A Defining Moment

Kaylie’s Black History Month Project

Black History month 2021, no different than any other month, I continue to prioritize educating myself and others on the contributions made by African American women and men in STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics). The month of February represents multiple opportunities for me to interact with diverse audiences to share my research agenda and discuss equitable teaching practices in STEM that promote racial and gender justice. On February 17, I received an emailed invitation from Kaylie McGuckin, a sophomore from the Pasco School District in Washington State to be interviewed for what she called a special Black History month program.

On the day of the interview, together with Alexus Robertson, CGEST Assistant Director, Administration, we answered Kaylie’s questions about our personal and professional experiences as Black women working for gender equity in STEM. Impressed by Kaylie’s passion to tell our story to her classmates, I asked the question of what prompted her to do this Black History project. Kaylie first shared the research she had done about girls in STEM and learned that most girls lost interest in STEM because they didn’t have “relatable role models, unconscious bias, and low self-esteem”. Suddenly, you could hear the determination in Kaylie’s voice as she opened up about conducting interviews with African American women in STEM and creating a video for her school population of 71% minorities with 64%, Latinx students. Not long after Kaylie realized the school had not planned anything to acknowledge Black History month, she went to work to educate herself and her classmates. Committed to doing something for Black History month to honor her African American friends, Kaylie googled African American women in the STEM fields to interview. Sending emails like the one I received wanting to know my story, the hour interview gave me hope for the future because of Kaylie’s social justice initiative. Kaylie a day later shared with us the product of her work, our lived experiences as African American women. Click here to see the video.

See Kaylie’s website created with friends to inspire girls entitled “STEM is FEM” which in her words tells “how hard it can be to persevere through the hate and uncomfortable situations that can come when breaking gender norms.”

Written By:

Tara Nkrumah

Postdoctoral Fellow of Research Strategic Initiatives

Center for Gender Equity in Science and Technology