NAVSUP Weapon Systems Support Welcomes First High School STEM Employee

By Lt. Cmdr. Andre Sadowski, NAVSUP Weapon Systems Support and Margaret Kenyon-Ely, Naval Supply Systems Command Public Affairs

PHILADELPHIA (NNS) -- Commander, NAVSUP Weapon Systems Support, officially welcomed the organization's first high school student hired under the Science, Technology, Mathematics, and Engineering (STEM) program, April 6.

Wei Quan Li, who is the first STEM Senior from Northeast Magnet High School, has been working for NAVSUP Weapon Systems Support's Engineering and Product Development Directorate since March.

"Hiring this young man into WSS was another significant milestone in our STEM program implementation. Now that this path has been established, it will enable us to easily hire additional STEM students in the future and further impact our local community," said Rear Adm. John G. King, commander, NAVSUP Weapon Systems Support; who met with Li to welcome him to Navy civilian life and to congratulate him for receiving a full scholarship from Drexel University to study engineering, due to his high academic standing.

To meet NAVSUP Weapon Systems Support STEM hiring eligibility, students have to be in good academic standing and complete the four-week NAVSUP Weapon Systems Support Microsoft Excel Preparatory Course.

NAVSUP Weapon Systems Support created this STEM job initiative to assist students in earning money for college, to give them valuable work experience in their field of interest and to expose them to an employment path that could result in successful Government Service career.

Northeast Magnet is a Philadelphia Math, Engineering, and Science Achievement (MESA) high school that falls under NAVSUP Weapon Systems Support's STEM agreement with Temple University.

A field activity of the Naval Supply Systems Command, NAVSUP Weapon Systems Support (NAVSUP WSS) is the U.S. Navy's supply chain manager providing worldwide support to the aviation, surface ship, and submarine communities. NAVSUP WSS provides Navy, Marine Corps, joint and allied forces with products and services that deliver combat capability through logistics. There are more than 2,000 civilian and military personnel employed at its two Pennsylvania sites. The NAVSUP WSS Philadelphia site supports aircraft, while its Mechanicsburg site supports ships and submarines.