- I decided to participate
in the Amelia Earhart Summit
because it's a great
opportunity for women engineers
to socialize and get together
and hear from leaders in the fields,
whether they be men or women,
and to realize that
there's maybe more of them
in engineering than they think there are.
So it's a great opportunity
to have a student-led project
and symposium that brings in
some leaders in the industry.
When I was growing up,
the word can't was outlawed
in our house (laughs).
That was not a word I could use.
I think for me I was so
determined to do this
and I was so interested in it,
I didn't really let the lack
of role models or lack of,
at least people who looked
like me in terms of gender,
discourage me.
One thing that has really
helped me in my career
and when I was here at Purdue
was to focus on similarities
rather than differences.
Gender's just one thing, right?
And sure it differentiates
you from others in some ways,
but when you really start thinking about
what are we all interested
in, what are we here for,
what are we here to study,
we all have that in common.
So no matter what your gender is
or any other distinguishing
characteristic,
it doesn't really matter all that much.
I would actually characterize
mentoring and teaching
as important throughout my career.
I was part of the women
engineering mentoring program
even when I was a graduate
student here at Purdue.
Mentoring has both, being
mentored and being a mentor,
has been important throughout my career.
So, I think having the
opportunity to pay it forward
and to have somebody
learn from my experiences
is a great way to do that.
And when I mentor people, I learn too.
So it's a learning
experience for me as well
when I have the opportunity
to interact with other people.
