Former Woman Astronaut Keynote Speaker at Carnival Cruise Lines Science
Building Dedication
MIAMI, Sept. 12 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following was issued by St.
Thomas University:
WHAT: Dedication of the Carnival Cruise Lines Science and Technology Building,
a research-class facility and home of St. Thomas University's School of
Science, Technology, and Engineering Management. The ceremony will have as
keynote speaker Dr. Mae Jemison, the first African-American woman astronaut,
an engineer, physician, and fierce advocate of science education, who was a
mission specialist aboard the space shuttle _Endeavour_ in 1992. September 22,
2008, at 10:30 A.M. - St. Thomas University Carnival Cruise Lines Science and
Technology Building, 16401 NW 37 Avenue, Miami Gardens, FL.
St. Thomas University's efforts to engage the local community in the sciences
and to better prepare future students in science, technology, engineering, and
mathematics (STEM) fields and scientific research tie together in the
culmination of this new facility. The Carnival Cruise Lines Science and
Technology Building is not only a place where STU science students will be
making discoveries with the most modern research technology, but it is also a
space where young students, teachers and other members of the community will
have the opportunity to engage the sciences, organize science-related
activities, and ultimately learn about nature of our world.
The University's involvement in programs dedicated to increasing the number of
science students include its science partnership with Miami-Dade County Public
School and its grant funded activities through Project SUCCESS and Upward
Bound. These commitments are ever more tangible with the opening of this new
research-class facility.
The building was designed to excite the curiosity of young students in the
STEM subjects. The multiple large displays found within the building cover
the whole spectrum of scientific subjects. The Science Atrium at the building
entrance features the "Windows on Science," designed to engage people of all
ages. The Discovery Laboratory is a hands-on venue for elementary, middle,
and high school students and teachers to demonstrate and showcase scientific
concepts, current research, discoveries, and modern technology. The adjacent
lecture hall, entrance atrium, and outdoor terrace are excellent spaces for
public lectures, scientific conferences, and other activities.
For St. Thomas University students the research laboratories and core research
facilities for chemistry, microscopy, histology, tissue culture, and molecular
biology create a unique opportunity for undergraduate students to work with
faculty on publishable forefront research projects. "By the time science
students graduate from any of our four-year programs, they will have the same
level of experience as a first-year graduate student," said Dr. Edward A.
Ajhar, Interim Dean of the School of Science, Technology, and Engineering
Management. This experience makes our graduates very competitive for
acceptance into the top graduate programs in the country.
About Key Note speaker Dr. Mae Jemison
Mae C. Jemison blasted into orbit aboard the space shuttle Endeavor, September
12, 1992, the first woman of color to go into space. This historic event was
only another in a series of accomplishments for this dynamic African-American
woman.
Dr. Jemison was Science Mission Specialist (a NASA first) on the STS-47 Space
lab J flight, a US/Japan joint mission. She conducted experiments in life
sciences, material sciences, and was co-investigator in the Bone Cell Research
experiment. Dr. Jemison resigned from NASA in March 1993. Chemical engineer,
scientist, physician, teacher and astronaut, she has a wide range of
experience in technology, engineering, and medical research. In addition, she
is well-versed in African and African-American Studies.
Prior to joining the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in
1987, she worked as a General Practitioner, in Los Angeles with the INA/Ross
Loos Medical Group. She then spent two and a half years (1983-85) as an Area
Peace Corps Medical Officer for Sierra Leone and Liberia in West Africa. Dr.
Jemison has always been committed to ensuring that science and technology
fields represent the full gender, ethnic, and social diversity of this United
States, and encourages all people, especially women and minorities, to pursue
careers in science and any other fields of their choice.
With a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from Stanford, she
attended Cornell Medical College where she earned her Doctorate in Medicine in
1981. In medical school, her interest and knowledge in Third World countries
evolved into a commitment to effectively contribute. She traveled to Cuba,
rural Kenya, and spent a medical clerkship in Thailand at a Cambodian Refugee
Camp.
The Carnival Cruise Lines Science and Technology Building
Is 26,000 Sq. Ft. Research-Class Facility; 14 Research Laboratories Eight
Teaching Laboratories with Digital/Audiovisual Equipment Lecture Hall and
Classroom with Digital/Audiovisual Equipment A Scientific Discovery Laboratory
with "Windows on Science" Displays Visible from the Entrance Atrium; Computer
Lab.
Science programs at STU for future students and the community
Science Fellows: The program is being developed to assist low-income, minority
students with exceptional scholastic achievements to pursue careers in the
sciences, engineering, and mathematics. The program provides an opportunity
to study in a cohort with a personal academic advisor to help students through
graduation. Science Fellows must meet financial aid and eligibility
requirements.
SOURCE St. Thomas University
Marivi Prado, Chief Marketing Officer, St. Thomas University, +1-305-205-2656
cell, +1-305-474-6880, mprado@stu.edu
