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Founded in 1999 in Indianapolis by a female scientist from Eli Lilly & Co. and a female academician from Indiana University, Women & Hi Tech exists to change the landscape of women represented in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) to be equally inclusive to all. To achieve our goal, we work to mentor, advance, recognize, and connect female STEM students and professionals with each other and our community in Indiana. Our members and sponsors represent a wide array of STEM fields, including life sciences, accounting, engineering, psychology, statistics, and information technology.

Women & Hi Tech is run by an all-volunteer, working Board of Directors and are looking for candidates who are actively engaged with the organization, and will bring wisdom, experience, effectiveness, candor, and creative thinking. We are passionate about our organization and the meaningful work we do and are looking for like-minded individuals. We do not take the term “working board” lightly. At any given time, a Director is leading her/his own area of responsibility while also contributing to other areas of the organization, including serving on committees, participating in Women & Hi Tech events, and representing Women & Hi Tech in the community.

The call for nominations closes May 25, 2022. Multiple nominations from a single candidate are permitted. All nominations will be reviewed by the Nomination Committee. Nominees must be Women & Hi Tech members in good standing at the time of initial voting and must remain in good standing throughout their tenure.

New board members take office on July 1, 2022.Board Orientation for new Directors will be conducted in-person the afternoon/evening of June 20th (4:30-8:30 pm in Fishers). Please save this date when you submit your application.

To apply or nominate an individual, please review the job descriptions and policies linked below and complete the online form by May 25, 2022. Thank you for your interest!

• Secretary 
• Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Director
  
  
• Code of Conduct & Conflict of Interest Policy for Members of the Board
• Active Board of Directors & Active Emeritus Member Participation Requirements

Thank you again to everyone who attended our February Special Edition Virtual Executive Women’s Forum with Dr. Vivian Cintron. Many attendees submitted questions we were not able to cover in the allotted time. Dr. Cintron was kind enough to provide written responses!

Fig 1

1.    What is the viability of dual (RNA-based and Immuno) assays for viral viability screening (not definitive/diagnostics) of large (>100) groups of people?

The rapid and accurate detection of COVID-19 is the first step for managing and controlling the spread. This is achieved by detection of SARS-CoV-2 by real- time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction

The first step in managing COVID-19 is the rapid and accurate detection of SARS-CoV-2 enabled by real-time reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction (RT–PCR)1.

RT–PCR detects SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acids present in nasopharyngeal fluids 2. This testing is used to prevent infectious spread between persons and communities that include asymptomatic infected persons, whose viral shedding can inadvertently spread the infection to the elderly and those with disease comorbidities 3. This specific test offers high sensitivity however it takes 4-5 to obtain the results at a laboratory setting. Other type of testing is the serological testing which can indicate a past infection based on the antibodies detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay using a qualitative detection of IgG or IgM antibodies 4. Such tests determine an immune response against the viral spike (S) protein and may be helpful to assess protection against subsequent viral exposure and/or for contact tracing purposes 5. Thus, the importance of such tests cannot be overstated, however this testing setting is prone to low specificity due to the collection of samples, exposure time or incubation during the first infection phase and variations in the testing platforms. Improving this test for sensitivity and specificity are urgent matters.1

Although RT–qPCR is the current standard for detection of nucleic acids, new methods, such as pulse-controlled amplification, are being evaluated. Pulse-controlled amplification does not require RNA extraction and can be carried out in 10 min with a small device 6. In the future, S- and N-based immunodiagnostic platforms will work alongside nucleic acid amplification tests to increase detection sensitivity of COVID-19 at minimal cost 7. The aim of these dual platforms will produce results in a short time and less expensive for mass production 8. 

2.    In your opinion, when do you anticipate organizations being safely able to host in-person events?

As the COVID-19 hospitalizations are decreasing, more events will be hosted in person leaving the best practices of prevention (mask or face coverings) to the public discretion.

3.    Do you think we'll require annual Covid vaccinations, like the flu shot?

This is a topic of great discussion now that more events are face to face. As the scientist are still elucidating more data, the recommendations of a second booster will be towards the vulnerable population that has been affected during the pandemic, this will be those members of the community at age of 70 above or immunocompromised patients. Currently, several Pharmaceuticals are exploring the development of an annual dual vaccine: flu and coronavirus.

