High school girls learn about engineering at UB STEM Female Shadow Day

By Sarah D'Iorio

Twenty-eight high school girls from Western New York had the opportunity to see first-hand the research being carried out in some of UB’s most extensive engineering labs, and talk to female students and faculty members about careers in engineering.

UB STEM Female Shadow Day, organized by members of the student chapter of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE), featured six lab tours, lunch with female faculty members in STEM, and an engineering-based team building exercise.

The day’s activities kicked off in UB’s Structural Engineering and Earthquake Simulation Laboratory (SEESL), where the group was led on a tour by four faculty members in the Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering, including Andrew Whittaker (SEESL director), Kamelia Atefi Monfared, Negar Elhami Khorasani, and Pinar Okumus.

“It is very rewarding to be a part of the great supportive network for young women in engineering,” said Atefi Monfared, an assistant professor who joined UB in Fall 2016. “I am grateful for the opportunity to talk about my research with bright young women and point out the emerging research areas in geotechnical engineering, to encourage critical thinking and draw attention to the significance of multidisciplinary work.”

In addition to touring the geotechnical laminar box with Atefi Monfared, the girls learned about the earthquake simulator shake tables with Elhami Khorasani and the nonstructural component simulator with Okumus, both assistant professors. Elhami Khorasani’s current research focuses on the response of structures and communities to extreme hazards such as fires and earthquakes. Okumus’s research focuses on highway bridge engineering, specifically regarding precast, prestressed concrete bridges.

The group then moved on to the digital manufacturing lab where they saw a demonstration of 3-D printing technologies, and the space exploration lab, where students are building several nanosatellites. Following the tours, the girls joined female faculty members in STEM for lunch and participated in engineering based team-building activities. They also viewed a presentation on the different types of engineering UB has to offer.

SWE president and civil engineering major Jessica Cobti said the members of SWE, who accompanied the high school students throughout the day, appreciated the opportunity to promote an interest in engineering among young women.

“We are given the chance to help guide them and possibly lead them into the same field that we are in, and that is very rewarding to us,” said Cobti. “We want them to know what engineering is, and also how fun and interesting it can be, and I believe this day really allowed that to happen.”

Established in 1950, SWE aims to help women achieve full potential in their careers as engineers and leaders, expand the image of the engineering profession as a positive force in improving the quality of life, and demonstrate the value of diversity.