President Hrabowski and three undergraduate scholars from UMBC kicked off the U.S. News STEM Solutions conference with a keynote panel on April 23. Dalton Hughes ’14, chemical engineering, Lauren Mazzoli ’15, mathematics and computer science, and Mitchel Zavala ’14, mechanical engineering, spoke about their UMBC experiences in a discussion moderated by PBS Newshour co-anchor Judy Woodruff.
The panel addressed major issues in STEM education, including the challenge of retaining students as STEM majors, the need to increase the participation of underrepresented populations in STEM, and the importance of mentorship and a supportive peer community in student success. Mazzoli, Zavala and Hughes shared what drew them to STEM and to UMBC, describing their experiences with the Meyerhoff Scholars Program (Hughes) and Center for Women in Technology (CWIT) Scholars Program (Mazzoli). Describing UMBC, Mazzoli shared, “It’s a great community… they’re always supporting you.”
Click here to watch the keynote panel (starting at 22 min.).
