STEM-ING

APPROACH:

STEM-ING will host an annual 1-day STEM event to execute the mission.

STEM-ING (Inspiring the Next Generation): An annual event empowering Southern Maryland middle school girls through Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics education. 2023 STEM-ING Volunteer Registration Link:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2023-stem-ing-volunteer-registration-tickets-504563562197

OUR MISSION:

The mission of the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics— Inspiring

the Next Generation (STEM-ING) is to heighten the awareness of STEM and STEM related careers in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade girls through fun, practical hands-on approaches. OUR OBJECTIVES:

- Instill the vision that STEM and STEM related careers are enjoyable and achievable.
- Introduce girls to applications in STEM careers.
- Encourage girls to pursue higher level math and science.
- Expose girls to positive STEM mentors and role models to show that they can succeed in STEM related fields.
- Connect students from various schools with similar goals and expand the student network. The primary goals will be achieved through fun, educational, hands-on workshops led mainly by women working in the STEM related fields. Additional elements such as keynote and guest speakers consisting of prominent female STEM leaders from the community and STEM facility tours may be used in conjunction with the workshops. Our goal is to select workshops that represents as many STEM areas as possible to maximize students exposure to various STEM fields and empower them to be creative and innovative in the future.

05/31/2024

Wow, how amazing was STEM-ING 2024?! A huge THANK YOU to all of the STEM-ING 2024 participants, volunteers, Keynote Speakers, Wonder Women, our Core Team, and who all made this year’s event amazing!! STEM-ING is a completely volunteer-run, locally-sponsored event that would not be possible without all of you. THANK YOU and see you in 2025!!

05/17/2024

We are so excited to see you TOMORROW for STEM-ING 2024!! We hope you arrive ready for a day full of STEM workshops, role models, and inspiration at !!

05/16/2024

Introducing STEM-ING 2024 Keynote Speaker: Ms. Nicole Carlisle
Nicole Carlisle graduated from Penn State Behrend in 2010 with a major in Physics and minor in Mathematics. During college she was a research assistant for multiple professors, teaching assistant for classes and labs, tutor for physics and math, and was on leadership teams for multiple clubs. She also had summer research efforts and was able to work in Germany for one of those summers. She started working at the Patuxent River Naval Air Station in 2011 in the Nondestructive Inspection (NDI) engineering group. She has worked across aircraft acquisition, research efforts, and fleet involvement work. In 2023 she became a Team Lead in her group, and in 2024, added an additional duty as the Program Manager for technical fleet support within her Department. Her career has allowed her to work on almost all aircraft within the USN/USMC and work directly with various military professionals. Her hobbies include a range of activities including; reading, music, hiking, gardening, water coloring and playing board games. Her love of science has extended into many of her hobbies such as cheese making and aerial arts which tend to turn into experiments on chemistry and physics. She aspires to always think like a kid - always looking for the joy and wonderment all around - and hopes to have many more adventures with her family and friends.

05/15/2024

Introducing STEM-ING 2024 Wonder Woman: Dr. Carmen R. Carland
My passion for knowledge and medicine has led me on a fun and interesting journey in research where my main objective has been to positively affect the health of mankind. I have extensively worked with fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster) though I also possess a broader skillset that I have been able to put to use in a drug discovery setting. My outgoing personality and team spirit have allowed me to positively contribute to work environments. I obtained my Doctorate of Podiatric Medicine from Kent State University College of Podiatric Medicine in 2023, and am currently completing my surgical training at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation. Beyond this, I am also an online science instructor and help underserved communities through volunteering.

05/14/2024

Introducing STEM-ING 2024 Wonder Woman: Commander Lauren Lawson, USNR
CDR Lauren Lawson, a native of Frederick, Maryland earned her commission through ROTC at Virginia Tech. Following commissioning in June 2003, she completed flight training and was designated a Naval Aviator in December 2004 at NAS Corpus Christi, Texas. She completed P-3C FRS training at Patrol Squadron Thirty in November 2005 at NAS Jacksonville, Florida.

CDR Lawson’s operational tours include: Patrol Squadron Four (VP-4), Kaneohe Bay, Marine Corps Base Hawaii where she deployed to Diego Garcia, Clark Air Base, Philippines, Kadena and Misawa, Japan in 2007. Following this tour she reported to Commander, Task Force- Fifty Seven (CTF-57), Manama, Bahrain in October 2008. Additional active duty tours include Physical Education Instructor at the United States Naval Academy (USNA) in Annapolis, Maryland.

