Black History Program with Professors William and Aida Jackson
Tuesday, February 23rd 2021 The link to our presentation is here:
Black History Month Program
Joe Slezak, Solar System Ambassador with NASA at Appleton Public Library invites William and Aida Jackson to speak at the Black History Month program at Appleton Public Library in Appleton,
Wisconsin https://apl.org/
Organized by library directors Emily Villanueva and Katherine Hanle the program was to show the gains, accomplishments and challenges of African Americans in STEM, STEAM and STREAM. The Black History Month program organized to educate and motivate students of color and culture in the local school district to become interested in STEM, STEAM and STREAM education and share resources with teachers. How there is a difference between each and how it
influences the diversity of student learning.
Seasoned educators, Joe, William and Aida provided information specifically to Black, Brown and students of color for students in the Appleton Area School District
http://aasd.k12.wi.us/
Many times Black and Brown parents do not understand what STEM, STEAM and STREAM are so they do not know how to guide their children in careers outside of sports and engineering. Mr. Slezak guided the discussion by asking key questions and sharing statistics that William and Aida examined and how data and statistics affect Black and Brown youth in their decisions to enter
into future careers.
STEM is not about making a youth into a geek, nerd or Blerd (Black Nerd) there is something for everyone. The career options are more than the options for sports and entertainment. The career success rate is even higher for long term employment. It was shared that geeks, nerds and Blerds (Black Nerds) rule the world and a growing number of girls and women
are taking the lead.
Aida (Afro-Latina), artist and published author clarified the potential of STEM, STEAM and STREAM to the audience and addressed the opportunties for Latinx, Latino, Latina and Hispanic youth, teens and young adults. NASA has a growing number of astronauts of Hispanic culture. The diversity of Appleton, Missouri in its Hispanic community can build more future scientists, engineers, computer programmers with mentors, educators and
professionals that can lead and guide kids in schools.
Virtual Presenters
The virtual discussion shared the influence of career choices and opportunties to help youth, teens and young adults grow in new directions for careers in STEM, STEAM and STREAM. Black, Brown and Indigenous youth need to understand that there are opportunties outside of sports, games and entertainment waiting for them. There are scholarships that allow them to attend college, vocational and industrial education schools so they can learn necessary skills for careers. Professor Aida Jackson pointed out that in 10 to 15 years the careers that are manual labor jobs will not be
available because of the advances of technology.
The brain is the key to success, sports and entertainment can be a conduit of connected potential in great careers, educational success, digital skill development and continued growth will propel youth of color and culture to grow beyond where they are. Youth must realize that sports only last so long as the human body can take the punishment. Mental and thought growth are important to build thought leadership skills to earn high paying jobs
that require 21st century technology skills.
Black history is more than sports and entertainment there are many thought leaders, innovators, creatives and influencers that are in STEM, STEAM and STREAM industries. Looking at current NASA STEM, STEAM and STREAM careers there is room for future Black, Brown and Indigenous youth. More virtual workshops will be made available in the future with projects that are online with the Appleton Library System.
Link to the presentation:https://youtu.be/eBuMG-FFTLo
Outagamie Waupaca Library System
http://owlsweb.org/
For more information email:
[email protected]
Who We Are:
William Jackson – https://myquesttoteach.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/wmjackson
Aida Correa-Jackson – https://lovebuiltlife.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/lovebuiltlife Professors William and Aida Correa – Jackson
William is the digital innovator for his brand My Quest To Teach using the hashtag #MyQuestToTeach sharing his journey teaching, mentoring,
community activism and community collaborations.