The reason I decided to pursue my career in the United States is very simple, but also quite sad. I was born and raised in Iran, where students are required to take religion classes, with the total hours per week being even more than some STEM subjects. I was encouraged to pay attention to my sewing classes more than my math class. Schools are separated by sex, male and female. If you are in the latter category, you don’t have access to a laboratory. For the sake of better education, my mom, brother, and I moved to Türkiye, where I finished high school with a Turkish Diploma. It is still a developing country, but at least all genders have the same access to education. Despite all these obstacles for a woman to be able to pursue science, you look at different scientific journals and you come across so many Persians and Iranians who have clawed their way into academia, left the country, and become who they always wanted to be.
In the past two years, I have run away from my past, trying to adapt to the culture of a country that is completely different from what I knew. But no matter how hard I have tried, it is still who I am: a woman in STEM from a third world country. Lately, I have been sitting with my feelings, trying to figure out who I am and what my background represents for me. That is why I decided to join the Girls and Women and STEM Club, or GWIS, after receiving an invitation from the current president, Isabella Galvan’28.
For those unfamiliar with GWIS, it is a club at Beloit College whose main goal is to encourage and uplift young women in STEM. Our aim is to organize events that build community and provide support. We want our club to be visible to others so young women can see positive examples of what they can achieve. When funding allows, we also hope to bring the broader community into our activities so that we can support girls from a young age and show them that STEM can be a place for them, too.
Galvan, the current president, shared her story with the club. “When I was 12 years old in sixth grade, I was invited by GWIS at Beloit to come stay overnight and explore the different STEM fields through fun and engaging activities,” she said. “I met so many strong and capable women that night who were students of Beloit College. That was the first time I had heard about Beloit, and ever since then I knew I wanted to go to Beloit. That was also when I knew I wanted to pursue science. Being President of GWIS is such a full circle moment for me, and I would like to eventually bring back the community aspect to our club so we can engage a wider audience.”
Galvan’s story is exactly why clubs like GWIS matter. Sometimes, all it takes is seeing someone who looks like you, comes from a similar background, or has gone through something you resonate with to make you believe you can do it as well. Supporting women in STEM is not only about encouraging women to become scientists, doctors, engineers, or researchers. It is also about creating an environment where they feel they belong, and are desired. I can for sure say that STEM can be intimidating, especially when you are entering a room where you do not see many peers like yourself. For me, GWIS is not just another club. It is a constant reminder of the obstacles I faced growing up that do not have to define who I can become. And we want GWIS to be that ray of sunlight for someone else, too.
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