MentorNet News – February 2010 Volume 2

Featured Opportunities

2010 C2B2-REU Program

The Colorado Center for Biorefining & Biofuels (C2B2) is a collaboration involving over 200 principal investigators at four partner institutions. Join C2B2 in the Rocky Mountains this summer for the third annual C2B2-REU. The application deadline is February 22, 2010. Click here for more info and to apply.

IMA Special Workshop
The Institute for Mathematics and its Applications is having a conference in March entitled Career Options for Underrepresented Groups in Mathematical Sciences. The main goal of the workshop is to encourage underrepresented minorities in math-related fields to become prepared to work in the academics, industry or government labs. Talks will focus on the importance of networking, interviewing, negotiation and leadership skills.Click here for more info.

FORWARD in SEM
Focus on Reaching Women for Academics, Research and Development in Science, Engineering and Mathematics is a joint program of the George Washington and Gallaudet Universities. This workshop is provided for women and minorities who may be considering, or are currently in, a tenure track position in science, engineering or mathematics. Click here for more info and to apply.

Building Collaborations for Research, Education and Outreach
Save the Date! A one-day conference focusing on research, education and outreach collaborations in STEM disciplines will be held in Concord, NH, on June 9. College faculty, grants administration staff, and students engaged in research are invited, as well as science center staff and GK-12 math and science educators. Preregistration is required. For more info, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Women, Blacks and Latinos Lose Ground in Silicon Valley

A report on Sunday in our local paper, the San Jose Mercury News, shared perplexing news: diversity in Silicon Valley tech fields is moving in the wrong direction.

Between 2000 and 2008, women declined from 25.5 to 23.8% of the workers in computers and math; blacks from 1.9 to 1.5% (far behind the national average of 7.1%) and Hispanics from 5.3 to 4.7% – a poor showing in a region where the local population is 24.3% Hispanic.

Even more curious, big companies – Apple, Google, Yahoo, Oracle, and AMD– fought successfully to withhold data about employment when the newspaper requested it under the federal Freedom of Information law. Their claim, which federal regulators agreed to, was that employment data was a trade secret and would reveal business strategy to competitors, causing the companies “commercial harm.”

The good news is some companies are proud of their diversity and gladly shared their data. MentorNet’s partner Intel was one of them. Hewlett-Packard, between 2000 and 2008 – years in which they used MentorNet’s program – grew its women’s cohort from 49% to 53% and grew its Hispanic workforce as well. SYNNEX, a leading IT processes company, jumped from 37% to 49% and Calpine – a leader in building green power plants – was the outstanding winner in diversity, growing from an already remarkable 54 to 59%.

The other good news is that MentorNet, nestled right here in Silicon Valley, creates a vital channel to women, blacks, and Hispanics in engineering, math and science fields. 10% of our protégés are black, 7% Hispanic, and of course, a majority of our protégés are women.

Catch Up With David at BEYA This Week

David Porush, MentorNet's CEO, will be attending the Black Engineer of the Year Awards Conference in Baltimore, MD, Feb. 18 - 20. If you'll be there, find David and say hi!

According to the conference website, "BEYA STEM Global Competitiveness Conference is about opportunities to acquire and retain talent, to learn and network ... Since 1986, the conference has served as an invaluable tool to recognize outstanding achievement of African-Americans in companies across America."

Announcing Our New Twitter Page!!!

MentorNet is excited to announce we are now on Twitter at twitter.com/mentornettweet. Become a Follower and stay on top of our latest news, partnerships, recommended articles, internships and other opportunities. Thanks!

It's National Engineers' Week!

In recognition of National Engineers' Week (Feb 14 - 20), we are actively recruiting new engineering mentors! Please spread the word, and new mentors sign up here.

Curious about National Engineers' Week? According to Wikipedia, "National Engineers' Week ... is observed by more than 70 engineering, education, and cultural societies, and more than 50 corporations and government agencies. The purpose of National Engineers' Week is to call attention to the contributions to society that engineers make. It is also a time for engineers to emphasize the importance of learning math, science, and technical skills.

The celebration of National Engineers' Week was started in 1951 by the National Society of Professional Engineers in conjunction with President George Washington's birthday. President Washington is considered as the nation's first engineer, notably for his survey work."

Spring Recruitment Campaign Reminder

In January, we launched our 2010 Spring Outreach Drive to recruit new proteges. The drive is off to a great start, but in case you haven't gotten involved yet, it's not too late! For details, and to learn about our incentives for campuses, click here.

MentorNet is a 501(C)(3) California non-profit educational organization. Our mission is to help engineering and science students at the university level - especially women and underrepresented minorities - achieve their career goals by matching them with mentors and guiding their one-on-one relationships over the Web. We are funded by fees from our campus, corporate, government laboratory and society partners and by grants from public and private foundations.

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