After separating from active duty service in 2012, CDR Lawson affiliated with the Navy Reserve and was assigned to Navy Reserve Maritime Operations Center Detachment 301 (NR MOCDET 301), supporting the Current Operations Division of Commander U.S. Pacific Fleet, as the Sensitive Reconnaissance Operations (SRO) Action Officer. In 2015 she was then assigned to Navy Reserve Strategic Command Joint Electronic Warfare Center (NR STRATCOM JEWC) in San Antonio, Texas as the Executive Officer. While there she completed a nine-month mobilization to the Combined Air Operations Center (CAOC) at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar as Chief of Special Instructions (SPINS). CDR Lawson was then assigned to Unmanned Patrol Squadron Nineteen, Squadron Augment Unit (VUP-19 SAU) as the BAMS-D Training Officer where she completed multiple one-year mobilizations to NAS Patuxent River, Maryland in support of Broad Area Maritime Surveillance-Demonstrator (BAMS-D) as a Mission Commander. She is currently assigned to Navy Reserve, Naval Air Systems Command, Headquarters (NR NAVAIR HQ) yet currently recalled to active duty to Air Test and Evaluation Squadron Two Four (UX-24) as the Government Flight Test Director (GFTD) for the MQ-9 program.

CDR Lawson holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications with a minor in Leadership. Her awards include the Meritorious Service Medal, Joint Service Commendation Medal, multiple Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medals, and various other military, unit and personal awards.

05/13/2024

Introducing STEM-ING 2024 Wonder Woman: Ms. Diana Elizondo, Ph.D.
Diana Elizondo was born in Texas and grew up in Mexico. Her interest in biomedicine began during childhood, while experiencing the negative outcomes of untreated metabolic diseases, disproportionately affecting her Hispanic community. She attended University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, where she had her first biomedical research exposure studying obesity, as part of the Minority Biomedical Research Support (MBRS)-Research Initiative for Scientific Enhancement (RISE) Program and continued her training at Howard University PhD’s program in Cell and Molecular Biology with a concentration in immunology, studying Type 1 Diabetes. As part of her training in metabolic disparities, she further invested in postdoctoral training efforts at University of Michigan to immerse herself into the world of Obesity and Type 2 Diabetes. In particular, she aimed to discover how the immune system gets offroad to positively contribute to appearance of metabolic dysfunction in Diabetes. Currently, Dr. Elizondo continues to build her training in immunometabolism as a postdoctoral fellow at the National Institute of Health, where she delineates the role of immune cells in obesity-associated inflammation and metabolic dysfunction. She aims to develop skills and practices to bolster the identification, recruitment, retention of underrepresented minority students, and foster an all-inclusive environment to maximize student success outcomes.

05/10/2024

Introducing STEM-ING 2024 Wonder Woman: Ms. Megan Soly
Born and raised in the northern panhandle of West Virginia, Megan never imagined being a teacher would be her career. As she got older, her mother would comment “no matter what you do in life you want to be happy, be able to take care of yourself, and you never want to be a teacher.” And so, Megan never thought of pursuing a career in education during high school or even college.

Megan graduated high school as one of the valedictorians of her class; when asked what she was going to do with the rest of her life, teaching and science were definitely at the bottom of her list. To her science class was a place where you read a book and answered questions about what you read, with an occasional dissection or two. If that’s what science was like in the real world then she wanted nothing to do with it. And as her mom would say “...you never want to be a teacher.”

Still not knowing what to do, Megan settled on pre-pharmacy as a major and attended West Virginia University her first year of college. Within the first year at WVU she knew that school and chosen profession did not suit her, so she moved back home and attended a smaller college, West Liberty University. West Liberty brought to life the sciences; the professors were extremely knowledgeable and passionate about their contents, and the school had many opportunities for students to do science. It was here where Megan’s passion for science blossomed. She majored in Biology, even though she was unsure of how to use such a general degree. It wasn’t until her advisor approached her, days before graduation, and commented that Megan would make a great teacher. All she could think of was those resounding words, “...you never want to be a teacher.”

Two months after graduating college, Megan and her (now) husband moved to Southern Maryland. She began working with Shah Associates as a lab technician and enjoyed learning about how to test patient samples, decipher the meaning of the results, train other employees on how to collect samples, and fix the equipment when errors occurred. At one point, Megan decided to take on a long-term substitute position at Benjamin Banneker Elementary School teaching 3rd graders during the day while working nights at the lab. Never in a million years did Megan think she would enjoy this job, because remember, “you never want to be a teacher.” This position was to help her save more money for her upcoming wedding, nothing more. Little did she know, this was a turning point in Megan’s life. There is nothing more rewarding than seeing the excitement on students’ faces when realizing they understood a concept - a concept she helped them learn - and knowing it’s not “impossible.” From here on out her mindset changed to, “I do want to be a teacher.” And so, her three years of working at Shah Associates came to an end in order to pursue a teaching career with St. Mary’s County Public Schools. Megan went back to school and received a teaching certificate in Secondary Biology and Middle School Math.

