Black Lives Matter

 
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As an organization, Santa Barbara Women in STEM was started to give women in these fields a platform we felt was otherwise hidden to bring together voices, talents, and resources to help elevate women and girls of all ages. In light of recent and repeated injustices, we are making it our responsibility to amplify the voices of the Black Community here in Santa Barbara, but also across the globe. We encourage you to listen, learn, and educate yourselves and your peers regarding the centuries of systemic racial discrimination, the history we are seeing unfold, and how we can be better allies for our Black, Indigenous, and People of Color colleagues in our respective fields and communities. Know that we cannot truly successfully move forward individually until we can all move forward together.

To learn about the upcoming Juneteenth Celebration, Digital Diaspora, presented by Juneteenth Santa Barbara, please follow this link.

Please take advantage of the resources we have compiled ranging from local resources to educational information to national efforts to a few highlighted Black groups and individuals in STEM fields. By no means do we believe we are experts in this field, but we are committed to going through this learning process with you. We appreciate any feedback or additional resources you would like to share with our broader community. You can find these resources below.

#BlackLivesMatter

Resources:

Local Black Organizations - follow their direction and listen to their needs - donate if you can.

African American Women of Santa Barbara County

Black Lives Matter Santa Barbara Chapter

Juneteenth Santa Barbara

NAACP of Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara Young Black Professionals


Memorial Donation Pages

Community Support for Robert Fuller

Dominique “Rem’mie” Falls Funeral Costs

Justice for Breonna Taylor

Official George Floyd Memorial Fund

Official GoFundMe Page for Rayshard Brooks

Sending Riah Home


Local Black-Owned Businesses in Santa Barbara County

Please follow this link for an updated list shared by @angie.yc


Organizations Providing Calls-to-Action for National or Local Chapters

ACLU

Black Lives Matter

Black Voters Matter

Color of Change

NAACP


More Black Organizations making a difference and accepting donations:

Black Youth Project 100

Dream Defenders

Equal Justice Initiative

The King Center

The Loveland Foundation

NAACP Legal Defense Fund

National Bail Fund Network


Black Social Media Voices (celebs, artists, activists, scientists, orgs, businesses, & more) 

Local first, then in alphabetical order

For more anti-racism resources like books, podcasts, articles, TV, media, etc -

Please visit this page shared by our friends at Planned Parenthood California Central Coast.


An additional interesting read

Toxic Communities: Environmental Racism, Industrial Pollution, and Residential Mobility by Dorceta E. Taylor


Register to Vote 

In California

Outside of California

Our Year in Numbers

SBWiSTEM | 2019

As we close out 2019 and enter the new year, WE’RE LOOKING BACK AND CRUNCHING NUMBERS TO GIVE YOU a behind the scenes look at santa barbara women in stem!

CURIOUS TO KNOW HOW MANY HOURS WE WORKED? How many workshops we held? Emails we sent? SCROLL DOWN for a deep dive into our year in numbers.

 
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30K website visits

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Sponsored by 3 local companies

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Hosted 6 Professional Development Workshops

26K Emails Sent

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75 Hours spent in Team Meetings

950 Event Attendees

 

12 Social & Volunteer Events

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4 STEM-themed cocktails created for us by The Good Lion (thanks!)

The Goodall Lion Toddy

Bertozzi-Tini

Oh Chemis-tree

Linda B. Buck

1 New Logo by 1 Amazing Designer, Breanne Garbutt

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1 New Blog Contributor, Angel Pacheco

(and super SBWiSTEM supporter)

 
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6 Incredible Board Members

SBWiSTEM x Invoca

SBWiSTEM x Invoca

“Courageous Conversations”

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

Debrief by Angel Pacheco, SBWiSTEM blog contributor

When life got to the point where she was feeling unmotivated daily, Sonjia Polanco followed her instinct and made the decision to leave the office and role that no longer served her future. It was time to find the next thing, and to the bewilderment of many, she quit and was out the door before figuring out what that “next thing” was. Two weeks later, she found herself on the Lynda.com team, building what would ultimately become LinkedIn Learning.

