Our Impact

The SLH Foundation’s central mission is to help students pursue careers in STEM fields. Our Fellowship program introduces students to leaders in a wide variety of fields, expanding their understanding firsthand of different career options and the many paths that can be taken to find meaningful and impactful STEM careers.

We rigorously collect data and feedback from our Fellows to continuously improve our programming to achieve this mission. See below for some of what our Fellows and speakers had to say.

 

100%

Fellows who found first semester events valuable

100% of Class 4 Fellows reported that events with guests have been valuable in helping them to learn more about STEM education and careers.

 

88%

Students influenced by their Fellowship Experience

91% of Fellows in Classes 1-4 said that the Fellowship informed and influenced their interest in a STEM career.

 
 

100%

FELLOWS WHO RECOMMEND THE FELLOWSHIP

100% of Fellows in Classes 1-4 stated that they would recommend the Fellowship experience to other students interested in STEM.

 

Testimonial from Teju Vijay, Class 4 Fellow

The Sandra Lee Heyman Foundation has been instrumental to me in navigating the world of STEM and figuring out what I want to do with my life.
— Class 1 Fellow
I really enjoyed the caliber of speakers. I have attended many events featuring guest speakers of remarkable professions, and none of them have been as engaging as SLH events. The guests were incredibly accomplished individuals who truly inspired me.
— Class 1 Fellow
I sincerely believe this program is a 10/10, because it physically exposes you to the people in fields you may be interested in.
— Class 2 Fellow
Thank you for running such a wonderful program.
— Dr. Arthur Lupia, Assistant Director, National Science Foundation
The range of different speakers that we had introduced me to many careers that I did not know existed.
— Class 3 Fellow
I really enjoyed learning more about various careers that I knew little about. I definitely find the professionals to be inspiring, and hearing about their experiences makes me more motivated to pursue a STEM career, despite any challenges that I may encounter.
— Class 4 Fellow
The fellowship was a great opportunity to peer into the lives and experiences
of the professionals we look up to as students passionate about STEM. As
compared to other resources, SLH is a one-of-a-kind program that allows us to grow familiar with STEM careers by conversing with current professionals.
— Class 2 Fellow
This fellowship has been so reassuring and helpful because it showed me all the different pathways and turns that people made to get where they are now.
— Class 3 Fellow
I learned that there is no ‘traditional’ education path. Just because you may have an unconventional way or don’t immediately know what you want to do, does not mean you will be any less successful in the future.
— Class 4 Fellow
I was very interested in hearing about their [the speakers’] paths to the career they are now in, as it helps me understand what I should/could do in high school and in college.
— Class 4 Fellow
Overall, listening to all the guest speakers made me realize that the major or career I chose at 17 does not define what I can and will do with my future. I also learned that trying new things and taking opportunities (internships, workshops, etc.) can help me figure out what I want to do.
— Class 3 Fellow
The best part was having the opportunity to listen to the first-hand experiences of the speakers in their respective fields. Career information is not hard to find but hearing real-life experiences in various STEM careers was really helpful.
— Class 2 Fellow
The fellows asked insightful and thoughtful questions.... I highly recommend the fellowship for both students and speakers as a way for the current generation of scientists to begin interactions with the next generation.
— Dr. Amy Jenkins, DARPA, Biological Technologies Office Program Manager
Most STEM programs seem to focus on the basic STEM fields such as medicine/clinical science and computer science, but as someone who’s not interested in those fields I thoroughly enjoyed the exploration into other areas as well (such as a behavioral science).
— Class 1 Fellow
This program is certainly unique. I think that the opportunity to hear from so many different leading scientists is incredible. In general, I don’t think there are many programs whose sole focus is to learn about STEM careers.
— Class 1 Fellow
Before this, all I knew was that I wanted to pursue a career that dealt with math and science. The September 2020 and May 2021 events helped me realize which careers would suit my specific interests the best.
— Class 1 Fellow
As someone who is interested in STEM but also in humanities fields, I genuinely found this fellowship to be influential in both areas.
— Class 3 Fellow
Learning about civil engineering helped me understand how different the career possibilities are in the field. The event has inspired me to explore civil engineering and maybe even consider majoring in it.
— Class 4 Fellow
Before, I had been limited to thinking of my career options as just a medical doctor who works on the clinical side, but now I can see that there are many other options and that even as an M.D., I don’t have to necessarily work with patients. There are also a lot more intriguing intersections than I realized.
— Class 1 Fellow
It was a pleasure to speak with the bright fellows of SLH. They engaged with me in a very grounded, mature and thoughtful way, asking insightful questions about medicine, and the journey to and within it.
— Dr. Rosemary Thomas-Mohtat, Children’s National Hospital
This program is by far superior because it is incredibly intimate. Being able to interact with such fascinating people in such small and engaging environments sets the SLH Foundation miles above all other resources available to me to learn about STEM careers.
— Class 1 Fellow
The most important takeaway from these sessions has been the large range of flexibility that my future entails. Many of these speakers didn’t know what they were going to end up working on, but they stayed positive…and they are now all very successful. I can be very successful in my future without a ‘dream college’ or special internship. Listening to the holistic life lessons that these experts had was a very illuminating and unexpected bonus to the Sandra Lee Heyman Fellowship.
— Class 4 Fellow