The following essay is a personal reflection on progress in STEM education and society. December 20, 2017 – Almost no one knew Big Jo by her given name, Willie Dean Ferguson. Everyone knew her by her nickname, ‘Big Jo.’ In 1962 she was about 100 years old. She was an African-American woman, born during the…

December 20, 2017 – I am staying in a modest hotel in Conway South Carolina. Not many people are staying here today. This morning, I went to the dining area for the complimentary breakfast. Exclusive of me and my wife, no one was in the area. Two young African-American boys walked in, and it seemed…

Why I am a mentor. November 22, 2013 – Today is the fiftieth anniversary of the death of President Kennedy. When word came of his death, I was in the 2nd grade, attending an old wooden and brick school built at the turn of the 20th century. The teachers moved us to the auditorium and…