A tool at the Own The Dream website helps applicants who may be eligible for deferred action figure out whether they are eligible, and if so, can help them figure out what they need to apply. There’s an instructional video about the tool. If you recall, deferred action is an administrative change that took place within the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services for DREAMers, allowing them to apply for residency and a work permit if they meet with certain requirements.… more

This cool graphic from Upworthy shows ethnicities by region, state, city. As to be expected, much of the Southwest is Mexican or Hispanic. The image challenges the idea of a melting pot, at least, showing how the melting pot actually is a collection of clusters. Do you think this will change? Especially given how the Latino population is projected to grow in the future?… more

STEMinist did an interesting profile on Dr. Mary (María) Fernández, who currently works as Assistant Vice President, Information and Software Systems Research. She told STEMinist that she was attracted to the newness of computer science when she went to school:

 My first professor was Andres van Dam, who is a luminary of computer science in the US. He was an astonishing, fantastic teacher, who said all sorts of crazy things, like everyone will have a computer in their home someday and computers will be so small we will carry them around in our pockets.

… more

An interesting piece comes from Broadband & Social Justice, examining the fact that many YouTube stars are people of color, but don’t seem to have the financial backing that other stars do. On the one hand, YouTube stars are disproportionately people of color; on the other, venture capitalists are not. So, according to the piece:

The Washington Post article mentions advertising as the primary source of income for YouTube channels owned by people of color.  However, the Wall Street Journal article acknowledges that advertising is only one revenue stream for YouTube channel owners.

… more

A great graphic from LearnStuff shows how integrated technology is into the lives of young folks. Although only 11% of kids aged 2-5 can tie their shoes, 70% can use a mouse, for example. There are many other examples in the graphic below, check it out. Thanks to LearnStuff for sharing.… more

A new study found that mentors of a similar background can help usher young people into STEM. The study, “Individual differences in preferences for matched-ethnic mentors among high-achieving ethnically diverse adolescents in STEM” was published in the journal “Child Development” recently. The study found that, for minority youth, having a mentor of a similar background could really make a difference:

Over the four weeks of the program, their perceptions of contact with mentors of similar background increased and were also associated with an increased sense of identity and belonging as a science student.

… more

Where are all the women in tech? It’s a simple question with a complicated answer. A recent report tried to answer the question, especially given as we wrote recently, that even when girls are interested in STEM they aren’t likely to pursue it as a career. Nationally, according to the report, just 25% of computer and information technology jobs are held by women. When it comes to supervisory roles, at the top of the corporate ladder, this percentage drops to 20%. Which is to say, the numbers aren’t very promising — especially when you factor in race: Asian women make up 4% of the workforce, African American women 3% and Latinas just 1%.… more

A new study shows that, while Latino businesses — 20.7% of the total in Texas — are the fastest growing in the state, there are key factors that prevent them from expanding to beyond just a handful of employees. About 47% of these businesses have between one and four employees while 73% have less than 25. The study, by Bureau of Business Research Survey of Hispanic Businesses with Paid Employees in Texas, found that limited access to resources, information and trained employees were the top factors preventing this growth. … more

Adriana Ocampo said she grew up playing an astronaut instead of with dolls. And throughout all of her moves from her native Colombia to Argentina and finally the U.S., she worked towards the goal she had to work with NASA. Since 1988 she’s been at NASA headquarters in Washington, D.C. and answers letters from little girls in both English and Spanish. This is part of her work to mentor Latinas and girls in science, formalized in a group she works with called Latina Women of NASA.… more

The Latino & African-American High School Internship Program at the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles in California allows young students the chance to do original research in the hospital’s labs. According to the LA Times:

Under the watch of professionals, they conduct their own research in the hospital’s laboratories. A pair of students have spent weeks conducting research on bacterial meningitis among infants; others have studied cancer and HIV.

… more