Megan’s first teaching position was at Little Flower School. Her persistence to be competitive with other local parochial schools brought the Algebra program to LFS for the 8th graders who were ready for an academic challenge. She also began the STEM program, which was offered to students from PreK through 8th grade, during the 2017-2018 school year. Megan had the honor of taking a Robotics Team to the state competition, who placed 2nd for Creative Presentation Category, as well as accompanying a student to the state Mathcounts Competition. During her eight years at Little Flower she taught middle school math & science, Algebra, and STEM.

Her next four years were spent teaching physical science to the 8th graders at Spring Ridge Middle School. Here she was the department chair for three years and was awarded the St. Mary’s County SMECO Science Teacher Award in 2022. In addition, she earned a Master’s Degree in Leadership in Teaching from the College of Notre Dame of Maryland in 2020.

Currently, Megan teaches 8th grade math and Algebra at Leonardtown Middle School and is the chair for the math department.

When Megan is not teaching she enjoys making shirts with her Cricut machine, reading biographies and memoirs (two of her favorites are Radium Girls and Rocket Boys), and above all spending time with her three children and wonderful husband.

05/08/2024

Introducing STEM-ING 2024 Wonder Woman: Ms. Margot Paz
Margot Paz is a distinguished IT professional with a proven track record of success in government. Her exceptional educational background includes a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from Marymount University and a Master of Science in Information Systems from George Washington University. She is currently pursuing a Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) in Business Intelligence and demonstrates a continuous commitment to professional development. Margot launched her career at the Department of Agriculture, demonstrating excellence in quality assurance, systems analysis, and project management. Her contributions significantly improved software application quality and efficiency. She excels at the USPTO Patent and Trademark Office as a Project Manager, Product Owner, and Scrum Master. In these roles, Margot consistently drives the refinement of application software development and management, showcasing her ability to lead complex IT projects to successful outcomes. With over 16 years of experience, Margot is recognized as a visionary IT professional in the government sector. Her expertise in quality assurance, analysis, project management, product ownership, and agile methodologies has fueled the advancement of numerous software projects. Her leadership and technical skills make her a highly valued asset within her field.

05/06/2024

Introducing STEM-ING 2024 Wonder Woman: Ms. Lo**ta D. Tyler, RNC-OB
Lo**ta Tyler is a registered nurse with a certification specialty in obstetrics. She currently and for the past nineteen years works with the Department of the Navy as a manager and provider in a maternal-child instructional program. Prior to her current position, she served as a nurse and retired from the U.S. Air Force (AF). During her Air Force tenure, she held various positions that included Nurse Manager of the Maternal-Child Obstetric unit at Andrews Air Force Base (AFB), Assistant Nurse Manager at MacDill (AFB), and the Women’s Health Clinic at Bitburg Air Base Germany.

Lo**ta grew up and attended public schools in Baltimore, Maryland. She always loved and was fascinated with science, biology and especially the human body. Since she was very young, she aspired a career in medicine. Lo**ta graduated from Southern High School in Baltimore with high honors. She received a scholarship from St. Augustine’s University in Raleigh, NC. Lo**ta majored in Pre-Medicine/Biology and participated in Army Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC). She decided to explore career opportunities in the Army as an officer perceiving various available fields relating to medical and science. Upon graduation, Lo**ta received her BS degree in Pre-Med/Biology, and as a Distinguished Military Graduate, commissioned as a Second Lieutenant, the US Army. In addition, she was selected among the first African-American females in the Army Transportation Corps as aviation helicopter pilots.

After completion of trainings, her plans were to serve jointly with her Army Lieutenant spouse with the aspiration of becoming a medical evacuation pilot. After months of trainings including the Transportation Officer Basic School, Lo**ta decided to change her plans of becoming an aviator when she realized she was to become a mother. She joined her spouse at Ft. Bragg, NC where she started her career in the Army as a transportation (semi-trailer trucks) platoon leader. She was in a predominately male organization nevertheless, exceeded expectations as a female officer, African-American, and new mother. She worked hard and was eager to gain experiences and skills as an effective leader. Her attributes were recognized during the Command Inspector General’s inspection and she shortly was assigned as the Executive Officer for the Company. Lo**ta’s next assignment was at Ft Jackson, SC. Her first position was the assistant Training Officer for the Command Training Brigade. Shortly afterwards, she was exclusively selected to become the Base’s Equal Opportunity (EO) Officer and was sent for a four-month schooling at the Defense Equal Opportunity Management Institute, Patrick AFB, FL. After completion and returning to Ft. Ft Jackson as the EO, she completely developed the Base’s EO program from scratch. In addition, she and innovatively formulated and implemented various programs providing and facilitating impartiality and awareness for people regardless of disparities. Lo**ta’s accomplishments and EO program was cited during the Command’s Inspection as the best in the Army’s Training and Doctrine Command, and a model for the U.S. Army.

