N.C. A&T Alumna Tina Taylor Leads Global STEM Initiatives for Youth
Before the pandemic hit, Tina L. Taylor ’95 spent the majority of her time in South Africa operating two nonprofits: Heritage STEM Camps Foundation, a venture capital STEM boot camp, and Heritage Leadership Academy, a boarding school for girls. Both organizations engineer ideas that impact thousands of minority women and children in the U.S. and Africa by driving community transformation and building economic parity.
In addition, Taylor is the COO of Core3 Innovation, a technology management firm based in Raleigh.
Taylor is now in Raleigh, North Carolina, operating remotely to mentor youth through various STEM programs and stay abreast of global needs for girls and women.
“For more than 20 years, I worked for General Electric. I moved more than 10 times to various countries and led global organizations and operations. Through this opportunity, I was provided a platform that allowed me to see that African Americans and women of color were not leading at the table,” said Taylor. “I saw firsthand girls and women in sub-Saharan Africa being denied basic rights and how it affects continents due to lack of resources such as healthcare and education.”
In 2016, Taylor started Heritage STEM Camp Foundation with the goal to increase minority girls’ level of confidence and self-sufficiency toward science, technology, engineering, math, leadership, business, and finance, with an end result leading to stronger economic participation through entrepreneurship by girls of color.
“I wanted to make sure everything I experienced in my career and all of the resources I garnered over the years were provided to children, particularly girls who look like me, without them having to pay an exorbitant cost for education,” said Taylor. “Everything I do for girls is aiding them to think, ‘How do I operate from a business standpoint?’”
Since its inception, Heritage STEM Camps Foundation has served nearly 800 girls and boys between ages 12 and 18 who represent seven nationalities from 10 different countries and 13 spoken languages. The organization has implemented 13 STEM boot camps in South Africa, North Carolina and Louisiana. Seventy percent of the participants engage in entrepreneurial efforts before graduating from high school.
“There’s one story in particular I love sharing of a young girl who served as an ambassador in our STEM program in South Africa. She was bullied prior to being in the program, and she found her voice and she gained the confidence she needed to start her own business to solicit psychologists to help the bullies,” Taylor said.
Taylor has been instrumental in helping youth in her program learn their strengths in leadership, understand the ins and outs of how to present to executives in the c-suite, and come away with the financial education needed for business and life.
“We take youth through a Venture Capital STEM Bootcamp, a program designed to put them in front of industry experts and corporate leaders similar to ‘Shark Tank,’ to present their business ideas. We believe it is essential for youth to understand who they are, know their strengths and opportunities, and recognize where they are lacking so that mentors and resources can be provided,” she said. “This program is all about education and making sure participants are picking up the knowledge that adds value to their conversation about business and finance.”
On Nov. 24, Smithfield Foods awarded Heritage STEM Camps Foundation $300,000 to increase participation among minority girls’ ages 12 to 18 years old from North Carolina and Virginia in a STEM summer boot camp.
“I believe my biggest accomplishment has been stepping into my voice and owning my space – unapologetically. This is what I teach my girls in the organization: to be confident in who they are as young women and pursue opportunities that propel them to the next level,” she said.
Taylor, a native of Whitaker, North Carolina, received her bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University and earned a TRIUM Global Executive MBA from the London School of Economics.
To learn more about Heritage STEM Camps Foundation, Heritage Leadership Academy and Core3 Innovation, please visit these links:
One Comment
Anthony "TJ" Jackson
Excellent story! Aggie Pride is really Worldwide! Keep up the great work Tina.