Read.Watch.Listen. Hispanic Heritage Month
- SE3 Committee
- Sep 23
- 3 min read
September 2025 Issue
A monthly forum to share diversity, equity, and inclusion resources.
Welcome to the next installment of Read.Watch.Listen. This month, we celebrate National Hispanic Heritage month, which runs from September 15th to October 15th and coincides with the Independence Days of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Mexico, Chile, and Belize. If you are interested in learning more about the history of this heritage month, check out this resource! Each year, this time is dedicated to recognizing the accomplishments and contributions of Hispanic Americans to our society. In addition to highlighting just a handful of these achievements, this month’s resources call attention to some of the difficulties that Hispanic engineers face in our industry.
Image by freepik
This Hispanic Heritage Month, Encouraging Latino Students to Pursue STEM Careers - The74
Carlos Romero reflects on his own journey, where early chemistry projects and strong family support inspired him to become a chemical engineer. He notes that while Hispanic adults represent 17% of the U.S. workforce, only 8% work in STEM fields. To close this disparity, Romero recommends five key strategies: (1) Invest in quality STEM programs to ensure equitable access to robotics, computer science, hands-on experiments, and well-trained teachers. (2) Expose students early by introducing diverse STEM careers through media, books, and community outreach. (3) Set high expectations and support students to reach ambitious academic goals. (4) Provide relatable mentors, so students can see successful professionals from similar backgrounds. (5) Expand access to advanced coursework (AP) and exam fee support, which dramatically boosts achievement.
Published October 1, 2024; Estimated Read Time - 5 minutes
Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers - What is it and WHO should join from a Former President – Engineering Success
In this episode of The Engineering Success Podcast, former Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE) National President Melissa Villegas Drake shares her journey within the organization and how she advanced to its highest leadership role. SHPE is dedicated to helping Latino students excel in engineering while providing access to training, mentorship, and community support. Melissa highlights how SHPE not only strengthened her technical expertise but also shaped her soft skills, such as leadership and organization, that have been vital to her success. This episode is a quick listen and it’s a great opportunity to be inspired by SHPE’s impact. Don’t miss it!
Originally aired March 12, 2024; 00:07:34
Engineering is not for the Faint of Heart – Closing the Gap Podcast
On this episode of the Engineering Change Podcast, host Dr. Yvette Pearson interviews Kathy Renzetti, Executive Director of DiscoverE. If you haven’t heard of DiscoverE (or Discover Engineering), you should check them out! In addition to running programs like Engineers Week, Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day, and World Engineering Day, they’ve got lots of toolkits and resources for STEM programs and volunteers. Kathy says that one of the most important pieces for STEM outreach is providing the opportunity early on for students to learn about engineering and gaining “their story” of why they decided to become an engineer. From about minute 18 to 35 is a good excerpt on teaching basic engineering problem solving to reach students early and build their confidence if you are short on time. There are lots of great ideas and discussion throughout the episode that make it a worthwhile listen!
Originally published March 5, 2025; 00:57:18
This article was originally published in the NCSEA's Structural Connection newsletter.
Read.Watch.Listen is a monthly forum hosted by the NCSEA SE3 Committee to share and promote conversations on diversity, equity and inclusion within the structural engineering profession. Each month, we will curate a series of articles, audio-visual and digital media to facilitate self-education in matters that affect our professional practice as structural engineers. Whether you choose to read, watch, or listen (or all three!), we hope you will join us in this important conversation. Missed the previous issue? Check out the NCSEA SE3 Committee News and Publication page.
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