I would fall into the latter category. Over the course of my career at Collins Aerospace, formerly Rockwell Collins, I have intensified my engagement, not only for increasing the number of women in STEM careers, but for providing STEM opportunities for all Iowa students.

As a communicator for a company that is powered by engineers and innovators, I’ve served in many roles that highlight the vital role STEM education plays in our organization and the future of our state. I’m confident we can create the workforce we need to ignite our state economy by aligning business needs and opportunities with Iowa’s education goals. But to do that, our STEM talent pipeline must evolve to include a more diverse group of young Iowans.

In 2018, I was honored to serve as the interim executive director for the Iowa Governor’s STEM Advisory Council while executive director Jeff Weld worked as senior policy adviser and assistant director for STEM education at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. Over the course of the year, I had the privilege to promote all that the council does to create an Iowa we’re all proud of: one that promotes STEM education for all.

Keeping STEM visible isn’t just important for building our state’s future workforce — it’s absolutely vital. If we want a diverse workforce (and we surely do), we have to work for it. That’s why I frequently used the phrase “STEM for All” during my time at the Council and why I strive to live it out in my work at Collins Aerospace. Our organization is always examining how we can include girls and diverse student populations in STEM events. I’m in awe of the incredibly talented women at Collins Aerospace and their desire to share their stories with girls who might follow in their footsteps.

One of my favorite outreach events at Collins Aerospace is called “Introduce a Girl to Engineering,” which just recently received a Most Innovative Initiative Award in EPIC’s Corporate Challenge Awards for its work in advancing women leaders. We bring middle school girls into our facilities to meet our female engineers and see what they do and then put them in teams to solve problems. It’s a hands-on way to show girls what engineers do, but more importantly that these young women are capable of pursuing a STEM career and might even enjoy the challenges it presents.

As my year with the Iowa Governor’s STEM Advisory Council has ended, I’m thankful for the role I’ve been able to play. I’ll take all I’ve learned back to my role at Collins Aerospace so we can continue to build partnerships with education leaders, policy experts, parents and other businesses to get girls excited about STEM careers. “STEM for All” isn’t a saying, it’s a reality we must embrace in order to build our future workforce.