Claire Parks Graduates from BAE’s Women in Technology Program

Huntington High School junior Claire Parks graduated earlier this week from BAE Systems’ Women in Technology program, gaining valuable hands-on experience at the global defense and aerospace company, which employs a workforce of more than 100,000 in over 40 countries.

The program ran from September to December at BAE Systems’ large facility in Greenlawn. Huntington is one of eight Long Island high schools that participates in the initiative.

“Women is Technology (WiT) is a collaborative effort between local area high school and BAE Systems’ Electronic Systems sector,” according to the company’s website. “WiT gives female high school students with an aptitude in math and science a practical, hands-on opportunity to explore careers in various technical disciplines. It also provides mentorship to the students to encourage and support them in their pursuit of a technical career. After completing the program, seniors who have been accepted to college with a declared major in STEM are encouraged to apply for a summer internship opportunity at BAE Systems.”

Students are exposed to several aspects of engineering by participating in various technical curriculum such as: Software engineering, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, microwave engineering, signal processing, failure analysis, optical engineering and manufacturing engineering.

“Other rotations include building skills in communication and presentative giving, as well as providing opportunities for students to attend networking events with engineers at BAE Systems to encourage insight into the industry,” according to BAE Systems.

This year’s graduating class included 13 students. They worked on projects in five groups of two and one group of three. They presented their work at this week’s ceremony before a crowd of parents, school officials and BAE engineers.