4.    What precautions/advice do you have for someone with a newborn?

Children represent about 19% of all reported COVID-19 cases in the U.S. since the pandemic began. About 7.6 million child cases have been reported since early September 2021.9

While children are as likely to get COVID-19 as adults, kids are less likely to become severely ill. Up to 50% of children and adolescents might have COVID-19 with no symptoms. However, some children with COVID-19 need to be hospitalized, treated in the intensive care unit, or placed on a ventilator to help them breathe.9

Babies under age 1 might be at higher risk of severe illness with COVID-19 than older children. Newborns can get COVID-19 during childbirth or by exposure to sick caregivers after delivery.

It is recommended If you have COVID-19 or are waiting for test results due to symptoms during your stay in the hospital after childbirth, wear a well-fitting face mask and have clean hands when caring for your newborn. Keeping your newborn's crib by your bed while you are in the hospital is fine, however it is recommended to maintain a reasonable distance from your baby when possible. When these steps are taken, the risk of a newborn getting COVID-19 is low.

If you are severely ill with COVID-19, you might need to be temporarily separated from your newborn. It is also recommended that the baby's caregivers wear face masks and wash their hands to protect themselves. Frequent follow-up with the baby's doctor is needed by phone, virtual visits, or in-office visits for 14 days. Infants who test negative for COVID-19 can be sent home from the hospital.9

5.    For in-person gatherings (bridal shower, team potluck, etc.) how do you recommend the food to be served?  Individually wrapped portions or is a self serve buffet ok?

For in person events, food should be serve taking all potential precautions avoiding handling the food without sanitation measures. If there is an event with few participants having a small unit desk with hand sanitizer prior to the line up for food banquets might be a favorable practice.

6.    How safe is it to travel abroad?

Traveling measures will soon start changing regarding mask or face coverings at the onboarding stage of the airplane. Be alert for those announcements.

Traveling abroad is fine, however knowing the cases of COVID-19 infections prior to the country visit is recommended in addition to be cognizant of mass gatherings that could be a place of spreading in case of an infection. Utilization of appropriate reasonable face covering could be a good practice.

7.    What is the Stealth variant?

BA.2, or known as the “stealth omicron,” is one of three known sublineages of Omicron. BA.2 differs from the omicron in mutations in the spike protein and other areas according to the World Health Organization. While this mutation makes it more difficult to identify as Omicron on some tests, it does not make the virus more difficult to detect.

BA.2 is more transmissible than the original Omicron variant (BA.1), though exactly how much more is still unknown. In February 2022, early studies from the UK and Denmark found BA.2 was 30% more transmissible.10 The risk of hospitalization is the same in BA.1 and BA.2 based on reviews from Denmark, India, South Africa and the United Kingdom.11 Vaccinated people are still less likely to get infected by either variant compared to non-vaccinated people.

As of March 2022, BA.2 has become the dominant variant globally, according to the World Health Organization.12

In the United States, BA.2 accounted for over a third of new cases, according to the CDC. While a new surge is not expected, health officials have warned that overall COVID-19 infections could rise across the US, parallel to trends in the UK and Europe.12

Fig 2

References

1. Liu, R. et al. Positive rate of RT–PCR detection of SARS-CoV-2 infection in 4880 cases from one hospital in Wuhan, China, from Jan to Feb 2020. Clin. Chim. Acta 505, 172–175 (2020).

2. Research Use Only 2019-Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) Real-time RT-PCR Primers and Probes (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2020); https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/lab/rt-pcr-panel-primer-probes.html

3. Wang, B., Li, R., Lu, Z. & Huang, Y. Does comorbidity increase the risk of patients with COVID-19: evidence from meta-analysis. Aging 12, 6049–6057 (2020).

4. Pan, Y. et al. Serological immunochromatographic approach in diagnosis with SARS-CoV-2 infected COVID-19 patients. J. Infect. 81, e28–e32 (2020).

