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AWE Boardmember Julie Parsley Named One of Austin’s Best CEOs

ABJ Staff – Austin Business Journal – Oct. 3, 2019

Imagine in your mind’s eye a Central Texas nonprofit — do you think of an electrical utility providing power to thousands of customers spread across the Hill Country?

Perhaps not. But Pedernales Electric Cooperative Inc. is a nonprofit, and a successful one at that. It serves more than 320,000 accounts and provides electricity to more than 1 million residents. Since Julie Caruthers Parsley took over as CEO in late 2017, PEC has added more than 14,000 meters.

PEC is the largest distribution electric cooperative in the United States, and one of the country’s fastest-growing electric cooperatives. For some context of Pedernales’ size, consider that it had more than 700 employees in 2017. As of 2018, PEC had more than $1.7 billion in plant assets and posted a net margin of more than $60 million. Total revenue topped $638 million.

Parsley hasn’t simply been content with the status quo at PEC. She made over the nonprofit’s executive team, eliminating silos to foster more collaboration. To create more transparency she hired an executive vice president role to oversee public affairs, communications, community engagement and legislative affairs.

READ THE FULL ARTICLE AT THE AUSTIN BUSINESS JOURNAL »

Shortage of Women in STEM Careers

Only 1 in 4 individuals working in the computer and mathematical workforce are female. Additionally, only 1 in 6 people working in architecture and engineering occupations are women. As the numbers prove, there is still underrepresentation of women in the science, technology, engineering, and math workforce. This page collects articles and guides from around the Web to help women pursue careers in STEM fields.

Women and Careers in STEM

In an effort to make information focused on STEM education and careers more accessible to women, BestColleges.com has curated a Women and Careers in STEM series for those considering the field. Included are degree overviews, job boards, and perspectives from female professionals already in the industry. Take a look here: 

Where Women Study STEM:
https://www.bestcolleges.com/resources/where-women-study-stem/

Women in STEM:
https://www.bestcolleges.com/resources/women-in-stem/

STEM Careers:
https://www.bestcolleges.com/careers/stem/

Maryville University Guide for Women in STEM:
This comprehensive guide from Maryville University aims to educate readers about the gender and diversity gaps in STEM fields:
 https://online.maryville.edu/blog/women-in-stem-a-guide-to-bridging-the-gender-gap/

A Guide for Women in STEM: Closing the Gender Gap
This guide from MastersInDataScience.org highlights some of the issues women getting into STEM face, why women should pursue STEM careers, groundbreaking women in STEM and helpful resources for women interested in STEM.
https://www.mastersindatascience.org/blog/a-guide-for-women-in-stem-closing-the-gender-gap/

35+ initiatives to get more women into cybersecurity
Explore this deep dive into 35+ initiatives that should prove helpful for women exploring a career in this rapidly growing area.
https://comparite.ch/womenincybersecurity

High Schoolers’ Guide to Preparing for an Engineering College
The demand for STEM jobs and qualified individuals is expected to keep increasing. Here is an article with you that has some great information for high schoolers preparing to advance into a career in STEM fields.
https://stemstudy.com/high-schoolers-guide-to-engineering-college/

A Guide for Women to Break Into Information Technology
The tech industry is one of the fastest-growing industries and is projected to grow 12% in the next decade. While the tech industry can provide fulfilling careers and abundant paychecks, research has shown that IT and computing jobs are dominated by males. Despite the imbalance, there are many resources for women interested in STEM, including this guide. Atera’s guide includes information on the challenges women face in the industry, a list of different careers related to IT, and resources for tech training for women.
https://www.atera.com/blog/a-guide-for-women-to-break-into-information-technology/

A Profile of Computer Scientist: Grace Hopper
Grace Hopper was a computer programmer who pioneered the development of the compiler, which paved the way for her creation of the COBOL computer programming language. Hopper was also a rear admiral in the U.S. Navy. She was born in 1906 in New York City and died in 1992. In 2016, President Barack Obama posthumously honored Hopper with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
https://store.hp.com/us/en/tech-takes/computer-scientist-grace-hopper

Industry and Career Resources for Promoting Diversity in Engineering
We strongly believe that a better balance is necessary within STEM fields and more women and underrepresented minorities must be included in the engineering workforce. With that belief in mind, we created a comprehensive list that details the many advantages gained from diversity, demographics of the engineering industry, and an overview of the different types of engineering careers. Furthermore, our article covers financial resources like grants and scholarships that are targeted toward minorities, engineering internship opportunities, and professional associations and organizations that exist to help improve diversity in engineering.
https://www.fictiv.com/articles/industry-and-career-resources-for-promoting-diversity-in-engineering