CARSTAIRS – An electronics engineering technologist from Carstairs was recently honoured with an industry award for supporting and advancing women in the profession.
The Association of Science and Engineering Technology Professionals of Alberta (ASET) honoured Cassandra Yousph with the 2024 ASET Women in Technology Award at the association’s annual general meeting on April 19 in Banff.
She is currently an account manager for a Calgary-based firm that provides industrial automation solutions. She received the award for her strong advocacy of gender diversity and inclusion in the workplace.
As part of her commitment to women in STEM, Yousph has participated as a mentor for her employer’s 2024 International Women’s Day (IWD) event and is a proud member of a company-wide initiative designed to foster connections for women through mentorship, education and activities.
In addition, she mentored a University of Alberta mechanical engineering co-op student, serving as a trusted advisor and offering assistance when required. She was also a speaker at a SAIT industry night, and an organizer and presenter for previous IWD events where she discussed her career journey to help encourage and motivate other women.
“It is important to move the needle and break gender biases by encouraging girls and women to pursue the engineering technology profession,” said Yousph. “This will enable and promote diversity, gender equality and inclusion as we increase the representation of women in this STEM profession.”
In Canada, women make up less than one quarter of the people employed in STEM careers, according to ASET.
“With such a low percentage of women in STEM careers, the engineering technology profession benefits greatly from hardworking individuals like Cassandra Yousph who continue to blaze a trail for women in it,” said Barry Cavanaugh, ASET’s chief executive officer.
He said recent studies have signalled the urgent need to attract more Canadians to STEM careers, and women engineering technology professionals are poised to play a vital role in meeting that demand.
“Cassandra’s contributions to the profession in supporting and mentoring women in STEM are invaluable and deserve recognition,” he said.
Influenced by her mother’s professional background in computer programming and operations, Yousph has worked hard at pursuing an engineering technology career, including achieving a certified engineering technologist (CET) designation through ASET.
Yousph’s mother, Jo Klitzke, has been a critical source of inspiration for her career path.
She and her mother have held the same responsibilities and title of project manager. They studied, learned, and practised programming skills and used similar software programs, worked in oilfield and manufacturing environments, and have been sole proprietors and owned and operated their own small businesses over the years.
