Base 11: Expanding STEM
Workforce development designed to increase diversity
Addressing the STEM talent pipeline crisis
Base 11 is an organization created to address two notable problems facing the U.S’s STEM landscape. The first, a growing STEM talent pipeline crisis alongside under representation of women and minorities in the field. The second, a lack of a sustainable middle class in America made up of all Americans.
By studying these problems three primary barriers were identified that prevent women and minorities from entering and advancing in STEM related careers: Lack of Awareness, Access and Belief.
Delivering awareness, access and belief
The hub of each Base 11 Regional Ecosystem is a 11 Innovation Center, where students gain hands-on STEM skills using industry-quality technology and equipment that they otherwise would not have access to. The centers are located in California, Arizona and a number of local colleges, universities, regional lk and STEM-focused foundations that use the local Innovation Centers for academic courses, reverse engineered training programs, industry-sponsored student challenges, events, and recruitment.
As MIT-inspired Fab Labs, the Base 11 Innovation centers include equipment including: 3D printers, Computer-controlled laser-cutters, computer-operated milling machines, programming and testing stations and more.
We’re producing the next frontier of leaders who are equipped to solve some of the world’s biggest problems.
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
Base 11 and the ASEA program contribute to UN Sustainable Development goal’s 4, 5, 8, 9, 10 and 11. Some of this is because of the students they serve -- women and historically underrepresented groups -- and the others are due to the technological innovations the students are learning to work with. (Think for example, of the potential challenges and benefits in urban areas of autonomous devices delivering groceries instead of people in vehicles.)
Dassault Systèmes La Fondation is proud to support Base 11’s Autonomous Systems Engineering Academy
The Autonomous Systems Engineering Academy is a 6-week intensive, 200-hour, problem-based learning program for community college students on the campus of UC Irvine which has run since the summer of 2018. It was created alongside a full semester course in the Academic Year 2018/19 comprised of 200 hours of lecture, lab and homework at community colleges. Students experience engineering discipline and engineering design as they use collaborative 3D design tools and work in an environment that promotes collaboration and cross-disciplinary introductory engineering concepts applied to an autonomous engineered system. The outcome of the project is an industry-sponsored drone design competition among teams of students from each college to inspire and empower the students on their pathway to four-year STEM degrees and employment within high demand industries such as aerospace, technology, transportation and mobility.