Name: Morgan DiCarlo
Year: Senior
Major: Civil Engineering
Hometown: Thiells, Rockland County, NY
Twitter: @morgan26_CIVIL
Website: http://civilizedmorgan.simplesite.com/
Do you remember the first moment you knew you wanted to pursue a STEM career?
Morgan: “When I was little (ages about 5-9), I played chess competitively in tournaments. I loved practicing with my dad and that the Queen is the strongest piece. I also had a lot of fun beating the boys- especially the older boys- who couldn’t deal with a six year old girl checkmating them. It was this early introduction to logic skills and to challenging gender norms that I think inclined me toward STEM.
I also had a moment in sixth grade that was formative. I was in Earth Science class with a very strict teacher, Mr. Bates. He made a big deal about never, ever having given a 100 on a test in his class. Middle school me was already pretty interested in science, and was reading the class textbook for fun. I actually got his first 100 ever, and attached to my returned exam was an envelope with an ACTUAL TWENTY DOLLAR BILL and a handwritten note. It just said ‘You earned it.’ I was sold.”
How has your involvement with the American Society of Civil Engineers affected your life?
Morgan: “Founding and acting as president of the ASCE Stony Brook chapter has been the most defining experience of college for me. ASCE has given me innumerable opportunities. ASCE Stony Brook has helped me grow as a leader, build technical skills, and most importantly, develop a peer network of lasting friendships. I’ve especially enjoyed being a part of the Concrete Canoe team- a national ASCE competition to design, build and race a full sized, floating canoe- made only out of concrete!
Most recently, I am very excited to have won the top student ASCE Innovation prize, a national research idea contest. I will be presenting my proposal for a water conservation model at the Disney Imagineering headquarters in California this July. ASCE provides this and many other opportunities for students to grow and succeed.”
How did it feel to give a TED Talk?
Morgan: “I practiced A LOT!! My suitemates thought I was crazy, because they could hear me giving the talk in the shower for weeks leading up to the event. I felt honored to be given a platform to talk about what I’m passionate about. The crew and organizers for TEDxSBU were great to work with and the other presenters were really inspiring. I think I was more excited than nervous, and did a lot of dancing around backstage to get hyped for the talk.”
Why do you think young girls are discouraged from pursuing STEM careers?
Morgan: “I feel that a big issue is a lack of positive representation. It is hard to be motivated to pursue something where you don’t see any people you relate with. No one wants to feel like an outsider. This dynamic is finally starting to change. We need to spread awareness from early on, in toys, in media, and in real life, that there are plenty of accomplished and diverse people that make up the STEM fields. This is what inspired me to jump in as a mentor to younger students- it was important to me to show other girls that it’s not boring, someone just like them is having fun and majoring in engineering.”
You have been an advocate for mentoring and hands-on learning as solutions for this STEM gender gap, tell us more about those plans to break the cycle.
Morgan: “Mentoring and hands-on learning are two key ways to engage young women in STEM. Hands-on learning builds the technical skills we need to feel confident and prepared. Mentoring builds the network of positive role models that many girls lack in STEM. My idea is a three generation line that connects young students to college students to industry professionals. This way, we can begin to see a pipeline that engages and then actually retains women in STEM. I have begun work on this line by founding a Civil Engineering curriculum with High School WISE, through which I have taught engineering classes to more than 70 girls on Long Island. This curriculum was selected as a 2015 Clinton Global University Initiative. Also, I am on the STEM outreach board at the Intrepid Museum, where I work with some amazing women in the NYC area to plan educational science outreach programs for students, teachers and parents in the five boroughs.”
Why is “girl power” so important in the STEM field?
Morgan: “We need to recruit more people into STEM in general. These fields are lucrative, they drive our economy and they make the world a better place to live. Young women are a hugely untapped pool of possible recruits for STEM. We can be a force that makes the future of engineering more creative, more humanitarian and more effective.
Diversity across the spectrum is important in STEM. Civil engineers design the world around us- a world that all of us share. It is important that our future infrastructure looks like and is influenced by a diverse group of people reflecting the needs and diversity of our population. If seeking more information, I like to direct people to ASCE Policy 417″
‘Population trends indicate U.S. demographics are changing and the future workforce pool will be increasingly female, nonwhite and non-U.S. born citizens. In order for the civil engineering profession to meet developing global challenges, it will require the full participation of all members of society; thus ASCE recognizes the strategic and critical importance of a diverse engineering workforce and inclusive climate for the future of the profession.’
What advice would you give to your freshman self?
Morgan: “Make time for naps!”
What is your proudest achievement?
Morgan: “In 2015, I was named one of America’s top ten emerging leaders in my field as a New Face of Civil Engineering. I am especially proud of this recognition because it highlights my efforts to conduct STEM outreach and in founding an ASCE chapter. In addition, I am excited to be interning at NASA this summer doing research on cloud formation.”
What do you want your legacy to be?
Morgan: “I am starting graduate school in Water Resources Engineering at Virginia Tech in the fall. We see in cases like Flint, Michigan that our water infrastructure is declining, and that high quality water is not always equitably distributed. I want my legacy to be in the field of water supply, making changes that improve and preserve our most precious resource.”