5. Lin, D. et al. Evaluations of the serological test in the diagnosis of 2019 novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) infections during the COVID-19 outbreak. Eur. J. Clin. Microbiol. Infect. Dis. 39, 2271–2277 (2020).

6. Zwirglmaier, K. et al. Rapid detection of SARS-CoV-2 by pulse-controlled amplification (PCA). Preprint at medRxiv https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.07.29.20154104 (2020).

7. Infantino, M. et al. Serological assays for SARS-CoV-2 infectious disease: benefits, limitations, and perspectives. Isr. Med. Assoc. J. 22, 203–210 (2020).

8. Wang, D. et al. Clinical characteristics of 138 hospitalized patients with 2019 novel coronavirus-infected pneumonia in Wuhan, China. J. Am. Med. Assoc. 323, 1061–1069 (2020).

9. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/coronavirus/in-depth/coronavirus-in-babies-and-children/art-20484405

10. https://edition.cnn.com/2022/02/23/health/covid-ba2-omicron-studies-explainer/index.html

11. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SARS-CoV-2_Omicron_variant#Severity_and_immunity

12. https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/medical/ba2-covid-subvariant-now-dominant-worldwide/ar-AAVjtOU

13. https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#variant-proportions

Fig 1Ref: Dreamtime.com

Fig 2 https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#variant-proportions

On October 6th, 2022, Women & Hi Tech will host its signature biennial event, the Leading Light Awards and Scholarship Gala (LLAs). Women & Hi Tech is excited to announce the applications and nominations for the 2022 Leading Light Awards and Scholarship Gala are open!

The theme of this year’s event will be focused on how we are all “In This Together.” The last two years have had impacts on the world that none of us could have imagined. This event will give us an opportunity to focus on how we have come together during these challenging times, particularly in the STEM community, and to celebrate and encourage each other and our community as we go forward. 

We are excited to have Jennie Lopez as this year’s Leading Light Awards Emcee. Jennie is currently the head of Global Recruiting and Talent Acquisition for Eli Lilly and Company. She is also an executive board member for the Organization of Latinx at her company focusing on developing and accelerating Latinx talent and joined the Board of Directors for Genesis Research in 2021.

In the face of the stress, distraction and disruption caused by the pandemic, there were many who persevered. Women & Hi Tech President Linda Hicks calls on communities across Indiana to bring these stories forward. 

“Do you know someone who rose above the tough times and still made a significant difference? Someone whose actions elevated our Women & Hi Tech mission for more STEM inclusion? Or a student who has been determined to push through the confusion and achieve their goals? We plan to recognize and celebrate these achievements and create an inspiring evening for our STEM community."

Women & Hi Tech would be delighted to have you and your organization join us for this remarkable evening at the Indiana Rooftop Ballroom! Learn more about the event at https://womenandhitech.org/2022-Leading-Light-Awards/.

About Women & Hi Tech:

Women & Hi Tech is a 501(c)3 charitable organization founded in Indianapolis in 1999 by Eli Lilly scientist, Joyce Gustafson, and Indiana University academic, Georgia Miller. Over the last two decades, Women & Hi Tech has blazed a trail for supporting, recognizing, and advancing outstanding women and girls pursuing STEM fields in Indiana. In that time, Women & Hi Tech has become a pillar of the local STEM community through its educational, professional development, recognition, mentoring, and networking programs, which provide valuable resources to champion collegiate and career women, along with STEM exposure opportunities for K-12 girls. A membership of almost 2000 professionals and students operated by an all-volunteer working Board of Directors and Emeritus, Women & Hi Tech is the only non-profit organization founded and focused in Indiana that is dedicated to changing the landscape of women represented in STEM to be equally inclusive to all.

Cynthia Bennett, Women & Hi Tech’s  K-12 Outreach Director, has a personal perspective on her role with Women & Hi Tech. “I speak from experience as a young person who knew there were resources and professionals helping other students guide and grow their careers—and having those feelings, wondering if anyone would ever show up for us someday. I always said when I could be the voice for those who are forgotten or unseen, I would gather a group and share the message that the marginalized, too, can be anything they want to be.”

