STEAM possible: Opening up the 8th grade mind

Panelists share stories of paths taken, lessons learned

Catalina Martinez, a physical scientist with NOAA’s Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, grew up in a large, traditional, multi-generational Cuban family that didn’t view education as important for girls.

Still, she told about 60 eighth graders at The Learning Community, “Somehow, I always knew that I needed to get an education to improve my life. I lived in a very diverse community, so I could see there was more out there beyond the limited vision my family had of what girls could do.”

“Most of all, I want them to understand that they have unlimited potential and that even though they may have started life in challenging circumstances, that obstacles can become minor detours instead of outright barriers if they persevere.”

Tapped to participate in the school’s Career Month STEAM Panel on Wednesday, March 4, Martinez was joined by Melita Morales, Rose Martin and Chris Ladds, sharing the educational and career journeys that led them to where they are now.

Morales, formerly an art educator in California, works as the EPSCoR/STEAM Engagement & Communications Coordinator at the Edna Lawrence Nature Lab at Rhode Island School of Design.

Martin is a Ph.D. candidate in the biology department at the University of Rhode Island and a former Rhode Island NSF Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) graduate fellow. Chris Ladds added his perspective as an architect and principal with LLB Architects in Pawtucket, RI.

Although each story was different, the common thread was the steadfast pursuit of one’s passion. The journeys often took an indirect path, but staying true to oneself and seeking guidance from those wiser and more experienced led each of the panelists to doing their life’s work.

No obstacle too great

“I work for the office of ocean exploration!” Martinez exclaimed. “We explore the ocean. How cool is that?”

A dream job, indeed, for someone like Martinez, who always nursed a passion for the ocean. However, her path was strewn with many, seemingly insurmountable obstacles.

Living on her own at age 16 after dropping out of school, she found a Providence community center that helped her study for the General Educational Development (GED) tests. After a few years working in factories and other unskilled labor jobs, she began studying for an associates degree in medical assisting from the New England Institute of Technology.

From there, she was hired by Rob DeBlois to help start the Urban Collaborative Program (UCAP) in Providence, described as a second chance school for students who are at serious risk of dropping out. Martinez had the perspective and cultural awareness needed for the job. Having had dropped out of school, she understood where the program’s kids were headed without proper intervention.

“Know that it will take a lot of hard work to get where you want to be in life. Also know that you will need good guidance to help you make the right choices. Take math and science when you go into high school. Take advantage of the classes offered. Define your own future. Don’t let anyone define that for you.”

Throughout her five years with UCAP, Martinez continued taking college courses, one per semester. At age 28, she enrolled at URI as a full-time junior after transferring all the credits she had accumulated throughout the years.

She had no formal training in math or science, but was determined to begin studying science and entered URI’s zoology program. She spent much of her time in a tutor’s office to bridge her academic gaps, and worked in a domestic abuse shelter as an overnight resident, assisting clients in crisis to support herself until entering graduate school at URI.

Ultimately, Martinez told the students, she followed her passion and earned graduate degrees in oceanography and marine affairs, which led her to NOAA, or as she called it, “the wet NASA.” While in graduate school, she returned to UCAP and developed a marine science program.

“Many of us have to overcome adversity in life,” Martinez said. “This should never be viewed as a weakness. It’s a strength. Don’t let anyone tell you different. Know that it will take a lot of hard work to get where you want to be in life. Also know that you will need good guidance to help you make the right choices.

“Take math and science when you go into high school. Take advantage of the classes offered. Define your own future. Don’t let anyone define that for you.”

Finding opportunities in STEAM

After surveying students about their interests, The Learning Community, an RI NSF EPSCoR outreach partner, invited speakers representing a broad range of careers, from a police sergeant and firefighter to a veterinarian, physician, parks and recreation employee, chef, and attorney.

“We really want students to start thinking about what’s next,” said Carey Bledsoe, the school’s middle grades co-coordinator and instructional coach. “Of course, we’re talking about high school and college, but we want students to think about what’s next.”

The impetus to pull together a STEAM panel, representing science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics, came from research that indicates these fields are where the greatest career opportunities lie, she noted.

“Then one day, I wandered into the art department. I found this was the place I wanted to be. These people were my people. I became an art major.”

Morales told the eighth grade audience that while she liked high school, no single subject stoked any particular interest until she took a physiology class: “My favorite part was that we kept a sketchbook. I thought that’s what science was going to be like.”

However, once at college and following a biology major track, Morales soon discovered that her choice was not about drawing in sketchbooks. Sitting in big lecture halls, she said she felt lost, didn’t know how to advocate on her behalf, and couldn’t connect with her professors.

“Then one day, I wandered into the art department,” she recalled. “I found this was the place I wanted to be. These people were my people. I became an art major.”

But, Morales added, she never lost her love of science or her desire to work with young people. She became an art educator and found a way to explore the world and collaborate with others. In hindsight, she said, she didn’t think in high school that she could be an artist because she saw art as more about the traditional painting and sculpting whereas she gravitated toward pop art and cartooning.

If at first you don’t succeed

Martin, although interested in science from an early age, didn’t see the field as accessible. She didn’t know any scientists and the picture in her mind was “an old man in a white coat.”

She enrolled at URI with microbiology as her intended major: “It didn’t work out to well. My grades were so-so. I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I didn’t have direction.”

“It opened up a whole new world for me. That was a turning point. It was very exciting. These were the first people to ever suggest to me, ‘You should think about a graduate degree and get a research job.'”

Then, she took a soil science class and the subject matter resonated. The professor suggested she switch her major to environmental science. He and other mentors along the way helped steer her educational discovery.

“It opened up a whole new world for me,” Martin said. “That was a turning point. It was very exciting. These were the first people to ever suggest to me, ‘You should think about a graduate degree and get a research job.’”

Describing the appeal of his field, Ladds told the students: “In the end, you get to see something actually built. You also see people inside of it, enjoying the space, either working in the space or living in the space.”

He explained the depth and breadth of architecture today, the consideration of energy efficiency and sustainability of buildings, looking at the many layers, from pipes and pumps to the outer skin.

“As far as STEAM in architecture,” Ladds said, “it’s all there. It all comes together in designing a building.”

Asked by a student what he did in high school, before he found his chosen field, Ladds said he did a lot of painting of imaginary worlds; water was one of his favorite subjects. He would cut through the water and paint what was below the surface, similar to a diorama.

“Draw on paper with pencil,” Ladds urged. “I always recommend that. Learn how to do that before relying on a computer to generate it for you.”

Later, reflecting on the morning panel, Martinez said she viewed sharing her story and excitement of the natural world with underserved students as the most important part of her job. She said they needed to know that where they begin their life does not determine where they end up, that they must look beyond their immediate environment and expose themselves to new opportunities.

Martinez added, “Most of all, I want them to understand that they have unlimited potential and that even though they may have started life in challenging circumstances, that obstacles can become minor detours instead of outright barriers if they persevere.”

Story by Amy Dunkle|Photo by Tim Pelletier