05/01/2015
This week I had the great honor of being a featured panelist during the Women Innovators and Entrepreneurs discussion at the 2015 Wharton D.C. Innovation Summit where I was able to advocate the importance of a balanced and nurtured education between the sciences and the arts.
I have never experienced such an eye opening opportunity to connect with extremely accomplished individuals, learn invaluable knowledge, and be a voice for the millenial generations.
At the summit, I made fantastic relationships with entrepreneurs, businessmen, doctors, and many more. My discussion went fantastically and I recieved much positive feedback on my perspective on our country's education system. While I was in D.C., I was graciously invited to stay with an alumae from my sorority in Arlington where I found out that the Arlington School District only allows their elementary students to partake in art once a week for 30 minutes, which is unacceptable.
Tuesday night, the attendees had the opportunity to partake in the Reception in the Embassy of Indonesia. The music was beautiful; the food was delicious; and the architecture was stunning.
The knowledge I gained over the past few days is irreplaceable, and I hope that in the future I continue to stay connected with these individuals as I ameliorate my career.
Thank you, Wasif Syed, for helping make this opportunity possible. Lastly, thank you to both Alan Schlaifer, Ali Qureshi, and the other committee members who made this event wonderful.
The biggest takeaway I can express from being part of this event is that innovation and creativity does not have an age limit, nor an age requirement. Innovation begins at such young ages, and our education systems need to invest in such youth. Youth is not a stage of life, rather a state of mind and our older generations have much to gain from us millenials. Mentoring is a two-way street, and as much as we can learn from our elders, our elders can learn from us.
With collaboration this country will flourish; and innovation we will become a leader in STEM.