User:Kaeli Meyer/Cynthia Chapple
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[edit]Lead
[edit]Early Life and Education
[edit]Chapple grew up on the south side of Chicago, Illinois with her parents and seven siblings . Cynthia’s father was a security guard, while her mother worked as a nursing assistant. This city is where she entertained science and math courses. She first encountered a large divide when she attended a math course at the University of Illinois Chicago, where she was one of the only black students.[1] At fifteen she was accepted into a biology program at Purdue University but quit attending when she found out she was the only black student.[1]
She earned her graduate degree at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.[2] While pursuing her education, Chapple faced racism and isolation for being a woman.[1] Before establishing Black Girls Do STEM (BGDS), Chapple worked for ELANTAS PDG Inc. as a senior chemical researcher.[1] Now Chapple works solely as the director for BGDS.[1]
Black Girls Do STEM
[edit]Cynthia Chapple is the founder and director of Black Girls Do STEM, or BGDS. Black Girls Do STEM was founded in 2018 in St. Louis, Missouri. Chapple spent the entirety of her college education as the minority in all of her science and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) related classes. This fact did not change as she entered the workplace as a research chemist[3]. These experiences led Chapple to want to develop change. She first thought of the idea while working on her masters in 2015[3].
In 2018, BDGS was officially starting up their first after-school classes. The program is geared towards black girls in grades six- twelve from inner-cities. During each session, Chapple creates an immersive experience for the girls to get hands on with STEM activities. These activities span from a range of different STEM ideas, but also incorporate everyday life: recipes, bus routes, astrology, makeup, and more[4]. On top of this, she teaches the girls about creating boundaries and perseverance in order to expand their toolkit for success[3].
As Black Girls Do STEM has grown over the years, Chapple has been able to recruit many mentors to join her team. All of these mentors are in the field of STEM, and Chapple uses this fact to introduce different areas of STEM to the girls[4]. In the year 2022, only four years after being founded, over 160 girls have expressed interest in BDGS[3].
Mohan, Megha (January 13, 2022). "'As a black women in STEM I am used for photo opportunities'". BBC. Retrieved November 10, 2024. [3]
Hamdan, Lara (February 3, 2021). "This Chemist Is Helping Black Girls In St. Louis Fall In Love With STEM". stlpr npr. Retrieved November 10, 2024. [4]
- ^ a b c d e "St. Louis Section–American Chemical Society » Cynthia Chapple on racism in STEM". Retrieved 2024-11-19.
- ^ Milford, Lauren (2022-05-20). "Space for STEM". STLMade. Retrieved 2024-11-19.
- ^ a b c d e f Mohan, Megha (January 13, 2022). "'As a black women in STEM I am used for photo opportunities'". BBC. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
- ^ a b c d Hamdan, Lara (February 3, 2021). "This Chemist Is Helping Black Girls In St. Louis Fall In Love With STEM". stlpr npr. Retrieved November 10, 2024.