#DressForSTEM This Thursday: Wearing Purple on Pi Day to Celebrate Women in STEM
All it took was a Facebook group of 700 female meteorologists who planned to wear the same purple dress on Pi Day, garnering viral attention.
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Every year in March, the contributions women have made throughout American history as part of Women’s History Month are commemorated in living color.
But there’s another annual observance this month dedicated specifically to celebrating women working in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) careers — while also acknowledging there’s still a long way to go.
#DressForSTEM began as a grassroots movement in 2016, started by a group of female meteorologists to celebrate female STEM pioneers, those active in the field and the next generation of female scientists on March 14.
March 14 marks Pi Day, a celebration of the mathematical symbol pi. Founded in 1988 by physicist Larry Shaw, March 14 was selected because the numerical date represents the first three digits of pi (3.14) — and also happens to be Albert Einstein’s birthday.
It wasn’t until 2009 that Pi Day became an official holiday when the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation. But almost 40 years after Pi Day was born, women in STEM and their allies are asking for more diversity in the field.
All it took was a Facebook group of about 700 female meteorologists who planned to wear the same purple dress on Pi Day in 2016 and 2017, garnering viral attention as well as the opportunity to drive the Pi Day conversation to the underrepresentation of women in STEM.
This Pi Day (3.14) the ladies at AccuWeather are wearing the same dress to promote more women in STEM: Science Technology Engineering & Math pic.twitter.com/mRxkfO25u7
— Cam Tran WESH (@CamTranTV) March 14, 2017
While MIT reported that the gender gap in STEM careers remains significant, with women accounting for only 28% of the field in 2023, Edutopia reported that female visibility in the field is increasing, with nearly 58% of young girls drawing a picture of a scientist who looks like them in 2016 — when #DressForSTEM was launched — compared to 1% when the study was first conducted in the 1960s.
Today, in 2024, #DressForSTEM still stands: Those who participate in the initiative wear purple and create social media posts with the hashtag #DressForSTEM on March 14.
We’ve chosen to go a step further and celebrate by presenting photographic proof of the ongoing contributions women have made to STEM.
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