Cynthia assumes the role of K-12 Outreach Director after serving as the Committee Co-Chair since 2020. She is excited to share some wins that have already been achieved. “We met our reach-goal with Girl Scouts by doing virtual STEM programming to girls across the state. The leaders were so happy we could do that. It gave us a chance to use the T in STEM and be forward-facing.” Cynthia also spoke on a career panel for The Girls STEM Institute at IUPUI. “It was such an honor to share my story with girls in high school who intend to pursue STEM careers. They asked great questions about how I got where I am in my career.”

Looking ahead, she shared some insight into her goals. “I have a major goal to reach out to schools in underserved communities. I want to expose the students to smart women who can speak to them, encourage them to pursue careers in STEM, and help them be good students.” She is also excited about the potential for advancing impactful partnering opportunities with youth serving organizations, such as Girls Inc. of Greater Indianapolis and their Eureka STEM program and continuing to grow the relationship with the Girl Scouts of Central Indiana.

“We need to be encouraging students we don’t interact with on a continual basis. That’s the inclusion element that makes the pipeline more diverse and allows people access to STEM opportunities who don’t even know they can have a seat at the table. We will continue to align our thinking and our actions to reach students who really need us.”

Sahara Williams practices law in the areas of intellectual property and data privacy and security. Before her recent career change into law, she was an engineer for many years.

Becoming the networking director for Women & Hi Tech felt like a natural progression for Sahara. She’s been deeply involved with volunteering for most of her professional life, including with Eastern Star Church, the National Society for Black Engineers, and Alpha Kappa Alpha—just to name a few. In her role with Women & Hi Tech, she’s excited to deliver events that promote the organization’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.

According to Sahara, networking starts with developing meaningful connections. And that’s the same for equity and inclusion. She went on to say, “Both networking and equity start with talking, communicating, and building relationships that facilitate support, friendship, and collaboration toward greater goals. It’s so important to have an environment where people can come together and feel welcome for exactly who they are, without feeling any pressure to change anything about themselves or where they are in their own personal life and journey.”

Over the next year, Sahara has set a goal to diversify member engagement. “We started a committee to lead the networking events planning efforts for Women & Hi Tech. And not just to do the planning ourselves, but to engage our members in the process. We want to know what their ideas are, what they’re experiencing, what they’re feeling, how they’ve been impacted by events, and what’s working well (and what’s not).” While we won’t share too many details just yet, Sahara and her committee have some exciting events planned for 2022 to help members connect with one another in more meaningful and intentional ways!

A few final notes from Sahara: “A member survey about the holiday event is now live. Please fill it out honestly and openly so we can ensure we’re being responsive to the needs of our organization. And, if you’re interested in sharing any thoughts or ideas about events, please email me so we can explore how to incorporate them into the planning process.” Sahara can be reached at networking@womenandhitech.org.

Joy Neely is the Vice President of Sales at CareMetx, a healthcare technology company that provides patient services to pharmaceutical manufacturers and diagnostics companies. She has also been a board member for Women & Hi Tech for three years, and currently holds our newly-created board position of Engagement, Diversity & Inclusion Director (EDI).

Throughout her professional career, Joy has been actively engaged in business resource groups and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion leadership opportunities in the organizations where she has worked and volunteered. Still, she wanted to be more connected within her community. She was introduced to Women & Hi Tech at her previous employer, Roche Diagnostics Corporation, while serving as the Co-Lead for the Women’s Leadership Initiative—one of the Roche Diagnostics Business Resource Groups. She quickly found that Women & Hi Tech was an excellent fit for her to plug into, and the organization has a mission that aligns with her values.

In 2019, she became the Corporate Engagement Director and was in that role for two years. Throughout her professional career, she held several sales and business development roles and this was a great way to leverage her strengths, identifying new sponsors for Women & Hi Tech to partner with. In 2020 the board saw an opportunity to make a step change improvement in our diversity strategy by creating a new board position—and the Engagement, Diversity & Inclusion Director role was born. Joy quickly jumped at the chance to fill this role and establish a strong foundation.