Lo**ta nevertheless, desired to pursue what she felt as a “calling” in the medical field. While pursuing Master’s degree possibilities, she discovered an accelerated, BS Nursing degree program. She applied, realizing the numerous opportunities in medicine that had expanded in nursing. While finishing her last semester, she met an AF Nurse recruiter who enlightened her of various AF nursing specialty schools. Lo**ta thus, transferred from the Army and received a commossion in the USAF as a nurse officer. She served in numerous rewarding positions, honing various skill and embraced many exciting experiences. Lo**ta retired at Andrews AFB in 2006 after a total of 25 years in Military Service. Shortly after retirement, she accepted her current position as the New Parent Support Program Manager at NAS Patuxent River, Maryland. Lo**ta is also active in her community and volunteered in programs including serving as a St. Mary’s County CASA, Care Net Pregnancy Center Client Advocate, Nurse Ministry officer/provider at (First Missionary Baptist Church), and numerous NAS Patuxent River programs supporting prenatal families and young children.

05/01/2024

Introducing STEM-ING 2024 Wonder Woman: Ms. Cerise Woodard
Cerise Woodard is a graduate of Takoma Academy followed by Southern Adventist University where she studied Nursing.

Cerise has spent 20 plus years as a Registered Nurse and has helped an innumerable number of patients throughout her long career in multiple specialties such as Oncology, Cardiac Surgery, Preoperative Testing, Referral Specialist, Care Management, Urgent Care and is a certified Forensic Nurse Examiner. Cerise enjoys working as a nurse and helping members of her community.

Cerise’s goal is to work within the community spreading awareness about violence such as Assault, Abuse, and Human Trafficking. Cerise wants to be in position to help survivors of violence and free those who are captive.

04/30/2024

Sharing our LAST workshop sneak peek for STEM-ING 2024: the “Know Your Blood Type: Learn Your As, Bs and Os” Workshop!
During medical procedures such as surgery, it can be critical for doctors and nurses to know the patient’s blood type. In this workshop, you’ll learn the biomedical science of different blood types and also learn some basics about blood transfusions and blood donations. Then you’ll have a chance to analyze samples of synthetic blood to determine its type and make decisions like you are a doctor or nurse!
Stay tuned for more posts featuring this year’s STEM-ING Wonder Women and Keynote Speakers before the big event on May 18th! There is still time for students to register too - follow the links in our Facebook event and bio to register today!!

04/24/2024

We’re getting closer to STEM-ING 2024 and sharing some of the final few sneak peeks of what students will get to participate in at this year’s event. Today’s sneak peek is the “Gettin’ Rusty” Workshop!
Rusty, crusty, it’s all kind of yucky, right? What exactly is going on when something corrodes, rusts, and gets all orange? In this workshop, you’ll learn what kind of work the Navy does to address rust on ships and aircraft. Then, you’ll get to watch a nail rust before your very eyes in a special “bath” – watch out for splashes!
STEM-ING 2024 is less than a month away!! Register now at the link in our bio or Facebook event!!

Address

47645 College Drive
St. Marys City, MD
20686

Website

http://www.stem-ing.org/, https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2024-stem-ing-volunteer-registration-tickets-795469539807, https:

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when STEM-ING posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The School

Send a message to STEM-ING:

Want your school to be the top-listed School/college in St. Marys City?

Our Story

OUR MISSION: The mission of the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics— Inspiring the Next Generation (STEM-ING) is to heighten the awareness of STEM and STEM related careers in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade girls through fun, practical hands-on approaches. OUR OBJECTIVES: - Instill the vision that STEM and STEM related careers are enjoyable and achievable. - Introduce girls to applications in STEM careers. - Encourage girls to pursue higher level math and science. - Expose girls to positive STEM mentors and role models to show that they can succeed in STEM related fields. - Connect students from various schools with similar goals and expand the student network. APPROACH: STEM-ING will host an annual 1-day STEM event to execute the mission. The primary goals will be achieved through fun, educational, hands-on workshops led mainly by women working in the STEM related fields. Additional elements such as keynote and guest speakers consisting of prominent female STEM leaders from the community and STEM facility tours may be used in conjunction with the workshops. Our goal is to select workshops that represents as many STEM areas as possible to maximize students exposure to various STEM fields and empower them to be creative and innovative in the future.