Southwest Louisiana Women in Industry Forum

First Annual Event Prepares Local Students to Study STEM  

by Kerri Cooke  

The Southwest Louisiana Women in Industry Forum held its first annual event on March 7 at the Cal-Cam Event Center in Sulphur. The forum encourages “gender diversity in STEM fields,” according to Megan Hartman, public relations director at Phillips 66. Area high school seniors – girls only – had opportunities to apply for scholarships to study in fields directly related to local industry, experience mock interviews, pose for professional headshots and sit for resume critiques, as representatives from McNeese and SOWELA were present. 

Stephanie Huck, government and community affairs representative for Cheniere, emphasized to students that they were the first members of the newly formed organization. She also offered specialized advice. Their “career path will not be straight” and that’s normal. Huck also stressed the importance of integrity by emphasizing “someone is always watching you.”  

Jessica Saxby, communications advisor at Citgo, said the forum was set up with female students in mind, while Victoria Ellender, external affairs advisor at LyondellBassel, said there are “no dumb questions.”  

Sara Judson spoke on behalf of the Community Foundation of SWLA, one of the sponsors of the event, and stressed the importance of partnerships and teamwork. She also iterated the Foundation’s motto to connect “people who care with causes that matter.”  

Jim Rock, executive director of the Lake Area Industry Alliance, assured students that there is a “tremendous demand for talent.” If we can equip our students in SWLA for the industry jobs here, it’s a win for everyone involved.” 

Students were seated at tables with subject matter experts (SMEs) to discuss questions directly related to women’s empowerment and the challenges of a work life balance. Groups had eight minutes to ask SME’s such questions as how do you empower yourself and the women around you, what challenges or adversities have you faced personally or professionally, what was your career path, what does your professional role entail, how do you balance your personal and professional life, and how can we expand women’s connections to each other? 

Saxby then emceed a fashion show where local seniors pretended to strut down a runway and presented their outfits to the audience. Students in the audience then had the opportunity to discuss why outfits were or were not appropriate for a job interview. 

SWLA now has more resources than ever before to connect women with industry jobs, whether that be in specialties such as human resources, engineering or accounting. “Cheniere was involved in the Southeast Texas Women in Industry event for the last few years, and we just said we had so much industry here in Southwest Louisiana, we wanted to bring it here,” said Huck.