeForSWE initiatives. In this article, we will feature Toni Sterling (Drexel University), David Novikov (Ohio State University), Luke Ciccone (Ohio State University), Ashmita Dandamudi (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign), and Tommy Carver (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign).
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Toni Sterling

HeForSWE Spotlight: Collegiate Members and Sections -

Toni Sterling is a third-year Pennoni Honors college student majoring in Mechanical Engineering, and pursuing a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering. She is the Drexel SWE Diversity and Inclusion director and an Honors Student Ambassador. Her interest in engineering stems from a fascination with problem solving, desire to learn more about the inner workings of mechanical devices, and the design and innovation of those products. She has completed two co-ops; one as a Mechanical Engineering Co-op at Crane Payment Innovations and another as a Injection Molding Engineering Co-op at NewAge Industries. Both positions related to her career interests in design and manufacturing engineering. In her free time, she likes to play tennis, read, and spend time with family and friends.

What does allyship mean to you?

Allyship to me means being a partner or friend and advocating for others. Allyship relies on compassion and understanding. Being a good ally requires someone to listen to another person’s problems or concerns and then choose to help enact change, whether it’s in a personal or work environment, or systemic.  

What actions have been implemented at your section and/or university?

Drexel has done a lot recently in terms of Diversity and Inclusion initiatives, in an effort to respond to students’ concerns about diversifying the College of Engineering. The college has a Drexel Engineering Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Committee that includes faculty and engineering organizations like SWE, NSBE, SASE, and SHPE. The committee meets on topics like discussing faculty training, possible courses on social and environmental justice into the curriculum, and hiring a more diverse array of faculty. The college also just hired a new Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Terrance Harris, to help promote DEI programs within Drexel’s engineering community.

Section Highlight: Drexel University HeForSWE

This past year Drexel SWE’s HeforSWE committee has hosted several events ranging from panel events to fun trivia nights. We started the year with a virtual HeforSWE Ambassadors workshop, where we provided them with general tips and SWE Advocacy modules and podcasts. During the event, we discussed topics like expanding the program’s outreach, how to be a good advocate in certain scenarios, and feedback on the structure of the ambassador program. After the event, we created a document to send out to the ambassadors that featured specific tips for student, faculty, and industry ambassadors. Another event held last year was a panel event the HeforSWE committee co-hosted with the Networking committee, titled “Ask Me Anything”. During the event SWE undergraduate, professional mentors, and HeforSWE ambassadors served as panelists and were asked questions about their experiences as an advocate and shared tips. The event was successful and informative for all the panelists and attendees. More recently we have hosted trivia nights, with one focusing on adversity women in STEM, academia, and the workplace face, and the other focusing on women’s history in STEM. This coming year, we are planning on recruiting more ambassadors and hosting more discussion based and light hearted events.

David Novikov

HeForSWE Spotlight: Collegiate Members and Sections -

David is a junior at Ohio State majoring in computer science and engineering with a minor in Russian. He plans on getting a PhD in computer science engineering in Machine Learning or Computer Vision. David is currently researching stroke detection and object tracking. He has interned with GE Appliances twice as a Software Engineering Co-op. David likes to rock climb, unicycle, and mountaineer. 

What does allyship mean to you?

For me, allyship is about providing opportunities for everyone to succeed and explore what interests them. The environment that we live and work in shapes our outcomes, so it is incredibly important that our environment is welcoming. I think the best thing I can do as an ally isn’t one specific action or goal, but a sustained and continuous effort. I think that one overlooked part of allyship is outreach. If we can get younger generations excited about engineering earlier it will result in stronger diversity at the college and career levels. My goal in SWE is not to have a sticker that says “I’m an ally”, but to consistently show up to events and volunteering.

Luke Ciccone

HeForSWE Spotlight: Collegiate Members and Sections -

Luke currently works as a graduate research associate at Ohio State pursuing a master’s degree with thesis in materials science and engineering. He has previously worked three summer internships with GE Aviation and begins full-time in their Edison Engineering Development Program starting July 2022. Luke has an interest in developing high-performance structural and electronic materials for use in the aviation industry. Throughout school and internships he has been involved in STEM outreach with Girl Scouts and similar summer camps. Outside of work, Luke enjoys hiking, playing guitar, and watching hockey.

What does allyship mean to you?

