While it may be March, and Black History month has come to a close, (look out for some great Women's History Month resources coming soon!) we continue to celebrate the Black leaders of our community!  Last week, we recognized the awesome local figures, past and present, who had a critical impact in film, government, entrepreneurship, and so much more. This week, we’re highlighting Black STEM leaders as well as some additional entrepreneurs and game-changers, both within our own DSST community and across the Denver Metro Area, who are paving the way for the breakthroughs of the future.

STEM in Denver Metro and at DSST

Science Teachers at DSST

Laurie Pochette: 8th Grade Science Teacher at College View Middle School, joined DSST as an Apprentice Teacher in 2016 and has been a member of the College View team since then. She is a leader in creating a vision for strong science assessments, creating supports for teaching scientific vocabulary, and engages with students deeply and personally.

Adrian Parker: 10th Grade Chemistry Teacher at Conservatory Green High School. Adrian joined DSST in 2019 after joining the TFA Launch Fellowship at DMLK Early College. He leads in bringing relevant phenomena to chemistry, supporting teachers and leaders in examining biases, and developing relationships with students.

Prominent STEM Leaders in the Boulder, Denver, Aurora Community

Jessica Rush Leeker | Engineering Management Program:  Faculty Director of Undergraduate Education at CU Boulder• Scholar In Residence

Anthea Johnson Rooen | Engineering & Computer Science: Director of Equity in STEM at DU

Entrepreneurs, Pioneers & Game Changers

Blackpackers:  A 501(c)(3) Organization meeting those at the intersection of underrepresentation and economic vulnerability. Our mission is two-fold: 1.) To provide gear, outdoor excursions and outdoor education for free or at subsidized cost 2.) To connect participants with volunteer opportunities, internships, jobs, and post-secondary education resources to create a pipeline from outdoor recreation to outdoor industry careers. In these ways, we can create economic equity in outdoor recreation. Featured on NPR here and here.

Women’s Foundation of Colorado: Lauren Y. Casteel: President & CEO: Lauren Y. Casteel is the first person in Colorado to lead three foundations and possesses more than 20 years of philanthropic leadership as well as a career-long dedication to inclusiveness. Lauren is an experienced and recognized advocate for women, children, youth, and families in Colorado. Throughout her career, Lauren has earned numerous accolades. Most recently, she received the Anti Defamation League Mountain States Region's 2018 Civil Rights Award; she received the 2016 Monte Pascoe Civic Leadership Award, presented annually by Denver’s Mayor to a member of the community; she was named one of the 25 Most Powerful Women in 2015 by the Colorado Women’s Chamber of Commerce; and in 2014, she was inducted into the Colorado Women’s Hall of Fame.

Jordan Casteel: Artist Extraordinaire: Jordan Casteel (b. 1989, Denver, CO) has rooted her practice in community engagement, painting from her own photographs of people she encounters. Posing her subjects within their natural environments, her nearly life-size portraits and cropped compositions chronicle personal observations of the human experience.

Julian Donaldson: Be A Good Person Co-Owner: This brand was developed based on a passion for positivity and a brighter future that we foresee within our society. There are 7.2 billion people on this earth… Out of that many people, how many do you know? Now reflecting back on yourself, what's going to separate you from the rest of the crowd? There are many talented and fortunate people who will never reach their full potential due to their bad habits and pessimistic outlook on life. But there are also many less fortunate people, who strive to be positive and work harder than those that take their skill-set or blessings for granted. Instead of supporting the current trends of negativity, our #1 goal is to remind us all to approach our days with an optimistic, positive, and refreshed outlook. We believe that positive change truly starts within ourselves, one person at a time. NOW ASK YOURSELF, ARE YOU DOING EVERYTHING YOU CAN TO BE WHO YOU WANT TO BE?

African Grill: With 14 years of experience cooking african food to the community, the Osei-Fordwuo family are excited to present the finest and all natural African cuisine from the continent of our Motherland. Their caring and committed staff will ensure you have a fantastic experience.

Collinus Newsome of The Colorado Health Foundation:  Informed by years working with students and schools, Collinus is a trusted leader in the education landscape where she has worked to bridge the gap between policy and classroom practices to build diverse, welcoming spaces for all students.

Demetrius Daltirus of Junior Achievement & Kent Denver Entrepreneurship: Demetrius is a program manager at Junior Achievement and a supporter of financial literacy as a building block for people and communities. He is also the head of Entrepreneurship programming at Kent.

Community Resources for High School Students Exploring STEM

• BioEngineering Empowerment Program: The BioEngineering Empowerment Program (BEEP) was created in the summer of 2020 as a way to provide opportunities and resources for high school students to gain access to engineering, medicine, and other STEM fields. 
• CU Pre-Health Scholars (CUPS): CUPS is an academic enrichment program designed to provide resources and guidance to students from diverse backgrounds and identities who are interested in entering health professions. They are currently accepting enrollment from first- and second-year high school students.
• Colorado BioScience Institute: The Colorado Bioscience Institute (the Institute) is a 501(c)3 non-profit providing workforce development and STEM education programs to help create a stronger more diversified life science talent pipeline in Colorado. The Institute provides educational programs for students and educators, individuals and companies contributing to the overall workforce cultivation efforts in our state.  The Institute is reaching diverse audiences of grades 6-16 students & teachers; improving access to bioscience career opportunities and providing mentorship. 

Community Organizations in Science

• White Coats for Black Lives (WC4BL) : The University of Colorado School of Medicine hosts a chapter of the WC4BL group, which works to “safeguard the lives and well-being of our patients through the elimination of racism.”
• National Society of Black Engineers: Denver Professionals: This local chapter aims “to increase the number of culturally responsible Black Engineers who excel academically, succeed professionally and positively impact the community.”
• Colorado Association of Black Professional Engineers and Scientists (CABPES) is a non-profit organization dedicated to encouraging African-Americans and other underrepresented youth to pursue STEM careers.  By doing so, the number of minority STEM professionals will increase to the level that better represents the minority population, while assisting industry in meeting the growing demand for STEM professionals.