AREVA Inc. employees at our North American headquarters in Charlotte, N.C. have been busy this summer sharing their passion for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) careers with local students, educators and their own families.
Igniting interest in and providing opportunities to develop STEM career paths is critical to the success of AREVA and the energy industry. Right now:
- 40 percent of workers in the nuclear industry are eligible to retire
- Less than 16 percent of bachelor degrees awarded are in STEM fields
- Nationwide, 75 million Baby Boomers are nearing retirement
- Only 30 million Gen X-ers are available to fill the open roles when Baby Boomers leave the workforce
AREVA, in Charlotte and beyond, is committed to securing the future of safe, clean and reliable nuclear energy by developing a pipeline of talent through STEM outreach.
July: Scholarships and presentations to Project Scientist
In July, AREVA Inc. sponsored three students for the Project Scientist summer camp geared toward girls ages 4-16. As a “STEM SuperStar,” Mechanical Engineer Rebecca Jetton spoke to two different groups of campers about nuclear power and how nuclear fission is used to produce electricity.
“It was rewarding to see young girls excited to learn more about the world around them and how things work,” said Rebecca. “I was impressed that even at a young age, the girls were truly interested in soaking up as much information as possible. I was especially fascinated by the intelligent questions that they asked. This camp is a great opportunity for them to have fun with hands on activities and interact with role models from a variety of industries while learning about science and engineering.”
Aug. 4 and 6: Teachers go back to school with STEMersion 2014
AREVA welcomed nearly 40 STEM teachers to its North American headquarters as part of STEMersion 2014. The two-day AREVA portion of the STEMersion professional development program included teachers from 29 middle and high schools in the Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools system. These teachers visited AREVA offices in Charlotte on Aug. 4 and Aug. 6 to learn from AREVA senior executives, hiring managers, and employees about STEM influence on the company’s day-to-day operations.
Find out more about STEMersion.
Aug. 14: STEM in the Family: AREVA Women in Nuclear organize “Bring Your Girls to Work” Day
The AREVA Charlotte Women in Nuclear (WIN) hosted nearly 25 girls in grades 2nd – 9th for the first “Bring Your Girls to Work Day” at the AREVA North American headquarters.. Employees were invited to bring their daughters, granddaughters, nieces, and sisters to participate in creative and challenging activities set to pique the girls’ interest in STEM subjects and careers.
WIN, with the support of the AREVA Charlotte North American Young Generation in Nuclear (NAYGN), led the girls in activities focused on art, math, observation and critical thinking, team building, innovation, and self-confidence. The organizations recognize the importance of engaging K-12 students in STEM subjects and demonstrating how these core competencies translate from the classroom into real-world applications and careers.
“STEM is vital to the success of our children and our company and whenever we can, we like to take the opportunity to get students excited about these subjects in fun and creative ways,” said Kathy Williams, chief financial officer at AREVA Inc. “We rely on organizations like WIN and NAYGN to focus especially on STEM outreach to young girls who, statistically, tend to lose interest in these subjects by age 8.”
Jennifer, a 5th grader and the daughter of one of our employees, shared some of her thoughts about the day stating, “I especially liked the LEGO® game. It was not only fun but taught me if you put things in order you can get things done faster. I [also] liked meeting new people and making new friends.”
In addition to our outreach activities in Charlotte, the Sweet Briar College “Explore Engineering” program visited our Technical Training Center in Lynchburg, Va., in July.
