CSIRO's STEM Community Partnerships Program, part of Generation STEM, has partnered with Telstra to inspire students to get involved in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) to encourage curiosity, initiative and critical thinking.
Generation STEM is a 10-year initiative to attract, support, train, and retain NSW students in STEM. Managed by CSIRO, Australia's national science agency, the program is made possible by the NSW Government's $25 million endowment to the Science and Industry Endowment Fund (SIEF).
CSIRO Director of Education and Outreach, Ruth Carr, said the collaboration between Telstra and Generation STEM offers students a chance to see the diverse career possibilities available to them both at Telstra and in STEM fields more broadly.
"The STEM Community Partnerships Program is an important education program that empowers students and showcases the relevance of STEM in everyday life. It aims to support the skills needed by local industry and connects industry with their future workforce," Ms Carr said.
"The experiences provided by Telstra will play a key role in enabling students to discover and pursue their passion for STEM."
Participating Year 9 and 10 students from Western Sydney and the Central Coast will visit Telstra's Sydney Customer Insight Centre to hear from industry professionals and discover the power and potential of Telstra's next-generation networks.
The site visits offer students a chance to experience STEM outside of the classroom and better understand how STEM-based skills play a role in solving real-world issues. Some of the activities will include live network demonstrations, learning about emerging technology and hearing from Telstra experts about their career journeys.
Telstra's Group Executive of Product and Technology, Kim Krogh-Andersen said at Telstra they are passionate about building a digitally enabled workforce ready to meet the needs of the future.
"The partnership with CSIRO is about supporting our next generation with STEM skills, first-hand industry knowledge and hands-on experiences to encourage, support and help students make informed decisions regarding future STEM careers," Mr Krogh-Andersen said.
"CSIRO's STEM Community Partnerships Program is a great way of linking industry with high schools, to help support the Australian economy with resourcing local talent for STEM related jobs of the future.
"We are proud to support and collaborate with CSIRO to unlock the benefits of digital technology which has real-world impacts for Australia's Economy."