Simil Raghavan is a program officer with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE), and she manages the EngineerGirl program.
Mary Mathias works for the National Academy of Engineering as the Website & Community Manager for EngineerGirl and the Online Ethics Center. She has a bachelor's degree in aerospace engineering and a master's degree in museum studies.
The EngineerGirl website is designed to bring national attention to the exciting opportunities that engineering represents for girls and women. Why girls and women? Because despite an increase in female participation in many traditionally male-dominated professions such as medicine and law, women remain grossly under-represented in engineering. Engineering and engineers are central to the process of innovation, and innovation drives economic growth. Diversity of thought is crucial to creativity, and by leaving women out of the process of innovation we lose a key component of diversity and stifle innovation. We want the creative problem-solvers of tomorrow to fully represent the world's population, because they will be the ones to ensure our health, happiness, and safety in years to come. The site was launched in 2001 with input from a specially selected Girls Advisory Board—bright, energetic girls from all over the United States and Canada. In 2012 a new Girls Advisory Board was instituted in order to re-design the site for a modern audience. The ongoing work of EngineerGirl is overseen by the EngineerGirl Steering Committee with the generous support of our sponsors. The website is a service of the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and grew out of the work of the NAE Committee on the Diversity of the Engineering Workforce.
The NAE also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. The purpose of the NAE is to promote the technological welfare of the nation by marshaling the knowledge and insights of eminent members of the engineering profession. The NAE was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. Dr. C. D. Mote, Jr. is president of the NAE. You can find out more about the NAE by visiting the NAE website.