Advancing ASME's Equity and Sustainability Agenda
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Equity & Sustainability
To understand why the ASME Foundation is focused on equity in engineering and sustainability for the world, it’s helpful to know these facts:
Today, less than 14 percent of engineers in the United States are women.
Only 9 percent are Hispanic or Latino … and just 3 percent are Black or African American.
Right now, in the United States, there are over 3 million available technical jobs that lack skilled people to fill them.
The eight warmest years in all of recorded history have been the last eight.
We believe these statistics are inextricably linked. It’s not enough just to engage more technical talent; we also need creative new approaches that can only flow from diverse perspectives. If our future depends on sustainability and diversity drives innovation, then equity in engineering is the only way forward.
The ASME Foundation has three strategies to accelerate the change that is needed: Education that Inspires. Careers that Matter. Ideas that Innovate.
ASME’s philanthropic programs aim to introduce the wonders of engineering in grade school, provide resources to students pursuing engineering degrees, support early-career professionals who aspire to serve the greater good, then nurture their innovative ideas that contribute to a cleaner, cooler, more productive planet.
We invite you to join us in this work. By donating, volunteering, or advocating, you further our goals of equity in engineering and sustainability for the world and help realize ASME’s mission to advance engineering for the benefit of humanity.
Stephanie Viola
Executive Director
ASME Foundation
Reinventing the Future
Something magical happened on a Thursday night in April when 230 people gathered at Washington, D.C.’s historic Willard Intercontinental Hotel for the ASME Foundation’s gala fundraiser. Honoring a trailblazing engineer, showcasing our ASME-supported innovators, and engaging an audience composed primarily of African American leaders from across the professional spectrum all contributed to a memorable evening with the theme “Reinventing the Future.”
Fitzroy Medal honoree Dr. Gwendolyn E. Boyd, center, with members of the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.
The program featured two extraordinary women, both engineers of color: Dr. Gwendolyn E. Boyd, who became the first woman to receive the prestigious ASME Fitzroy Medal; and Tinia Pina, co-founder and CEO of Renuble, the 2020 ISHOW USA winner that helps farmers convert agricultural waste into nutritious, organic food. Other speakers included Lt. Governor Aruna Miller of Maryland, engineering professor and founder of STEM NOLA Dr. Calvin Mackie, ASME Executive Director/CEO Tom Costabile, and humorist/journalist Mo Rocca, the evening’s emcee.
Maryland Lt. Governor Aruna Miller with Dr. Boyd and ASME Executive Director/CEO Tom Costabile.
Event sponsors included our Campaign champions, ComEd and Autodesk, and sponsors AronsonCare; Ansys; MedStar Health; National Renewable Energy Laboratory; PSM, a Hanwha Company; and Keith and Brownie Roe.
Funds raised in connection with the event benefited the new Dr. Gwendolyn E. Boyd Endowed Scholarship Fund for Equity in Engineering and ASME’s philanthropic programs. It’s not too late to donate, conveniently and securely, at the Foundation website.
ASME Foundation Program Highlights
The STEM Careers Coalition and Engineering Dreams, two of the ASME Foundation’s core K-12 programs, have reached over 338,000 students during academic year 2022-2023.
More than three-quarters of the participating schools are Title 1 qualified, with 56% of students from groups historically underrepresented in STEM studies and career paths.
Professional engineers who participate in ASME’s in-class DropMEIn! initiative reached more than 2,000 K-12 students this year, providing examples of real-world problem-solving. And this summer, ASME is partnering with Amazon Web Services in a pilot program offering summer camp experiences for kids interested in IT.
CAREERS THAT MATTER
ECMC Foundation Grant Fuels Internship Program
An $800,000 grant to the ASME Foundation by the ECMC Foundation will support ASME’s Community College Engineering Pathways Professional Internship Program, which launched earlier this year to provide career readiness and professional development training for community college students. After completing a series of online professional development courses, workshops, and assignments, participants are guaranteed a six- to ten-week summer internship at participating employers, including TAS Energy, JTEKT, ComEd, Institute for Advanced Learning and Research, Siemens Energy, and ASME.
You Can Fund
a Scholarship
Did you know that, for just $2,000, you can fund a one-time, tax-deductible scholarship award in your name or to honor a loved one? The ASME Foundation will ensure that the scholarship helps fund the engineering education of a deserving U.S. student.
Contact Gretchen Crutchfield, Development Manager, for information.
Diverse students at the more than 1,000 community colleges in the U.S. are critical to training the next-generation workforce needed to fill more than three million available jobs for skilled technical workers.
IDEAS THAT INNOVATE
ISHOW Innovators Advancing Global Sustainability
Applications are still being accepted for ISHOW USA. To date, we’ve received 265 applications from 20 countries (compared to an average of 150-160 in previous years). ASME’s entrepreneurial ecosystem is thriving.
Most E4C Impact Projects Ever!
For the 2022-23 fiscal year, more than 120 Engineering for Change impact projects were completed, involving over 90 collaborating organizations worldwide. The projects addressed 15 of the 17 U.N. Sustainable Development Goals.
The current cohort of 65 E4C Fellows is the largest yet. Since its inception, more than 200 E4C Fellows have participated from six continents. Of these, 45 percent are women.
E4C Fellows are early-career engineers who pursue either original research or field-based impact projects that address the UN SDGs. The six-month fellowships are funded through donations to the ASME Foundation.
Foundation News
Two new members have joined the ASME Philanthropy Committee.
ASME Fellow Dr. Ying Feng Pang is a principal engineer at Intel Corporation and a longtime Santa Clara Valley Section volunteer who has served as professional section chair, secretary, treasurer, and fundraising chair.
- Anita Rebarchak is Deputy Program Manager, Commercial Derivatives, Military Engines at Pratt & Whitney. Anita’s ASME participation dates to her leadership of Drexel University’s ASME student section, where she served as a Vice Chair, and continued at the Hartford, CT, section. Anita’s focus is on students and early career engagement.
Earlier this year, the ASME Philanthropy Department welcomed Rebecca Lakhani as Director, Corporate and Foundation Partnerships. Rebecca joined ASME from her previous role as Director of Philanthropy at the New York Hall of Science. She is a seasoned strategic development executive with more than 25 years of experience in relationship development, fundraising, and program planning and execution.
Support ASME Philanthropy
ASME’s Campaign for Next Generation Engineers is our five-year effort to raise funds to support our philanthropic programs in education, career resources, and sustainable innovation. From large corporate grants to small but meaningful individual donations, every dollar helps advance our goals of equity in engineering and sustainability for the world.
Please visit the donate page of our website to learn how you can join help.