The Private Sector–Advancing STEAM Education Opportunities for Underserved Communities

With Patron Programming Sponsor

SpeakerS:

Holly Copeland, Senior Director, Corporate Social Responsibility, Sustainability, and Impact, Horizon Therapeutics

Hanne Dalmut, Senior Director, Partnerships, Concordia

Alexander Nash, Medical Student, Trinity College Dublin

Rónán Smith, Head of Research, Development and Student Pathways for the Trinity Access Programmes, Trinity College Dublin

STEAM education–Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math–can be used to improve diversity in a variety of fields, began Hanne Dalmut, Senior Director of Partnerships at Concordia, but access matters. That is the gap Horizons Therapeutics is trying to fill, explained Holly Copeland, Senior Director for Corporate Social Responsibility, Sustainability, and Impact at Horizon Therapeutics. The company offers scholarships not limited to financial support but also intended to reduce debt burden and provide mentorship.

This holistic view is important, said Rónán Smith, Head of Research, Development, and Student Pathways for the Trinity Access Programmes at Trinity College Dublin. Although Ireland provides free education, income matters even when tuition is covered. Scholarship recipient Alexander Nash, a medical student at Trinity College Dublin, said that with his scholarship he has had more time available to integrate into the university. This kind of integration, Smith continued, allows access for more kinds of people, increasing diversity in higher education and eventually in leadership, government, and medicine.

Copeland concurred that in order to solve tomorrow’s problems, you need diverse thinkers sitting at the table contributing their unique lived experiences to help create new solutions that don’t exist today. She explained that Horizon Therapeutics encourages academic institutions to select students with potential but not necessarily the usual performance indicators. Smith expressed his appreciation for companies willing to partner with universities.

“The program intends to overcome the barriers impeding the ability to pursue an education in STEAM.”

 

Holly Copeland, Senior Director, Corporate Social Responsibility, Sustainability, and Impact, Horizon Therapeutics

“We know diversity matters when we are designing solutions.”

 

Hanne Dalmut, Senior Director, Partnerships, Concordia

“Once I received the scholarship, I was able to fully integrate into university life, while remaining dedicated to my studies, in pursuit of a medical degree.”

 

Alexander Nash, Medical Student, Trinity College Dublin

“Inclusivity is important in all areas of life, and especially in the medical community, so everyone has access to holistic care.”

 

Rónán Smith, Head of Research, Development and Student Pathways for the Trinity Access Programmes, Trinity College Dublin