STEMming in Stilettos with Dr. Toshia

Episode Summary
1) She's smart and beautiful. She says that Chemistry chose her and not the other way around.
2) She believes that being in STEM is important that she was inspired by having a chance encounter with a scientist. That meeting changed her life.
3) That scientist awarded her a scholarship that allowed her to attend her dream college, LSU where she received her degree.
4) She believes that having friends, mentors, sponsors, and a good support system are all needed especially in STEM Careers.
5) She understands that all of us are multifaceted people with more than one singular gift. That we can be STEM professionals AND a dancer, or debutante, or pageant queen. All are possible.
6) She believes that she is changing the face of pageantry and the face of STEM.
Dr. Treva Brown Bio
Treva Brown was born and raised in North Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She received her diploma from Baton Rouge Magnet High School. She dreamed of attending Louisiana State University and her physics teacher provided her with advice and information. Treva recalls, “Ms Cao told me about STEM programs at LSU and I began considering them and came across the LA-STEM [Louisiana Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics] Scholars Program, for which I applied, and met Dr Isiah Warner. It was through listening to his story, and some research through the LSU Chemistry website, that I decided to choose Chemistry as my major and have loved it ever since.”

Treva became a LSU tiger in the Department of Chemistry at LSU and took charge of her undergraduate experience. Her journey as an undergraduate was a very fruitful experience. She began research in Professor Jayne Garno’s group. She gained intensive experience in atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning probe lithography to study organic thin films of n-alkanethiols. She analyzed and performed surface chemistry studies of organosilanes via particle lithography and chemical vapor deposition. Treva presented her research and won presentation awards at many conferences across the nation including ACS, SERMACS, NOBCChE, and Triple EX. As a senior, Treva served as a TA for General Chemistry Laboratory, which was good experience in preparation for graduate school. Eager to share her passion for STEM, Treva became a counselor in a summer program hosted by the Office of Strategic Initiatives. She served as a role model for the incoming LSU freshmen, entering the LA-STEM Research Scholars Program, helping them to transition into college life. She emphasized the principles of leadership, scholarship, and success by expressing the importance of excellence in mentoring, education, research, and outreach. As she reminisced about her time in the Department, Treva says, “I appreciated the outpouring of encouragement and support from programs such as LA-STEM Research Scholars, LS-LAMP (Louis Stokes Louisiana Alliance for Minority Participation), IMSD (Initiative for Maximizing Student Development), and HHMI (Howard Hughes Medical Institute) Professors Program. Without the continued encouragement and support from the professors and staff that worked with these programs, I probably would not be where I am today in the scientific world.”
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/trevabrownphd

Support the show

You can find out more information about Dr. Toshia here:
https://www.drtoshia.co
STEMming in Stilettos Youtube Channel: https://youtu.be/xAc25J7UH9A

Episode Main Points
1) Her father exposed her to STEM at an early age. Key takeaway for me is that early exposure works.
2) Her philosophy surrounding innovative entrepreneurship is golden. Innovation is where the money resides. We should be trying to monetize our innovations.
3) She feel that the future is definitely STEM.
4) She has been able to take her love of flying and technical knowledge and experience into the world of drones and sees that the sky and beyond is the limit.
5) Your journey is your journey. Own every piece of it. "What's in your heart will always catch you."
6) She has my favorite definition of STEM: solving a problem and doing it more efficiently.
Bronwyn Morgan Bio:
Bronwyn is a sUAS (drone) Part 107 certified pilot, and is the Founder of tech startup Xeo Air, an AI-based drones on demand platform for mission management that connects B2B clients in telecom, insurance, catastrophic response, oil and gas, energy, civil infrastructure with a crew of Part 107 pilots. In addition, she is Founder of Airversity Drone Academy + Consulting, a training school for both Part 107 prep and drone flight and private and public safety consulting. Bronwyn’s past includes being Head of Subkulture Innovation Lab, an innovation and advanced tech solutions firm focused on future proofing organizations by developing strategic business models and disruptive strategies, where she has developed upstream innovation strategies for Fortune 500 organizations and startups. Her clients include companies such as Delta Airlines and Airbus Aerial. Bronwyn is also the Founder of Black Women In STEAM, an organization dedicated to galvanizing the efforts of women in STEAM fields.
Website: http://www.xeoair.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bronwynmorgan

Support the show

You can find out more information about Dr. Toshia here:
https://www.drtoshia.co
STEMming in Stilettos Youtube Channel: https://youtu.be/xAc25J7UH9A

Episode Summary
1) Feedback is so important in business and in life and its one of the things that gets overlooked in the hustle and bustle of the day.
2) We need people advocating for us at the K-12 level in policy and politics. There is much work to be done there to reverse the effects of racism and discrimination that STILL exist in the system.
3) Process is KING!! It defines your behavior; management's behavior. Its generally not a person, its the process.
Shermaine Perry Knight Bio
Shermaine Perry-Knights is the founder and chief learning officer at Innovation Consultants of DeKalb. She is also a Senior Trainer and Instructional Designer for Fulton County Government. She is an engaging educator and workforce development coach with a passion for creating aha moments and learning solutions.

