WAMC Radio Stories Examine how Internships Help Students with Disabilities Achieve Careers in Science Fields

ALBANY, NY (05/18/2010)(readMedia)-- Entry Point!, a program of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, provides internships in science for undergraduate and graduate students with disabilities. Each year, the program places students with disabilities in paid internships at IBM, NASA, Google, and other partner companies and agencies, where the students receive guidance from mentors as they prepare for the professional workforce. Nearly 90% of Entry Point! alumni successfully enter science careers or go on to more advanced academic programs in science.

Entry Point! is featured in the latest two stories in WAMC Northeast Public Radio's new radio series, Access to Advancement: An Audio Exploration of the National Effort to Increase the Role of Women with Disabilities in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. Access to Advancement is funded by the National Science Foundation's Research in Disabilities Education program to shed light on the opportunities for, and achievements of, women with disabilities in science fields. The series airs on WAMC's The Best of Our Knowledge and 51% radio programs, and eight stories are now available for listening online at www.womeninscience.org.

The Entry Point! internship gives students, such as Katie Browne, an intern at the NASA Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, CA, the opportunity to experience a competitive employment environment and this builds confidence. Katie, who has cerebral palsy, says, "It's definitely given me an idea of what work is going to be like…I was worried that I wouldn't be able to type fast enough and keep up with my work." Katie's mentor at NASA, Dr. Ashok Strivastava, says that this is clearly not the case. "She's a very strong programmer, and that is of great benefit to our group…She's just blasting through what needs to be done, and it's of good quality, so it's working out very well."

Katie has a history of confronting doubts and dispelling misconceptions about her abilities. "I had a teacher who did not want me in their class because they didn't think that I would be able to keep up with the work. And it was one of my advanced math classes, so it was a class that I really wanted to take, and needed to take. And I decided to take the class anyway and I ended up doing great."

Entry Point! Director Virginia Stern says that she sees this kind of determination in all of the students who find success through the program. "They are very smart, each one of them. Second of all, [they are] persistent. They did not get where they were going without barriers: physical, sensory, or attitudinal. And, third, they are all enterprising. If it did not work one way, they figured out another way."

In some cases, Entry Point! opens students' eyes to entirely new career paths. Christine Sangobowale's career plans changed as a result of her internship. She describes it as the best experience of her life. Christine, who has sickle cell anemia, was involved with Entry Point! as an undergraduate student and is now pursuing a graduate degree in environmental science at Adelphi University in Garden City, NY. Prior to her internship, she was certain she wanted to work for a pharmaceutical company. However, when she was placed by Entry Point! with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a guest speaker inspired Christine's interest in the environment. "There was an environmental lawyer who gave a talk on what she does and her role in the whole NOAA family. And I was completely sold. I was blown away… I was like, 'this is what I'm supposed to do.'"

Tune in to The Best of Our Knowledge on May 31st at 8:00pm to learn more about the Entry Point! program. The profile of Christine Sangobowale that aired on 51% on April 29th is available via Flash Audio and transcript at http://www.womeninscience.org/series.php?seriesID=1. You can join the Access to Advancement discussion on Facebook by going to www.facebook.com and searching for "Women in Science ON THE AIR!" Or follow the series on Twitter at www.twitter.com/AccesstoAdvance.

Access to Advancement is made possible by support from the National Science Foundation Research in Disabilities Education program under grant number HRD-0833247.

WAMC Northeast Public Radio is a non-commercial, listener-supported public radio network broadcasting 24 hours a day to portions of seven New England and Middle Atlantic states. With 22 broadcast facilities, WAMC ranks among the most-listened-to public radio stations in the United States, with over 400,000 monthly listeners and more than 35,000 members. An affiliate of National Public Radio, American Public Media, and Public Radio International, WAMC is also one of the most prolific original producers of public-radio style programming in the nation, distributing a roster of award-winning segments and full-length news and information programs heard on more than 500 radio stations nationwide, on the Internet via audio on-demand, and in 177 countries via Armed Forces Radio. For more information, please visit www.wamc.org.