MatthewSenior DLL Trainer The Global Kids Digital Learning and Leadership team just finished an exciting project with the NYC Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications! In honor of Women’s History Month, students at four schools created digital images of underrepresented women of color in STEM that are currently displayed on over 1,700 LinkNYC kiosks across the city. The project began during the 2017-2018 school year, with students at P.S. 96 Joseph Lanzetta designing images of important figures for Black History Month 2018. These images were featured on the kiosks around that school, in addition to those in the neighborhood of the Global Kids Flatiron office. This year’s project was an exciting expansion. In addition to P.S. 96, students from Washington Heights Expeditionary Learning School, M.S. 224 Manhattan East School For Arts Academics, and The Renaissance Charter School were all able to submit images. The subjects portrayed also shifted: given the GK Digital Learning and Leadership team’s priority on social justice in the STEM world, we decided that underrepresented women of color in STEM would be an ideal focus for this year’s projects. After some research, DLL uncovered five lesser-known women of color who had made important contributions in STEM: Jane Cooke Wright, a pioneering cancer researcher and surgeon noted for her contributions to chemotherapy; Marie Maynard Daly, the first African American woman to obtain a PhD in chemistry in the United States; Mabel Keaton Staupers, a pioneer in the American nursing profession; Sinah Estelle Kelley, a chemist who worked on the mass production of penicillin; and Susan McKinney Steward, the third African-American woman to earn a medical degree, and the first in New York state. Students first learned about these women and why their contributions were important. What made the discussion most poignant for students was to consider that these women, who are all now deceased, had the drive and intelligence to push their fields forward, but faced incredible barriers in the form of racism and prejudice. Making comparisons to the movie Hidden Figures, students were inspired to choose one of the five women and begin work. We used different methods to arrive at the final product. In some cases, students sketched out a design with pencil and paper before recreating it digitally: Others drew directly onto tablets with styluses: Finally, some students used a mouse to draw onto laptops: The drawings were started in December and touching them up lasted until the end of January. Students were eager to see their work across the city as soon as possible but had to wait the entire month of February as the LinkNYC team formatted the pictures. Then, on Friday, March 1, the big day arrived, and students from Manhattan East walked to the corner near their school to see their work debut. They were interviewed by a local news crew and gave their thoughts on the process. They were nervous, but their knowledge and passion were impressive. For one more week, you can catch one of the 22 drawings on over 1,783 LinkNYC kiosks in the city. When you see one, take a moment to consider the important contributions made to science, technology, engineering, and math by women of color. We look forward to more opportunities to honor underrepresented pioneers in the future!
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