Shermaine is early in her talent development career and is viewed as a leader by peers and colleagues. She wears a strategic business partner hat, offering advice to executives for process improvement and employee development in her combined roles of instructional designer, project manager, senior trainer, teacher, and facilitator.

She has experience designing and delivering customized management and workforce development programs to classrooms ranging from 20 to 300 attendees. Shermaine has delivered content on topics including career pivots, employee experience, accountability, communicating across generations, leadership, project management, and conflict resolution.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shermaineperry
Shermaine Perry-Knights - Profile About Page (td.org)
Shermaine's Books
https://www.amazon.com/Books-Shermaine-Perry-Knights/s?rh=n%3A283155%2Cp_27%3AShermaine+Perry-Knights

Support the show

You can find out more information about Dr. Toshia here:
https://www.drtoshia.co
STEMming in Stilettos Youtube Channel: https://youtu.be/xAc25J7UH9A

Episode Summary
1) Navigating an environment that has not been made for you or to support you is difficult at best. It is left to you to figure out how best to exist in this world, unfortunately.
2) Professional networks ARE so important to helping Black women and other minority women in finding that balance and sense of self in this world
3) The work that Iris and others are doing is soooooooooooooo important, however they cannot do it alone. Allies are needed, but not the superficial, surface level ones that don't actually mean what they say or do anything outside of saying meaningless words. We need people who are going to be in this fight to change this environment for the long haul.
Dr. Iris Wagstaff Bio:
She is a scientist, educator, mentor, researcher and STEM advocate. She currently serves as a STEM Program Director in the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Department of AAAS where I manage a $15 Million Dollar portfolio focused on broadening participation in STEM, workforce development ,and inclusive technology and innovation ecosystems. She served as a 2015-2017 AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellow at the DOJ National Institute of Justice Office where I developed and led an agency-wide diversity and inclusion initiative. She is a native of Goldsboro, NC with a BS and MS in Chemistry from UNC-Greensboro and NC A&T State Universities respectively; and a PhD in Science Education from North Carolina State University. Iris worked as a research chemist at the Dow Chemical Company for 15 years leading analytical project teams and company-wide diversity initiatives. She has over 20 years of STEM outreach and advocacy developing informal science programs, mentoring, resourcing parents, leading k-12 STEM teacher professional development, and building strategic partnerships between industry, academia, and community organizations.
She is also a social scientist with a research focus on examining factors that predict science self-efficacy, science identity, and STEM career intent in underrepresented/under-served youth populations. She serves on the Boards of several organizations that include the National Organization of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers (NOBCChE), the Chemical Society of Washington (CSW), and Science, Engineering, and Math Links (SEM). She is an adjunct chemistry professor at UNC-Greensboro where she leads diversity and inclusion efforts to broaden participation in the chemical sciences. She has received several honors that include the 2019 DC Metro HBCU Alumni Alliance Award for Education, the 2019 AERA Science Teaching and Learning Research Award, the 2019 BEYA Science Spectrum Trailblazer Award, the 2018 NOBCChE Presidential Award for Mentoring, the 2017 Women of Color in STEM K-12 Promotion of Education Award, and a 2016 nomination for the NSF Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Math, Engineering Mentoring (PAESMEM).
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iris-r-wagstaff-ph-d-57140717?lipi=urn%3Ali%3Apage%3Ad_flagship3_profile_view_base_contact_details%3BhOrS0zRAQ6uPmifs2I0T%2FA%3D%3D

Support the show

You can find out more information about Dr. Toshia here:
https://www.drtoshia.co
STEMming in Stilettos Youtube Channel: https://youtu.be/xAc25J7UH9A

Thriving Elements is a non-profit organization with a mission to create access and opportunities for underrepresented girls in STEM through mentoring. Our vision to is to develop and empower young women leaders in STEM to make a sustainable impact in their communities and inspire the next generation of women leaders. We offer a structured mentorship program and a bi-annual 'Leading Women in STEM' speaker series. While our primary focus is on high-quality STEM mentoring, we also provide opportunities for networking, job shadowing, and site visits so that our students can experience the day-to-day life of a professional working in a STEM-related field.
Our first mentorship program cycle was launched in 2016 at Foster High School, a King County school in Tukwila, WA. Ranked as one of the most diverse schools in the country and with 71% of students living in poverty, Thriving Elements' mentorship curriculum helps to fill Foster's leadership program gap. In March 2018 Thriving Elements expanded the program to Stadium and Lincoln High School in Tacoma, Washington. Our objective is to continue expanding the program locally to targeted Puget Sound area high schools in King, Pierce, and Snohomish Counties. We will be doing a pilot launch in Uganda in 2020 and currently in discussions with Botswana and Switzerland.

Support the show

You can find out more information about Dr. Toshia here:
https://www.drtoshia.co
STEMming in Stilettos Youtube Channel: https://youtu.be/xAc25J7UH9A