STEMForward Announces Excellence in STEM Awards Winners

Milwaukee, Wisconsin – October 15, 2020.  https://communityjournal.net/stemforward-announces-excellence-in-stem-awards-winners-tobe-recognized-at-the-17th-annual-systemnow-conference-focusing-on-equity-in-stem/ STEM Forward is thrilled to announce 2020 Excellence winners in STEM Awards, more commonly known as the Stemmy Awards. Help us congratulate the following:

• Education Category: Milwaukee School of Engineering for their k-12 outreach programs to improve the STEM competency of k-12 students in SE Wisconsin from engineering summer camps and coding opportunities to the creation of the WE Energies STEM Center on their campus. MSOE’s focus on supporting women and underserved populations will ensure that Milwaukee is a leader in inspiring and developing a diverse technology workforce that will benefit the entire community.
• Employer Category: Rexnord Corporation is a longtime supporter of  STEM, including FIRST and the creation and execution of the “Bridge to Business for Engineers Program,” an outreach program that takes input from Rexnord to identify skill gaps and how to be close those gaps, thus providing valuable input for future curriculum and better-prepared graduates.
• Individual Category: Joe Kmoch for his decades of leadership and advocacy at the local, state, and national levels to provide all students with access to computer science education. His involvement stretches wide across many schools and organizations.
• Partnership Category: Milwaukee School of Engineering & Argosy Foundation for the FIRST Ambassadors Program.  This initiative provides MSOE student mentors, materials, and expertise to enable twenty-five underserved K-12 schools in the city of Milwaukee to implement robotics education programs for their students.

  We will showcase the 2020 Stemmy Award Winners during our 17^th annual sySTEMnow Conference, which will be held virtually on Thursday, October 29. This is Metro Milwaukee’s premier STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) conference bringing together business leaders, community members, educators, and government officials to share best practices and lessons learned. This year’s theme is Equity in STEM, so join in the discussion as we exchange best practices from existing STEM programs and discuss the next steps to achieve equity in STEM.   We are pleased to announce that our keynote speaker is Dr. Calvin Mackie, an inspirational speaker, author, professor, entrepreneur, corporate consultant, and the founder and President of STEM NOLA. Based in New Orleans, STEM NOLA has a national reputation for implementing uniquely effective programs in serving underrepresented students in STEM.  He will kick off the conference with the topic of STEM: The 21st Century Social Equalizer! Following the keynote discussion, there will be six breakout sessions:

• Creating a Diverse STEM Workforce – Employer Perspectives
• How Many “Likes” Does it Take to Reach STEM Equity?
• Benefits of Cross-Curricular STEM Projects
• What Does a Regional Commitment to Local Tech Talent Development Look Like?
• STEM Education in a Time of Distance Learning
• Engaging Families and Communities to Ensure Equity in STEM Education 

To view a detailed agenda and learn more about sySTEMnow Conference, visit https://www.stemforward.org/systemnow-conference. To get the conversation started, read our most recent blog to learn about conversations with three prominent STEM leaders in Milwaukee and their thoughts on this topic: Patricia Contreras, Vice President of Global Affairs at Rockwell Automation, Kamela Clayton Goodwyn, Ph.D., Dean of STEM Academic and Career Pathway at MATC and Jilly Gokalgandhi, Strategic Partnerships Strategist at American Family Insurance. Don’t miss out; register for the sySTEMnow Conference today. We also encourage you to connect with STEM Forward on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.   Media contact: Maureen Haeger, mhaeger@stemforward.org, 414-322-1224 About STEM Forward STEM Forward is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and metro Milwaukee’s leading STEM education and outreach provider. STEM Forward’s programs, events, and activities inspire local youth to pursue STEM careers and provide a talent pipeline to businesses in southeastern Wisconsin.