Happy Hispanic Heritage Month! From September 15 through October 15, we get to observe and celebrate the histories, cultures and contributions of the American Latino community. This month, NRMN wanted to highlight organizations that provide support and guidance for Hispanics in the STEM fields.
According to the Student Research Foundation, Hispanics are one in four U.S. students (25%) – second only to Whites (51%). Hispanic adults, historically underrepresented in STEM, continue to be an underutilized talent pool. They currently comprise 17% of the workforce overall, but merely 8% of the STEM workforce.
With Hispanics being so infrequent in STEM, it’s important to not only recognize, but appreciate the following organizations for their contributions and impact:
SACNAS (Society for the Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science) is an inclusive organization dedicated to fostering the success of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans, from college students to professionals, in attaining advanced degrees, careers, and positions of leadership in STEM. (sacnas.org)
SHPE (Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers) has been supporting Hispanic students and professionals in STEM for nearly 50 years. SHPE changes lives by empowering the Hispanic community to realize its fullest potential and to impact the world through STEM awareness, access, support, and development. (shpe.org)
NSHP (National Society of Hispanic Physicists) helps promote the professional well-being and recognize the accomplishments of Hispanic physicists within the scientific community of the United States and within society at large. The Society seeks to develop and support efforts to increase opportunities for Hispanics in physics and to increase the number of practicing Hispanic physicists, particularly by encouraging Hispanic students to enter a career in physics. (hispanicphysicists.org)
MAES (Society of Mexican American Engineers and Scientists) is the foremost Latino organization for the development of STEM leaders in the academic, executive, and technical communities. MAES promotes, cultivates, and honors excellence in education and leadership among Latino engineers and scientists. (mymaes.org)
The ASPIRA Association is the only national Hispanic organization dedicated exclusively to developing Hispanic youth’s educational and leadership capacity. Since 1961, ASPIRA has been working at the grassroots level to provide programs that encourage Hispanic students to stay in school, prepare them to succeed in the educational arena, develop their leadership skills, and serve their community. (aspira.org)
The HSI STEM Hub provides faculty and staff at HSIs with resources for building institutional capacity that will increase STEM student retention and degree completion (NSF Awards 1832338 and 1832345). The Hub is a collaborative effort between New Mexico State University (NMSU), California State University at Northridge (CSUN), and Dona Ana Community College (DACC). (https://hsistemhub.org/)
It is exciting to see the many organizations making a difference for Hispanics in the STEM community. We encourage you to browse through all the resources and opportunities these organizations offer.
Hello, thank you for this information. There seem to be relatively few organizations and resources to support Hispanic scientists. Isn’t there also the National Hispanic Science Network? Or is that not a legitimate organization? Thanks again,