The Women in STEM club of Bridgewater-Raritan High School served as the host to a productive and informative PhRMA conference on the afternoon of Wednesday, December 14.
The Bridgewater-Raritan High School media center was the venue for this annual event that featured John DiMaio, who is the 23rd Legislative District representative and New Jersey General Assembly Minority Leader. This conference also included Jennifer Burke, Associate Director at Bayer; Kate Truncale, R&D Project Manager at Johnson & Johnson; Mercedes Sodi, Product Portfolio Leader at Pfizer; and Pat Roselle, Global Head at Sanofi.
The event attracted an estimated 45 female students aspiring to enter STEM fields and participated in educational conversations with representatives from leading pharmaceutical companies in New Jersey. Participants discussed the challenges women face at work and how to equip themselves against the impediments to be better prepared to achieve long-term career goals in STEM.
The conference was coordinated by Dr. Carrie Feeney, who is the co-advisor with Katherine Cassidy of the Women in STEM club at the high school, and the student co-presidents, Christine Hu and Kaavya Selvakumar. Among the audience were Jason Mauriello, who is the school district’s Director of 21st Century Learning and Data, and Brian Smith, an assistant principal at the high school.
The session began when Mr. DiMaio shared inspiring words on how to excel in STEM, his journey in the New Jersey government as mayor of Hackettstown from 1991-1999, and as New Jersey General Assembly Minority Leader since 2022. He highlighted the importance of these STEM events and the career advancements students in general and females in particular can have by entering STEM-related disciplines.
Later, the four representatives from the PhRMA organization took turns speaking to four groups of students to answer their questions and share their respective experiences in the STEM fields they worked in. Each group discussed various topics in STEM, including neuroscience, physical therapy, clinical research, extracurricular opportunities in school and preparedness for STEM-related workplaces.
After the interactive round-table discussions, closing statements were presented by the representative from We Work for Health, an organization geared towards bringing together various stakeholders in science fields to enhance and further develop life-saving medicines, a major contributor to the Women in STEM club.
The PhRMA conference was an effective way for determined students aspiring to embrace the various fields of STEM to get guidance from female leaders in their respective occupations. All the girls who participated in the conference gained valuable know-how on high school activities and college admission criteria, which the students appreciated.
Co-advisor Dr. Feeney shared her thoughts on the event.
“The Women in STEM 2023 Conference was very successful. There were over 45 club members in attendance to interact directly with leading women in STEM fields who were there to support the students by sharing their experiences and insights of their careers,’’ Dr. Feeney said.
She continued to share her thoughts on this highly successful event.
“The Women in STEM club was very excited to have discussions from women leading in STEM fields right in our backyard – Bayer, Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer and Sanofi,” she said.
Dr. Feeney also added:
“The $3,000 grant from We Work for Health (WWFH) STEM Talent Pipeline program will provide opportunities for the Women in Stem club members to explore STEM education and careers. We were honored that the grant was presented by Assembly Minority Leader John DiMaio. The club is very thankful to WWFH for their continued support and encouragement.”
The club’s co-presidents, Christine Hu and Kaavya Selvakumar, also shared their summary of the conference.
‘’We are so incredibly proud of the community of young women interested in this constantly-evolving field of STEM that came together this past Wednesday. So many eager and curious girls were able to have amazing dialogue with experienced mentors and spokespeople. The Women in STEM Club continues its goals of forming a tight-knit community of BRHS women interested in STEM, along with providing the opportunities to support these women in achieving their personal and career goals.”
At the conclusion, there was a round of applause to all the guests who joined the Women in STEM club’s PhRMA event for taking time for the betterment of the next generation.
