Dr. Christina Dascenzo, chair of the Northeast Ohio STEM Goes Red, and Stephanie Finoti, Miss Ohio 2024 with the participants in STEM Goes Red at NEOMED.
American Heart Association
220 northeast Ohio students recently visited the NEW Center at the Northeast Ohio Medical University in Rootstown for STEM Goes Red.
Several Mahoning Valley schools were represented at NEOMED, including South Range Middle School, Mineral Ridge High School, Liberty Local Schools and Canfield Village Middle School.
Two Youngstown Business Incubator employees, Megan Payich and Stephanie Gaffney, participated in the event to engage with girls interested in pursuing careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
What is STEM Goes Red?
The Youngstown Business Incubator brought virtual reality goggles to this year’s STEM Goes Red event at NEOMED. American Heart Association
The American Heart Association has been organizing STEM Goes Red since 2017. STEM Goes Red is part of the Go Red for Women movement.
Seventh and eighth grade girls interested in pursuing careers in STEM got to meet women paving the way in their careers.
Lisa Wheeler-Cooper is the executive director of the American Heart Association in Northeast Ohio.
She explained the organization wants more women to work in STEM because cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death for women in the U.S., killing one in three American women per year.
“Research in STEM fields is changing the way we fight heart disease and stroke, which is helping give more people longer, healthier lives. By inspiring the next generation of female leaders in STEM, we’re helping to build a more equitable future, where everyone has the opportunity to innovate and create solutions that can change the world,” Wheeler-Cooper said.
She said equipping and inspiring young women to pursue STEM careers can ensure women are represented in critical sectors that impact health and well-being such as healthcare, research and technology.
During STEM Goes Red, students learned about CPR. Chelsea Caldwell, American Heart Association
During STEM Goes Red, students learned about CPR. The Ohio Natural Energy Institute led an oil energy and natural gas education session, and the Youngstown Business Incubator brought virtual reality goggles.
In a laboratory lesson led by Dr. Christina Dascenzo, students interacted with a cadaver heart.
STEM Goes Red ended with a live panel Q&A featuring a handful of the local women in STEM, including:
Dr. Christina Dascenzo, Family Drug and Village Pharmacies
Amy Reynault, Hill Barth and King
Megan Payich and Stephanie Gaffney, Youngstown Business Incubator
Laura Zavadil, MegaBarre
Cassie Hoyt, Keystone Perfusion Services
Dr. Katherine Tromp, NEOMED
Dr. Dascenzo is the chair of Northeast Ohio STEM Goes Red and a board member of the American Heart Association board member.
“My favorite part of the day was the girls coming up to me at the end of the event and asking how they could get experience, now, today, at their age because they are not old enough to obtain jobs yet,” Dr. Dascenzo said. “To me, that means we successfully planted the seed and now we hope to watch that continue to grow.”
She said she encourages students to reach out to the American Heart Association and get connected with other STEM professionals in their area.
How many women are working in STEM?
Women make up almost half of employment across non-STEM occupations but just over 29% of the STEM workforce.
Of 100 female students working toward a bachelor’s degree, only three will work in a STEM job 10 years after graduation, leading to persistent disparities in women’s health.