The Women & Hi Tech Board has been on a journey to continually improve the organization’s diversity and to formalize its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion strategy. Joy was able to join the board during a pivotal time when Angela B. Freeman was the President of Women & Hi Tech. Under Angela’s leadership, the board attended the 2-day training course, Interrupting Racism for our Children, that focused on increasing the diversity of the board.

This commitment to diverse board leadership has continued with Rebecca Bormann and Linda Hicks' presidencies. A Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Statement was also created and added to the Women & Hi Tech website.

This new role formalizes the path forward for the future.

In the fall of 2021, Joy launched an Engagement, Diversity & Inclusion Committee of Women & Hi Tech members that represent local Indianapolis organizations, including Infosys, Eli Lilly & Company, Roche Diagnostics, Optum, Allison Transmission, Bell Techlogix, Six Feet Up, and Optimist Business Solutions. This power-house team is composed of Key Opinion Leaders in the DEI space that will help create the blueprint of the Goals, Objectives, Tactics, and Measures to enable Women & Hi Tech to be better aligned with members, sponsors, and community organizations.

Joy is excited and grateful to this committee of thought-partners and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion experts for allowing Women & Hi Tech to understand any gaps in the current strategy and assist the organization with building a plan to level up.

Stay tuned for updates to the Women & Hi Tech Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Strategy, Goals, and Objectives in 2022.

Personal branding is a topic many of our members have expressed interest in learning more about. We were so excited to host a discussion about best practices on November 17^th! Women & Hi Tech President Linda Hicks and Past President Rebecca Bormann led the conversation. Here are some of the main ideas and tips we took away from the discussion.

• Personal branding encompasses not just what people say about you, but also what they think about you and expect from your presence. Therefore, social media is an important element of personal branding, but only when the persona you present is backed up and confirmed by your behaviors.

•  Your personal brand also lets people know what you stand for, your values, and your boundaries. Sharing articles and observations, as well as anecdotes and moments of vulnerability, helps reinforce your truth by showing others, not telling them.

• Authenticity is essential to personal branding. Many attendees agreed that it is off-putting when someone presents one way on social media or at work, then behaves totally differently in other areas of their life. In fact, this inspires some professionals to stay off social media altogether, to avoid misalignment between their personal brand and professional brand.

To better-define your personal brand, start with two or three words that describe how you want to be perceived. Then, ask others in your life for “360 feedback.” This is a list of questions sent to a wide variety of the people you interact with, including friends, peers, supervisors, vendors, and more. 

Collecting anonymous responses lets you learn how you are perceived across the broad spectrum of your life. Do you come across in the way you aspire? What experiences does your network have with you that confirms or contradicts your desired personal brand?

Another proven step to build your brand is consistency. Find your cadence and desired tone and be consistent in how and where you share those messages.

If developing and deepening your personal brand and executive presence are some of your goals in 2022, we would love for you to join us for a new Women & Hi Tech Professional Development Series on Executive Presence and Personal Branding launching in January! Through pre-recorded training and small group exercises, we can’t wait to help our members grow their personal presence, capacity to achieve buy-in, and negotiation skills. Learn more and register to join us for one, two, or all three sessions!

This year, we took our proprietary OperationAll programming virtual with an amazing panel on November 18th. 

Linda Hicks, President of Women & Hi Tech, and board member Tiffany White kicked off the event in agreement that more involvement from male allies earlier in their careers would have helped them feel more welcomed and empowered in their roles as engineers.

Then, we got to hear tips, insights, and anecdotes about male allyship from our panel of experts. Here are a few of the gems we heard from each participant:

Doug Theis, Director of National Strategy at Expedient 

“If leadership is not modeling and communicating about appropriate culture, then it’s hard for others to follow. That’s where men need female allies to give them honest feedback and even call them out when behavior is acting as a barrier, rather than a bridge.” 

Chris Fultz, Program Executive, B-52 / F130 at Rolls-Royce 

“Not recognizing the value of a woman’s input because there is a man you trust more can be a very harmful behavior. This even extends to job postings. Be aware of how you are listing what is required for a role versus what is desired.” 