Allyship for me is a natural step towards bettering myself as a person and helping those around me who may not share the same privileges as I do. At a minimum, I want to be well-informed and understand the background and hardships that others have endured. This foundation of empathy then allows me to support and advocate for women in engineering. This support is important for creating and sustaining an equal and welcoming work environment for women. In turn, this promotes diversity of thought in the workplace and allows everyone to play an important role in the team regardless of background. STEM outreach to the next generation of engineers is also critical in fostering a diverse and equal workforce of the future. To me, allyship means empowering current women engineers and encouraging the upcoming generations of women engineers.

Section Highlight: Ohio State University HeForSWE

HeForSWE Spotlight: Collegiate Members and Sections -

The Ohio State University HeForSWE section has been implementing more HeForSWE events such as hangouts and a recruitment raffle. The purpose of events like hangouts is to provide an easy way for people to drop in and learn about allyship and the SWE organization. The recruitment raffle is a fun way for people in SWE to reach out to their male classmates and peers to encourage them to join HeForSWE. We are also presenting slides about male allyship at our university’s SWE mini-conference. The talk is focused on the importance of and expectations for male allies in SWE.

 

Ashmita Dandamudi

HeForSWE Spotlight: Collegiate Members and Sections -

Ashmita is a junior studying civil engineering with a focus on construction management and structural engineering. In the future, her goal is to be a project manager and work in vertical structures preferably in major cities.

What does allyship mean to you?

Allyship to me is being able to support others however I can. Whether that is listening or just being there, allyship is something where I can try my best at making sure everyone in the room feels like they belong and can have a voice.

Tommy Carver

HeForSWE Spotlight: Collegiate Members and Sections -

Tommy is a senior studying Computer Science with a minor in Technology and Management at the University of Illinois. After he graduates in May, Tommy will be working as a Software Engineer at Aviatrix, a multi-cloud networking company. While Tommy loves programming, he loves working with and managing people more, so he hopes to quickly move into management and leadership positions!

What does allyship mean to you?

To me, allyship means learning, listening, being vulnerable, and having empathy/sympathy. Being open to learning and listening to what people and resources have to say, while simultaneously opening yourself up to the idea of growth and the experiences of others is what allyship is to me.

Section Highlight: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign SWE

Our section has worked extremely hard in discovering ways in which we can be a beneficial resource to not only SWE, but the university community at large. Aiming our efforts at the entire engineering community, we’ve been able to collaborate, assist, and work with numerous other engineering organizations to improve their own work in becoming better allies and advocates in the world. Numerous organizations have reached out to us about struggles in regards to lack of female involvement and what they can do to improve. Working with these organizations has given us a chance to address some of the problems with gender in engineering at its core, trying to raise awareness to existing problems and start the process of allyship in people that previously had zero clue or just didn’t care. Additionally, we’ve been able to collaborate with companies to gain insight into the process of what allyship looks like in the workforce, as well as the reality of the difficulties and failures that people face. Our section has worked hard at trying to normalize failure and increase uncomfortable discussion, as we believe this is the best way to develop the mindsets and skills needed to be allies.

We have started to work with the college more directly and help out other groups within engineering on allyship. We are currently working on a survey to help the college and groups on campus better understand the diversity in participation. Our goals include bringing to light allyship to members of Illinois that would not usually care about it and provide students with being an ally now and in the future. We have also been working with companies and professors who are pushing for allyship and lifting up gender minority voices in engineering. In the future, our goal is to gain a wider audience and provide a variety of events as well.

David is a junior at Ohio State majoring in computer science and engineering with a minor in Russian. He plans on getting a PhD in computer science engineering in Machine Learning or Computer Vision. David is currently researching stroke detection and object tracking. He has interned with GE Appliances twice as a Software Engineering Co-op. David likes to rock climb, unicycle, and mountaineer. 

What does allyship mean to you?

For me, allyship is about providing opportunities for everyone to succeed and explore what interests them. The environment that we live and work in shapes our outcomes, so it is incredibly important that our environment is welcoming. I think the best thing I can do as an ally isn’t one specific action or goal, but a sustained and continuous effort. I think that one overlooked part of allyship is outreach. If we can get younger generations excited about engineering earlier it will result in stronger diversity at the college and career levels. My goal in SWE is not to have a sticker that says “I’m an ally”, but to consistently show up to events and volunteering.

 

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