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Russian Delegation Visits ODA

Five Russian delegates visited Sarasota last week through a United States government program aimed at helping expand opportunities for Women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM). ODA was an integral and engaging stop on their tour.
Since 1999, the Open World Leadership Center, a prominent U.S. exchange program funded and controlled by Congress, partners with U.S. organizations to offer grants to organizations in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Open World works with rising post-Soviet countries to support the development of a more progressive world for future generations in these regions.

Recently, five female Russian educators traveled to Sarasota with a cultural liaison and a translator for a week-long visit with local educators, scientists, and city officials. Their Women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) program brought them in contact with some of the leading educational and scientific organizations in the region. The delegates were hosted by local families from the service organization Friendship Force Sarasota, who not only housed the delegates, but also helped to transport them to their tours and visits each day, and often participated in the activities and attended lectures. While planning the program for the delegates, club member Mrs. Renny Carter—whose son J.D. Carter matriculated from ODA in 2008—suggested Out-of-Door as a good fit for the program.

The group visited a variety of educational facilities to learn new ways to promote STEM programs and expand learning opportunities. The delegates attended presentations and spoke on panels at several organizations, including the American Association of University Women, The Girl Scouts of Gulf Coast Florida, Girls, Inc., Ringling College of Art and Design, and the Mayor of Sarasota.

During their visit to ODA’s Uihlein Campus in Lakewood Ranch, the group toured the campus and observed several classes in action, including Biology, Chemistry, AP Computer Science, and Introduction to Engineering. They also engaged in a lively panel discussion with the Advanced Engineering class in the Dart STEM Lab, taking the opportunity to pose many questions to the junior and senior students about their educational experiences in STEM-related subjects.

At ODA, Russian educator Liudmila Vainer, speaking through an interpreter, talked about her experience growing up in Russia as a girl who had an interest in what were then considered “male” subjects. As a student, Ms. Vainer had shown an early aptitude for mathematics, and eventually graduated from a specialized mathematics secondary school. She studied economics and finance in college, and after graduating, built a successful career in the financial industry.Three years ago, Ms. Vainer made a career move and began teaching mathematics.

Since she began teaching, she has noticed the need to find ways to recruit more girls into STEM-oriented fields. “I didn’t need to be motivated, my interest comes from my heart,” Ms. Vainer emphasized. She also realizes that not all girls have the same motivation, or receive the support to follow a STEM-oriented career path. STEM is an extremely new notion in Russia. “Many of the female students’ parents have shown a high interest in helping their daughters pursue their studies in STEM-related fields, however there are not many programs currently in place in Russia,” said Ms. Vainer.

Academic summer camps have been gaining popularity in Russia, and the Russia branch of the American Association of Women is working to make STEM programs and summer camps more accessible to young female students. Ms. Vainer says she will be sharing many of the ideas she has learned during her visit to Sarasota with facilitators who run summer programs. Her hope is that they will help to make the programs more interesting, motivating, and educational for participants. She also shared that she plans for her own daughter to attend one of these camps in hopes of gaining important first-hand insight to help improve and promote these opportunities. Ms. Vainer hopes that at the trip’s conclusion, delegates will return to Russia filled with new ideas to help bolster STEM programs and promote STEM learning for all young girls in Russian schools.
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