Now a Senior Business Analyst for Procore, Sonjia said for her, leaving without a job lined up drove her to find that next opportunity. It was one of the many stories that perked up the ears of more than 55 professionals who jammed into the front lobby of Invoca’s State Street offices for Santa Barbara Women in STEM’s Courageous Conversations panel discussion Nov. 9.

The brave panel also included Caitlin Davis and Scott Boczek, both from Invoca; Christine Campos, of Sage Publications; and Elaina Rife, from Sonos. Moderated by Santa Barbara Women in STEM Professional Development Director Maygan Cline, the panel described their first job experiences, shared their successes and failures, discussed individual pursuits of career advancement and work/life balance; and provided tips for approaching their own management and teams when it comes to tough conversations.

One of the more unique stories came from Scott, who described his unconventional journey of going from being a high school teacher to Disney University Leadership Development Manager. He acknowledged it started with a risky move -- leaving a stable position in education to operating a submarine at Disneyland as an hourly cast member.

“I took every advantage to learn as much as I could that year,” said Scott. “I was asking to meet with different directors, different business leaders, and just asking as many questions as I could.”

The meetings led him to discovering the Disney University, which lit the fire that sent him flying through company ranks.   

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Much of the evening centered on finding the courage to act in order to improve workloads, environments and quality of life. For Christine, that was most true when she approached a manager about temporarily working remotely from India so she could spend time with her mother.

“I would have never had this opportunity of working there and being with my mom if I hadn’t had the courage to go and ask a question, which I was so scared of asking initially,” said Christine. “That’s when I realized, if you want something, you’ve got to ask for it. What’s the worst that can happen? They say, ‘No?’ But you at least have that peace of mind knowing that you asked for it.

Speaking to a crowd of mostly up and coming professionals, the panel had plenty of words of wisdom to share.

“You’ll probably always be your biggest critic, but listen to what other people are telling you. If you get a promotion or get more responsibility it’s because somebody saw that you can handle it,” said Caitlin, dispelling the common “imposter syndrome.”

The lighthearted evening also included Rusty’s pizza courtesy courtesy of Invoca, a dip in the company’s ball pit and plenty of chances to network.

Keep an eye out for Santa Barbara Women in STEM’s next event by signing up for the newsletter at www.sbwomeninstem.org.

Follow us on Instagram, or sign up for our email list here.

SBWiSTEM x SONOS

SBWiSTEM x SONOS

“Speed Networking Workshop”

By, Angel Pacheco

With fog horns signaling the introduction of a new ice breaker —

questions like “what are your two most used emojis?” — the Santa Barbara Women in STEM Speed Networking Workshop Sept. 26 felt like it was far from the typical industry meet and greet.

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The free event at Sonos’ Santa Barbara campus brought together more than 100 professionals — male and female — from many disciplines and backgrounds, meaning it was likely a welcome change of pace.

The slew of casual questions and random groupings meant the evening was more meaningful than munching on some snacks with the coworkers you came with, as well as welcoming for those who popped in solo. Instead, attendees temporarily paired with a stranger -- a local grad student, a tech veteran, perhaps a recruiter -- and walked away a LinkedIn contact richer, maybe even with a job interview.

Attendees also heard from speaker Jessica Kinnahan, of Dudek, about making the professional contacts that can change your career when you least expect it.

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This marked Women in Stem's second networking event. C'est Cheese Santa Barbara generously fueled the event with some amazing hors d'ouvres and Sonos offered up its beautiful Chapala Street space.

Santa Barbara Women in STEM is committed to empowering women and girls to expand their professional goals and interests in the STEM community. Interested in the next gathering? Follow us on Instagram, or sign up for our email list here.

Santa Barbara Women in STEM - A registered 501(c)(3) Organization

president@sbwomeninstem.org