Some of the STEM teachers get to know eachother.
Pramerica Systems Ireland and Letterkenny Institute of Technology (LYIT) would appear to be at the very ‘stem’ of a great idea.
The two organisations hosted a Seeing Is Believing event for 18 science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) teachers from around the county to create a deeper industry/education partnership and greater awareness of STEM careers and other opportunities that exist for students.
Representatives from Pramerica gave an overview of the company’s business and insight into the need for STEM talent to fill positions in the growth areas of data and digital. The teachers engaged in an interactive speed networking event with recent STEM graduates who work at Pramerica.
Seeing Is Believing is an a new STEM initiative of The Schools’ Business Partnership and Business in the Community Ireland (BITCI) in support of the Smart Futures Strategy 2013 – 2016, a collaborative industry and education framework, raising awareness of STEM careers at post-primary level.*
The goal of the initiative is to give STEM teachers and guidance counsellors a deep and engaging insight into leading STEM sector companies and the innovative and diverse range of opportunities and careers that exist within the region.
Teachers see first-hand how STEM skills are being used in the workplace and how the syllabi of STEM subjects they teach at second level are relevant to the needs of employers.
“Pramerica is delighted to support this new initiative and to welcome STEM teachers to the campus. We are proud to share the technological excellence and insight of our talented and diverse team at Pramerica,” said Gerard Grant, Vice President, Information Technology, at Pramerica.
“This event is a good opportunity to promote technology careers by engaging with the people who directly influence students’ career choices. This partnership is vital to the development of our organisation and plays a key role in creating the spectrum of skills and expertise that will be needed in the future.”
Elaine McFadden, Regional Coordinator-Donegal, The Schools’ Business Partnership, BITCI, added, “This has been a unique insight given by Pramerica and Letterkenny Institute of Technology to our STEM teachers in Donegal. It has further developed the potential of business to education engagement in order to support the work of teachers in preparing and inspiring students to explore the opportunities presented by STEM careers. We commend Pramerica and Letterkenny Institute on their vision and leadership within the region for STEM promotion and value their contribution to the building of Ireland’s knowledge economy.”
John Andy Bonar, Head of Development, Letterkenny Institute of Technology, said LYIT is committed to the support and development of STEM related initiatives in the North West.
“We see these initiatives having an integral role and impact in fostering leading edge, new and emerging technology companies such as those we have currently operating in CoLab and also in the North West Regional Science Park when it is operational in 2015. The benefit and potential of the STEM agenda to our regional economy is enormous and we acknowledge through Seeing Is Believing that the foundations of this are built in our schools and by our teachers.”
The Schools’ Business Partnership is managed by Business in the Community Ireland, the network for responsible business in Ireland. The Schools’ Business Partnership is funded by the participating businesses and the School Completion Programme (The Department of Children and Youth Affairs).
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