In honor of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, this episode highlights the personal stories of Hang Loi and Dr. Tracy Nguyen, two Asian American women in STEM who escaped Vietnam as children during the fall of Saigon.

They sat down with SWE Board Member Jennifer Chen Morikawa to share their unforgettable accounts of the refugee experience, what they went through to start a new life in the U.S., and how these experiences influenced them to pursue careers in STEM.

Ep 216: Asian Americans in STEM: Vietnamese Refugee Stories

This episode was sponsored by the U.S. Space Force.

In this episode, we speak with Major Melissa K. Bierma, Chief, Information Integration Branch HQ, United States Space Force (USSF), located in the Pentagon. Major Bierma shares about her early mentorship experiences as an engineer, the gifts that come with failure, and what advice she would give to women who are interested in a career in the U.S. Space Force.

About Our Guest:
Major Melissa K. Bierma is the Chief, Information Integration Branch, HQ United States Space Force, Pentagon.  In this capacity, she is responsible for integrating the USSF into Joint and DAF future warfighting concepts, reviewing emerging technologies to implement CSO priorities, and aligning wargaming efforts across the USSF enterprise.  

Major Bierma earned her bachelor’s degree in biology from Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, and subsequently commissioned through Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corp, Detachment 643 in March 2006.  In addition, she also earned a Master of Science in industrial and human factors engineering from Wright State University in 2012.  She transferred to the USSF in December 2020.

Ep 215: Inspiring Women in the U.S. Military with Major Melissa K. Bierma of the U.S. Space Force

On this episode of Diverse, a SWE Podcast, FY23 President Dayna Johnson is joined by Mandeep Gill the Technical Documentation, Labeling, and UXD Portfolio Manager from Becton, Dickinson and Company (BD) Greater India R&D. 

They sit down to discuss her draw to STEM, her educational journey, and her work with coaching and mentoring young women.

EP 214: Mandeep Gill from Global Champion Partner Becton Dickinson and Company

Starr Ginn- the Advanced Air Mobility Lead Strategist at NASA- discusses the upcoming 2023 AIAA Aviation Forum and reflects on her journey to NASA.

EP 212: Starr Ginn- 2023 AIAA Aviation Forum

Ana Sopalovic discusses how her upbringing ignited her passion for mechanical engineering which ultimately lead her to TAE.

EP 213: Ana Sopalovic - Senior Mechanical Engineer @ TAE

What do STEM and the arts have to do with each other? Meet two women nonprofit leaders who say, "Plenty!"
They're igniting interest in STEM for underserved kids and young girls through dance, music and theater, and having a lot of fun in the process.

EP 211: Arts Are the "A" in STEAM

Meredith Moore, CEO and President -  Leverette Weekes is a Diversity Driver in many ways.  Hosted by President Dayna Johnson, Meredith divulges in how to stay relevant and impactful in Corporate America along with helping corporations stay on top of the game by: simply listening. Meredith's extensive background as a DE&I enforcer brings knowledge and influence in this influential episode. Listen in...

Ep 206: Meredith Moore on Diversity Drivers Webinar

On this episode of Diverse, a SWE Podcast, host Sam East is joined by Wan Leng Lim, a Senior Manager at Becton, Dickinson and Company (BD) Greater Asia R&D. They sit down to discuss her draw to STEM, her educational journey, and her work with coaching and mentoring young women.

Ep 210: Wan Leng Lim from Global Champion Partner Becton Dickinson and Company

In this special episode for Black History Month, Anne Perusek, SWE’s director of editorial and publications and Troy Eller English, SWE’s archivist sit down to talk about a few events that took place in 1957 that led to a turning point in SWE's journey towards inclusion.

Ep 209: What happened in 1957: A Turning Point in SWE’s Journey Toward Inclusion

On this episode of Diverse, SWE President Dayna Johnson sits down with Nalini Subu, senior systems engineer principal at The Home Depot. Listen as they discuss Nalini's education background, her work with The Home Depot and the mentorship programs she is involved with.

Ep 208: Sponsored Episode - The Home Depot with Nalini Subu

SWE's Early Career Professional Affinity Group took over this special episode of Diverse, a SWE podcast, to talk about National Mentoring month. Former and current ECP AG Co-Leads, Amber Kreceman (she/her), Mahati Vavilala (she/her), and Marie-Pierre (MP) Delisle (she/her) sat down to chat about mentorship, sponsorship and creating an authentic and intentional personal Board of Directors.

Ep 206: National Mentoring Month with the Early Career Professional AGs

On this episode of Diverse, SWE President Dayna Johnson sits down with WE22 Keynote Speaker Phyllis Schneck. They reflect on Phyllis's experience at WE22 and expand on her opening keynote speech.

Ep 204: WE22 Keynote Speaker Phyllis Schneck

On this episode of Diverse, SWE President Dayna Johnson sits down with Swapna Tom, the distinguished technologist for the Enterprise Data and Analytics team at HP Inc. They discuss her journey to becoming an engineer, her current role at HP Inc. and  the various volunteer projects she is a part of.

Ep 205: Sponsored Episode - HP Inc. with Swapna Tom

This is an episode from SWE Stories, Tales from the Archives, a sub-series of Diverse a SWE Podcast. Hosts Anne Perusek, SWE's director of editorial and publications and Troy Eller English, SWE's archivist sit down with Carol Sutton Lewis, co-host of the The Lost Women of Science podcast series, and Nora Mathison, senior editor and social media manager for the series.

Ep 207: Lost of Women of Science on Y.Y. Clark

On this episode of Diverse, FY22 SWE President Dayna Johnson is joined once again by WE22 keynote speaker, Michele Sullivan. Listen as they discuss Michele's experience at WE22.

Ep 202: WE22 Keynote Speaker Michele Sullivan Pt. 2

On this episode of SWE Stories: Tales from the Archives, a sub-series of Diverse, a SWE Podcast, Anne Perusek, SWE’s director of editorial and publications and Troy Eller English, SWE’s archivist sit down to talk about Ruth "Dollar Sign" Shafer, SWE's fundraising dynamo in the 1950's and 1960's

Ep 203: SWE Stories, Tales From the Archives: Big Trees From Little Acorns Grow

On this episode of Diverse, SWE President Dayna Johnson sits down with WE22 Keynote Speaker Nancy Post. This special episode was recorded live at the WE22 career fair floor in the Diverse Podcast Booth powered by Hess.

Ep 201: Live At WE22 With Keynote Speaker Nancy Post

On this special episode of Diverse, Anne Perusek, SWE's Director of Editorial and Publications sits down with Kathy Woody, the Principal Advisor Energy & Environmental Technology at Hess. This episode was recorded live on the career fair floor at WE22 in the SWE Diverse Podcast Booth sponsored by Hess.

Ep 200: Live At WE22 Hess Sponsored Episode: Kathy Woody

On this episode of Diverse, guest host Katelyn Roudebush sits down with Deb Leach, Vice President of Technology and Innovation at Global Founderies. This special episode was recorded live at the WE22 career fair floor in the Diverse Podcast Booth powered by Cummins.

Ep 199: Live At WE22 With Deb Leach

On this episode of Diverse, host Sam East sits down with Diane Egede-Nissen, a distinguished engineer at The Home Depot. They talk about Diane's educational experience, including her time spent abroad in Norway as well as her over 16+ years at The Home Depot.

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