October 18, 2019 | IGNITE Panel at Thomas Jefferson High School | by Joy Dickson
On Oct. 18, the Thomas Jefferson High School IGNITE Chapter welcomed four IGNITE Panel speakers. Sixteen female students had the opportunity to learn how important it is for more women to go into the Technology and STEM Fields. The students learned that these careers are in high demand and companies want to hire them! The speakers shared their journeys to where they are now and their challenges along the way.
Panelists included Viv Liao and India Buckley from Microsoft, Leslie Reed from Google Cloud and Aditi Saluja from T-Mobile.
Over the course of about 2 hours, the panelists shared their stories about their education, failures, challenges, success and steps they have taken to get to where they are today. The students were intrigued and loved listening to the stories. They learned not only about the women’s careers, but also about navigating your career as a woman. Students had the opportunity to ask questions, and the panelists sat with students and ate pizza and chatted.
Students left the panel excited to learn more and with a sense of “Why not me?!” It is so refreshing to see the excitement and renewed confidence that these events create.
I would like to sincerely say “Thank you” to Viv Liao, India Buckley, Leslie Reed and Aditi Saluja for taking the time to not only encourage, but also listen to our students. You all had an impact on our students and have inspired them to continue to pursue their dreams, no matter what it takes.
Students commented that they were inspired to:
- TAKE UP SPACE!
- Start creating my own profile
- Try new things/take interesting classes
- Make eye contact and work on verbal communication skills
- Find an internship (hopefully paid) this summer