Letter from the Editor: The Beauty of Indirect Trajectories

June 1, 2021 by Karen Panetta

There is a predominant myth that the path to success is the shortest line between two points. Although mathematically this is true, it doesn’t mean it is true for our lives. Unfortunately, myths and fiction have longer lifelines than facts. Every successful woman we have ever profiled in IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine has never followed any direct trajectory. Everyone’s career path is as diverse as our interests, life experiences, and personal goals.

For more about this article see link below.

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9424738

For the open access PDF link of this article please click here.

Karen Panetta

Karen Panetta (Fellow, IEEE) received the B.S. degree in computer engineering from Boston University, Boston, MA, USA, in 1985, and the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in electrical engineering from Northeastern University, Boston, in 1987 and 1994, respectively.

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IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine is the first magazine to focus on issues facing women who study or work in IEEE’s fields of interest.

IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine strives to recognize women’s outstanding achievements in electrical and electronics engineering as well as enhance networking and to promote membership in IEEE Women in Engineering.

The publication also advocates for women in leadership roles and career advancement for women in STEM professions, and it facilitates the development of programs and activities that promote the entry into and retention of women in engineering programs.

More Than 30 Years of Women in STEM at the University of Wisconsin–Platteville: Its Formation, Development, and Experiences

This article shows the evolution of the Women in STEM (WiSTEM) program at the University of Wisconsin–Platteville (UWP) over the past 30 years. The development of support programs for women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) requires flexibility, persistence, and strategy. When putting together the timeline of events associated with the development of WiSTEM, we noticed that success with these types of programs often does not occur overnight, but rather through years of commitment and effort. Additionally, we learned that there is not really any one particular event or program that has impacted it, but rather the importance of a sustained and consistent focus on developing a community, with attention on creating an inclusive climate for women in STEM. It is the synergy created by the sum of all of the individual parts that makes the program meaningful and successful.

Karen Panetta

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