INROADS and STEMBoard Kick Off INROADS College Links-Atlanta
Innovative program provides hands-on coding and early career exposure for under-served Atlanta high school students
ST. LOUIS, MO, February 1, 2017 — Often, the only woman in the room, or the only person of color in an entire organization, Errika Mallett knows why more than half of minority freshmen who declare STEM majors at the start of college abandon them before graduation or switch to non-STEM graduate programs or careers.
“I was different, and mainstream academia and industry didn’t know how to support that difference,” says Mallett, Georgia Tech graduate, engineer and Vice President of Member Services and External Affairs for IT Senior Management Forum (ITSMF), the only national organization dedicated to increasing the representation of black professionals at senior levels in technology. Speaking to a select group of students, professionals and entrepreneurs at the kickoff of INROADS College Links-Atlanta, Mallett said, “INROADS’ mentors and programs provided guidance, support and encouragement to succeed.”
INROADS College Links-Atlanta is a strategic alliance between INROADS, Inc., focused on development and career preparation for talented, under-served youth, and STEMBoard, a technology solutions company working to close the achievement gap by helping under-represented youth develop cutting-edge coding and technology development tools that solve real-world challenges. Georgia Pacific Corporation hosted the January 21 kickoff, which featured mini-leadership development workshops and overviews of upcoming programming.
INROADS College Links exposes talented, diverse high school students to careers in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) – and STEAM, which adds arts to the STEM subjects – with year-round educational instruction and corporate visits. Unique programming for INROADS College Links-Atlanta includes:
- Specific STEM track for girls. INROADS College Links-Atlanta will partner with several under-resourced Atlanta high schools to recruit high-potential students for a program supported by a $100,000 grant from The Coca-Cola Foundation.
- Mini-Hack, Atlanta: STEMBoard will host a three-day hands-on technology camp with an entrepreneurship framework where students develop innovative technology solutions to challenges facing their communities and country. Recently, STEMBoard and INROADS piloted one of the hardware projects with INROADS College Links-DC earlier this month.
“Technology is increasingly critical to every industry; technology proficiency is necessary for any career path,” said INROADS College Links-Atlanta Program Manager, Janet Hill. “As a professional trained in systems engineering and human resources, I’m excited to be part of an aspirational yet practical program that creates a path to success for Atlanta’s youth and a solid foundation for its future work force.”
INROADS College Links also has programs in Chicago, Cincinnati, Washington, DC, and Hartford, CT.
About STEMBoard
Founded by Aerospace engineer Aisha Bowe, and computer engineer John Martellaro, STEMBoard is a technology solutions company that creates smart systems and software solutions for government and large-scale private sector clients. For more information, visit www.stemboard.com.
About INROADS
Founded in 1970, INROADS develops and places talented underserved youth in business and industry, preparing them for corporate and community leadership that effects community renewal and social change and elevates economic status and quality of life. Throughout its history, INROADS has placed students in over 127,000 paid internships with over 1,000 corporate partners. Currently, INROADS serves nearly 1,500 interns, 90 high school students and 230 corporate clients. To learn more, visit www.INROADS.org.
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