From an early age, Latha Kattumenu was curious about how things worked. Eventually, this curiosity led to a career of solving problems as an engineer. But her path to success wasn’t an easy one. In fact, as an engineering student at Manhattan College, Latha was among the few female students in her program, and women made up less than 15 percent of engineering professionals at the time.
Latha further defied the odds by becoming one of even fewer women who pursued her master’s degree in engineering at Syracuse University while working fulltime for IBM. She’s been with TI now more than 15 years in varying roles where she develops software and hardware to test chips that complete customers’ electronics — from automobiles to medical devices. While Latha was able to pursue her dreams over the course of her professional life, she recognizes many young women are not as fortunate in their path to science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) careers. In fact, a recent Lemelson-MIT survey (Source: US2020) found teenagers may be discouraged from pursuing STEM careers because they do not know anyone who works in these fields, and they do not understand what people in these fields do. Mentoring is Latha’s opportunity to change these perceptions.
“I’ve always had a passion for teaching and mentoring,” said Latha. “I wanted to share my enthusiasm for STEM with children. Having a mentor gives kids the chance to ask questions and see a real person in their profession. Sometimes a home environment or teacher isn’t enough, but a mentor can guide them in the right direction.”
Last year, she became one of our first volunteers to join US2020, a pilot program for online mentoring. US2020 is a national organization committed to changing the trajectory of STEM education in America by matching 1 million STEM mentors to students by 2020. As a volunteer with US2020, Latha is able to share her personal and professional experience and her passion for STEM, helping students believe they too can succeed as an engineer.
Lending a virtual helping hand
One benefit of virtual mentoring is that Latha, a busy mom of two and full-time engineer, can volunteer at her convenience. A volunteer needs only to sit at his or her desk and go online to make a difference in a student’s life. Students capture ideas for design projects through video, pictures or text, and mentors are then able to watch and make suggestions.
“Through the online portal, I’m able to ask my mentees, ‘Have you thought about this? Have you tried this?’ My mentees send me videos of what they’ve tried and we go back and forth to improve the design,” said Latha.
Recently, one of Latha’s students built a robotic arm out of paper towel rolls. He sent Latha a video of his design in progress, and Latha was able to recommend suggestions to help him complete his project.
“I could tell he was watching my videos and implementing suggestions I had given him,” said Latha. “He was thinking on his own and further improving upon his design.”
Ultimately, the student ended up adding a spoon to the end of the robotic arm to pick up objects. Most importantly, he used an idea that he was able to make a reality with Latha’s help. And Latha wasn’t the only one to notice the difference she had made through mentoring.
“It was incredible to see just how invested and motivated [students] were to improve their designs,” said Ms. Keef, STEM Educator at Soulard School whose students participate in the online mentoring program. “Right after the session, the kiddos went back to class and immediately started sketching their third iteration while the feedback was still fresh in their minds.”
Changing the trajectory
A 2012 study by The Girl Scout Research Institute found that although the majority of girls are interested in STEM-related subjects, they are far less likely to choose a STEM career; this disparity is, in part, due to gender stereotypes and negative experiences with STEM-related associations.
“Quality mentorship is uniquely positioned to address the barriers to pursuing STEM careers — the lack of exposure to STEM and the lack of connections to STEM professionals,” said Brian O’Neil, Director of External Engagement for US2020. “Research has shown that having adult role models — specifically mentors — provides academic and emotional benefits for students, particularly at-risk youth.”
Additional studies conclude that students who engage with STEM professionals gain extra confidence in their STEM capabilities and more knowledge of STEM careers. Today, women make up about 18 percent of the engineering profession. Latha sees this as encouragement to help ensure the profession’s diversity continues to increase.
Though Latha is making a significant impact on the future of STEM, we need countless more mentors like her to continue to make an impact. The statistics about the lack of minorities in STEM can be daunting, but research proves that mentorship is paramount to overcoming the disparities in STEM.
At TI, we believe finding creative solutions to problems requires different perspectives and we know we need perspectives from all backgrounds to help us continue to innovate the solutions to tomorrow’s problems. Volunteers like Latha are closing the gap in STEM education one child at a time, allowing for children from all backgrounds to have equal access to STEM careers.
Through mentorship, we’re not only giving our time, but most importantly, we’re believing in the ability of a child. For those of us who have had a mentor, we know the power of someone else believing in you is insurmountable- so big in fact, that it has the ability to change the trajectory of STEM education forever.
“Children might not realize that engineering is an option for them,” said Latha. “Through mentoring, I’m able to grow children’s curiosity and open their eyes to careers available for them to pursue. I help them better understand the profession and see all of the possibilities in the STEM field!”