Calvin Hendryx-Parker, Chief Technology Officer and Co-founder of Six Feet Up

“You can’t deal with a situation if you don’t start with your own behaviors and reactions. Men may tend to cut people off because we have a great idea and want to express it, but it’s been important for me to learn to pause and give room for everyone’s voice to be heard.”  

Wayne Patrick, Chief Revenue Officer at AIS 

“Make the issue personal. Give it the ‘what if’ test. What would you want done if a woman in your life was going through the experiences of your colleagues? When the issue becomes real to you in this way, you will be a better listener and a better advocate.”

Ben Phillips, Director in the Audit and Assurance Services, Katz, Sapper, & Miller and Treasurer of Women & Hi Tech. 

“Allow yourself time to practice allyship. Give yourself the kindness to take baby steps and work toward building connections and self-awareness. Don’t assume you know what opportunities people want, what they want to learn, or that you can speak for them.”

Listen to the full panel recording to learn how each panelist defines allyship, the strategies for equity and inclusion that have worked at their organizations, and what to do in tense situations. Thank you again to all these experts for sharing their stories and perspectives! We are so grateful to have these allies in our mission to change the landscape for women in STEM and make these industries equally inclusive to all. 

Amber Peckham is the new Communications Director of Women & Hi Tech. She applied for this position after volunteering with Women & Hi Tech for many years as part of her role as a Senior Content Manager at Metonymy Media, a longtime sponsor. “My past colleague Darcy Lee served as President of Women & Hi Tech during her time working at Metonymy. Through her we were able to get involved with creating content for Women & Hi Tech.” This included member and board member profiles, putting Amber directly in touch with the incredible stories every member of Women & Hi Tech has to tell.

“I was fascinated to learn about so many diverse STEM industries, and inspired and motivated by the women’s stories of overcoming barriers in their professional and personal lives.” When she learned the Communications role was available, she felt called to step up and help amplify the stories of the organization. “I am from a small town in rural Indiana. I loved chemistry, but I literally remember thinking that there wasn’t any way to have a job doing chemistry--because I wasn’t hearing those stories or seeing those role models.”

Amber’s goals in her role include supporting Women & Hi Tech’s statewide expansion initiatives, which will be starting in Fort Wayne and Columbus in 2022. “I want to make sure we are telling stories of people in those communities, and the work they are doing to improve their own little corner of our beautiful state and its hidden gem, the STEM ecosystem.” Amber also aspires to drive member engagement and make more potential members aware of Women & Hi Tech statewide through keyword optimization of the website.

“As a creative professional, I bring a unique perspective to the table, since most of my fellow board members have backgrounds in science, technology, engineering, and math. Working together, we are going to achieve incredible things.”

Hannah Stork is a Client Executive for the software development company Rural Sourcing, based in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Hannah decided to join Women & Hi Tech because of her desire to engage with, support, and learn from other women in STEM.

As our Corporate Engagement Director, Hannah has made it her mission to help Women & Hi Tech become a statewide movement. In her role, Hannah develops creative and engaging ways to grow the organization’s sponsorship base across Indiana with focuses currently in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne and Columbus. She is also a member of our Infrastructure task force which is committed to engaging and support more women outside of the greater Indianapolis area. Hannah is leading the implementation of Women & Hi Tech’s first Fort Wayne in-person event in 2022.Details will be published in Q1 of 2022.

Hannah brings a fresh pair of eyes and creativity to her role. As an example, she recently met with a potential sponsor who didn’t have very many employees based in Indiana. However, they were so impressed with Women &Hi Tech’ s mission and organization, they decided to become a sponsor and donate some of their memberships to Indiana STEM college students and other individuals who may not otherwise have access. Hannah’s ability to “sell” the benefits of Women & Hi Tech membership has resulted in several new sponsors and a great pipeline of sponsor candidates. Needless to say, she’s keeping very busy!

Regarding her overarching goals as a board member of Women & Hi Tech, Hannah wants to be an active force in helping women without STEM degrees be equally represented in STEM. “I want women like me to understand that a STEM career is not off-limits. There are plenty of opportunities in STEM for people who don’t have a technical background but are interested in technology and science. I feel honored to be part of an initiative that is exposing women and young girls to the endless opportunities that exist in science, technology, engineering, and math.”