Eighteen nonprofits and three educators in Arizona are getting grant money to improve equity in STEAM education. STEAM stands for science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics.
The Intel Corporation, YWCA Metropolitan Phoenix and Salt River Project have invested more than $100,000 in their second year of the Equity in STEAM Initiative, focused on closing the gap for women and people of color in those fields.
According to the National Science Foundation, Black and Hispanic women only make up about 4% of U.S. scientists and engineers.
Intel Arizona’s Jennifer Sanchez developed the Equity in STEAM Initiative.
"It’s not an issue of ‘students don’t want to be engineers or scientists,'" she said. "It’s a matter of ‘Who do they see that looks like them? Who is inspiring them? Who is letting them know that they can do it?’”
As an example, one of the grantees is Lights Camera Discover which caters to underserved students in the Phoenix area and is led by a Black, female CEO.
