Carnegie Mellon’s Engineering College Hosts Panel To Discuss Ways of Increasing Female Participation in Technical Fields

November 1, 2006
Contact: Chriss Swaney
(412) 268-5776

PITTSBURGH—Pradeep K. Khosla, dean of Carnegie Mellon University’s College of Engineering, will lead a panel discussion about the need to recruit more women into the fields of engineering and science from noon to 1:30 p.m., Nov. 8 at the Engineering Society of Western Pennsylvania, 337 Fourth Ave.

Panel Participants include Nadine Aubry, head of Mechanical Engineering at Carnegie Mellon; Jane Rudolph, vice president of strategic programs for Lockheed Martin Transportation and Security Solutions; Ruthann Omer, president of The Gateway Engineers; Joann Truchan, a representative for the Society of Women Engineers; and Laura Bottomley, former head of the K-12 and pre-college engineering initiative for the American Society for Engineering Education and director of Women In Engineering and Outreach at North Carolina State University.

“The role of diversity in innovation is well established. But in order to be at the cutting edge of innovation, we need a more dynamic workforce in engineering and science, including women and other diverse groups,” Khosla said.

Polls of business leaders indicate a dramatic shortage in skilled workers. Women make up 50 percent of the population yet only nine percent of American engineers are women, according to the American Society for Engineering Education. Current workforce projections show that unless women and minorities are attracted to engineering, science and technology, the United States will not have the trained personnel to meet future needs, according to the Department of Energy’s Office of Science for Workforce Development for Teachers and Scientists.

Khosla said the panel will discuss the best route for women to take when entering technical fields and best practices for landing a job.

About Carnegie Mellon: Carnegie Mellon is a private research university with a distinctive mix of programs in engineering, computer science, robotics, business, public policy, fine arts and the humanities. More than 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students receive an education characterized by its focus on creating and implementing solutions for real problems, interdisciplinary collaboration, and innovation. A small student-to-faculty ratio provides an opportunity for close interaction between students and professors. While technology is pervasive on its 144-acre campus, Carnegie Mellon is also distinctive among leading research universities for the world-renowned programs in its College of Fine Arts. For more, see www.cmu.edu.