School District U46 Improves Science and Math Programs For Girls

After jetting back from a meeting with Michelle Obama, Sandra Westlund-Deenihan, president of Schaumberg-based Quality Float Works Inc, is gearing up to help train and introduce teachers, counselors and faculty to encourage more girls to learn about Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) at School District U-46.

My husband is a graduate of U-46 schools, and having four girls myself, I was interested to hear how Ms.Westlund-Deenihan and the other members of NAPE-EF STEM were going to help students at the five different high schools that make up U-46 in Chicago's western suburbs. “Currently, the STEM courses and programs at U-46 do not include proportional representation of our girls,” says Dr. Torres, superintendent of U-46. “This gap in participation in STEM programs needs to be closed. Continuing to engage in grant partnerships like we are doing at U-46 is a great model for tapping into resources and opportunities at the local level to plant seeds that will continue to grow for years to come.”

Ms. Westlund-Deenihan grew up with her four sisters, often tagging along with their father to the manufacturing plant she now runs. “As a third generation manufacturer, I have witnessed first-hand the tremendous lack of skills potential workers possess as they search for employment in the manufacturing industry,” says Ms. Westlaund-Deenihan. The program launched when Motorola Solutions, Incorporated awarded STEM with a $50,000 grant. “The future of American innovation depends on a diverse pipeline of critical thinkers who are well versed in STEM principles,” says Matt Blakely, director of the Motorola Solutions Foundation. “Through the Innovation Generation program, we are thrilled to partner with organizations like NAPE And U-46 to provide students and teachers with the necessary tools to explore their STEM interests and pursue innovation.”

As for Ms. Westlund-Deenihan’s trip to Washington to hear Ms. Obama speak, it was coincidental. It happened just days before launching the district-wide program. The timing works well since she has been working hard applying for the grant and creating a program that she hopes will secure the future for girls who might not have a chance otherwise. “Of the nearly 41,000 students at the 5 schools, 63 percent are minority students, of which half are low income. More than 100 languages are spoken in the home -- and I didn’t even know there were 100 different languages,” Ms. Westlaund-Deeihan says.

She has been advocating for change in policy to come from businesses and not government so more young girls can enter the field of manufacturing. Ms. Westlaund-Deeihan's hope is that the curriculum available for girls will produce more skilled workers that she will be able to hire someday. “I am going to follow these girls through high-school and college,” she says. In fact, she is already eying her two-year-old granddaughter as the fifth generation to enter manufacturing.

Tagged as: education, Motorola Incorporated, U-46 and women business owners

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Christine Garcia is founder and president of Plan It PR, a public relations and marketing firm. She dishes tips and survival stories in “Play Dates and Power Lunches.” Ms. Garcia started working public relations after a long career in broadcast journalism, which included work as a television anchor, reporter and producer.