Dr. Stephanie Couch, alumna of UC Santa Barbara’s Gevirtz School, was named a 2013 STEM (Science Technology Engineering Mathematics) Woman of the Year by California Assemblywoman Nancy Skinner. The award is one that recognizes women and organizations that have made groundbreaking contributions in STEM fields and have helped advance, involve or educate women and girls in STEM.
Couch received a Ph.D. from the Gevirtz School’s Department of Education in 2011. She is currently serving as both the Director of the Gateways East Bay STEM Network and the Director of CSU East Bay’s Institute for STEM Education. The separate yet complimentary roles enable Couch to connect the innovations developed at East Bay and by others in the region to Gateways partners so that all students and educators in the region can benefit from the Institute’s work.
Prior to her appointment with the Gateways East Bay STEM Network and the Institute, Couch helped to conceptualize, design, and launch the statewide California STEM Learning Network (CSLNet). CSLNet is a non-profit working to build a network of educators, business leaders, and other stakeholders committed to establishing the world’s best STEM education system so that all California students will graduate from high school with the STEM knowledge and skills required for success in postsecondary education, work and their daily lives, and that more students pursue STEM careers and degrees.
“The East Bay is home to many distinguished women who have shattered the glass ceiling in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math,” Assembly Member Skinner said in après release. “The women and organizations honored are fueling new innovations and technologies that are changing our world for the better. Honoring these role models, we pave the way for many more women and girls to excel and change the faces of STEM.”