March is National Women’s History Month, a time to celebrate the contributions of women to United States history, culture, and society and to recognize the specific achievements women have made over the course of American history in a variety of fields. Below please find resources and information from Maine Department of Education Specialists for Women’s History Month and all year.

Digital Resources to Support Representation of Influential Women in Teaching and Learning

As a global activist for female education, Malala Yousafzai is outspoken on the importance of education for girls and women. To learn more about the work that Malala and others like her have been doing, check out the Assembly publication. To explore digital resources to support the representation of influential women in teaching and learning, check out the infographic above (or download the infographic here).

Influential Science and Technology Leaders

Hedy Lamarr was a self-taught inventor and actress who was awarded a patent for her invention of a “secret communication system”, which became the basis for wi-fi, GPS, and Bluetooth technologies. To learn more about Hedy Lamarr, check out this video.

 

Influential Computer Science Leaders

Katherine Johnson was a prolific NASA scientist, credited for many space-related achievements, including helping with the first moon landing. To learn more about Katherine Johnson, check out this video.

 

Influential Computer Science Leaders

Known as the woman who “taught computers to talk”, Admiral Grace Murray Hopper is one of the most well-known women in the field of computer science. #CSEdWeek in December is even based around Hopper’s birthday. To learn more about Admiral Grace Murray Hooper, check out this video.

 

Joy Buolamwini is perhaps best known for her role in the PBS documentary film, Coded Bias in which she, along with other mathematicians and scientists, expose the discovery that artificial intelligence algorithms (AI) currently can “not detect dark-skinned faces or classify women with accuracy”. Buolamwini has become world-renowned in her advocacy for equity in artificial intelligence algorithms. To learn more about Joy Buoloamwini, check out this video.

 

Influential Physician, Researcher, Advocate

Dr. Nadine Burke Harris is best known for changing the way our society responds to one of the most serious and widespread public health crises of our time: childhood trauma. Her 2016 TED Talk titled ”How childhood trauma affects health across a lifetime” has been viewed over 4.7 million times.  Another great resource to access is this article from Channel Kindness: Dr. Nadine Burke Harris on Kindness, Adversity, & Mental Health.

 

Additional Women’s History Resources

Women’s History Month Resources for Teachers – Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, Smithsonian Institution, and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

This comprehensive and wide-ranging collection of resources will support all educators at all grade spans/levels to explore the importance of women in the history of the United States.  These governmental organizations have pooled their collective resources to offer perspectives on the variety of important roles and responsibilities women have played in the development of important institutions in government and beyond.

The Smithsonian Institute – Women’s History in America

This continuously developing site, curated by Colleen Murdock through the Smithsonian Institute, contains a collection of images, text, and videos “intended to inspire learning about different events, accomplishments, and themes in women’s history in the United States.”  Interactive in nature, students and educators alike will enjoy sorting through the collection of items, forming connections between and among the contents and other artifacts from outside the collection.

The Smithsonian Institute – Women’s History in America: Highlights Collection  

Another collection of images, text, and videos that highlight many of the accomplishments of influential women in science, art, women’s rights, and athletics throughout history. Use these in your classroom to make connections between and among women who may have played pivotal roles in more than one field – an artist who used their art for social activism to promote women’s rights. etc.

The National Women’s History Alliance – National Women’s History Alliance Resource Kit 

This collection of high quality resources, last updated in March of 2020, includes readings, panel discussions, documentaries, and even a read aloud.

The New York Public Library – Women’s History Month 

The vast collection of resources that the New York Public Library brings to bear on the topic of Women’s History includes a wide variety of types of texts that students can engage in – a series of articles that highlight books that are available to access either digitally or in your local library, that cover a stunning array of perspectives into all the contributors and contributions of women throughout history.

Maine DOE team member Jessica Caron is being highlighted this week as part of the Get to Know the Maine DOE Campaign. Learn a little more about Jessica in the question and answer below.

What are your roles with DOE?

At the Maine DOE, I am an ESEA Regional Program Manager and Title I Specialist.  In my role, I oversee the ESEA Title Programming for the Aroostook and Kennebec regions (I, myself am a former student of “the county”, growing up in Fort Kent). Now, I help local school districts plan how to use their Title funding in a way that meets regulations AND helps their students.

What do you like best about your job?

I absolutely love working directly with folks in the field. Federal regulations can be complicated and I enjoy answering questions and providing 1-on-1 support to help them navigate these tricky waters! In addition, I appreciate any chance to create opportunities for people in the field to connect as well as creating user-friendly resources that practitioners can use to implement best practices with their Title I funds. Guiding support sessions and collaborating with practitioners directly overseeing Title I implementation efforts through Office Hours and Maine Title IA Educators’ Network meetings is another favorite part of my job. My ultimate goal is to help improve systems to be more efficient, supportive, and meaningful for continuous school improvement at the state and local level.

How or why did you decide on this career?

I fell in love with education as a career during my college classes and always felt drawn to the intersection between practitioners working directly with students and policies guiding these interactions. My background as a special educator helped me learn how to best support struggling workers and that vision helps guide the work I do at the policy level when thinking through how to help design and create the best supports possible!

What do you like to do outside of work for fun?

When outside of work, you can find me camping, cross country skiing, and reading/writing. Being outside always brings me such peace, as does getting lost in books and my journal. The photo of me included above is from a bench I love to write on in Portland!