Volume 2, Issue 3
Table of Contents:
Zero Dollars. Zero Cents.
This was WiSTEM's budget this academic year.
Everything we planned was of no cost to Illinois Tech, even so, we are one of the student organizations that had the biggest impact on Illinois Tech this academic year.
WiSTEM was founded in July 2020 by Barien Gad, Aminah Ahmed, and Alisha Khan. This group of women felt that Illinois Tech lacked a community of women and gender minority persons in STEM. They wanted to create such a community on campus and encourage these populations to continue their studies in STEM-related fields.
WiSTEM was passed by Illinois Tech's Student Government Association in September 2020 by one vote. Many Senate members disagreed with passing the organization as they perceived it as being too similar to other organizations such as the Society of Women Engineers, Women in Math, Women in Cybersecurity, etc.
Our key differentiating factor is found in our purpose: to recognize and unite women and gender minorities in STEM to address important topics in our respective fields as well as encourage interdisciplinary discussions. This organization serves to increase the presence of the women and gender minority population on campus. The executive board fully intends for this organization to be a place in which all persons feel welcome. The executive board further hopes to create a support system for one another and foster a network of individuals who will one day work together to bring about a more inclusive and diverse future.
Almost seven months have passed since we were approved by Illinois Tech's SGA. WiSTEM has accomplished a lot in this period, and we are excited to share it with readers in this piece.
WiSTEM's structure includes three levels: the executive board, representatives, and general body members.
WiSTEM created an original flagship feature of having a board of “Representatives” in September 2020. We have Representatives in different departments/majors and each serves as a point of communication between students in their department/major and the executive board. We wanted to make sure WiSTEM is of benefit to the diverse STEM majors at Illinois Tech. Representatives provide us with specific resources that we share with members of our organization. They also reach out to professors and department heads to ensure that students know about the events and resources that WiSTEM provides.
The following are our objectives and work we have done for each of them:
Community
It is important to have a space for women and gender minorities to feel safe and have discussions. It is vital to not only care about these populations during undergraduate outreach but also after that to ensure they continue studies in STEM fields and decide to stay at Illinois Tech.
We started our academic semesters with community events. The purpose of doing so is to meet new members of Illinois Tech and inform them of how our organization will benefit them. In Fall 2020 we had 36 Questions. In this event, we introduced the student body to WiSTEM and our mission. We also got to know the community we are working with through an interactive 36 Questions activity along with breakout rooms. In Spring 2021 we had Meet Our Women and Gender Minorities in STEM. This event was different from previous events because it was the first time we had faculty and university administrators join us to see what we are about. We were making a name for ourselves and this was a step in the right direction.
To continue our pattern of community building at Illinois Tech, we wanted to host events in which students can casually mingle with each other. As we know, COVID has caused students to be distant from each other and newer students especially were unable to build relationships with their peers like they would in person. The best way to mirror an in-person relationship was by breaking off our meetings into breakout rooms. Our events, Meet Your Major and Letters and Listeners, were held this semester with the goal of community building. Letters and Listeners was an original idea that was made to serve as an avenue for students to freely write out their thoughts that they hoped to share anonymously. We were able to do this on our $0 budget by using online platforms for anonymous letter submissions with pen names and then allowing students to sign up to receive virtual letters by email. WiSTEM hopes to one day do this using the postal service or campus deliveries to make the letters more unique. These events were made to ensure that our members felt like they were a part of something larger during these hard times. The compassion and kindness shared throughout these events proved that WiSTEM is a powerful medium in uniting women and gender minorities at IIT.
Our last community event this academic year was An Hour of Empowerment: Stories of Strength and Perseverance. We had planned this event since September. We really wanted our members to have a special session just for them where they could hear someone from a similar background talk about what it is like to be a minority in STEM. We had a list of speakers that would be of interest to the community at Illinois Tech. It took us several board meetings to develop this list and we decided on inviting Elaine Montilla. Ms. Montilla came to speak to our members even though we had no money to give. Ms. Montilla came to us genuinely, and we cannot thank her enough for doing so.
Professional Development
One of the main goals WiSTEM highlights is to provide proper professional development resources for its members. We have made this possible with our opportunities spreadsheet. Within this spreadsheet, we have each one of our major-specific representatives fill out a page with links to resources for internships, research opportunities, academic resources, scholarships, or really anything they would find beneficial to their peers. This allows for the presence of gender minorities in STEM to grow as they are exposed to numerous opportunities. We have also provided branched networking opportunities through our various events that may have included faculty at Illinois Tech or STEM-related speakers.
We have continuously worked with Career Services throughout the semester to promote professional development and provide proper training and advice for our members. WISTEM took full advantage of our campus’ free resources. Throughout the academic year, WiSTEM hosted six events in collaboration with Career Services. The idea for hosting these events was to learn about resume building, LinkedIn accounts, and interviewing skills, but this time all with a special emphasis on how to overcome challenges faced as a minority in a given field. For each event, we always asked the speaker to highlight ways that women and gender minorities can stand out in these processes and how they can unite together when networking or working in a setting. In our Interviewing 101 event, we had a special focus on what questions may be illegal to be asked during an interview and how to avoid/respond to these inappropriate questions. Events like LinkedIn 101, Interviewing 101, Women and Gender Minorities in the Workforce, and Networking During COVID-19, were strategically placed within the time frame of applying periods for research and internship opportunities. When coming up with these event ideas, we thought that it was most important to host events like these a few weeks before common application deadlines. Along with these, we hosted two events, How to Boost Your Resume of Winter Break and Prepping for a Productive Summer, that had a focus on productively using time over breaks. These events were made beneficial for our members to continue their professional development even outside of class times. Overall, events focusing on professional development held our highest turnouts. It is amazing to see how we were able to benefit so many members off of these free sources from Illinois Tech.
To the right is a word art displaying the most commonly used words in the received letters
Social Issues in STEM:
As included in our name, our organization focuses on STEM disciplines. In particular, this academic year we focused on discussing how STEM can better society if used ethically. Our first event that aligned with this objective featured Dr. Hicks, who is also WiSTEM's advisor. We wanted to have them speak to us because their research in particular is about the relationship between gender and technology. Although this talk focused on computing, we felt that it was important for our general body as computing is used in every discipline and our everyday life. Dr. Hicks discussed gender and race in computing’s past to give a longer view of some of the problems we are confronting right now with high tech, and what we can do about them.
We continued this discussion about ethics with a two-part series in coordination with SoReMo. SoReMo is a network of faculty and professions providing a framework for social responsibility to become a core value in research and education at Illinois Tech; this initiative was founded by Dr. Petrovic. We really wanted to work with this group as it would build a bridge between faculty and students and create a great community at Illinois Tech for members who cared about such issues. The first event discussed why we should even care about social responsibility, the second part discussed its place in modeling, computation, and education. We had professors from the College of Computing speak at this event about their research and interest in social responsibility. We felt that the second event was really the star of this series, it was very beneficial to students to hear directly from professors how their research benefits society as well as learn about how we can apply our knowledge from class in projects through SoReMo.
Two of WiSTEM's co-founders received paid fellowships for independent projects. Alisha Khan and Barien Gad are both doing projects in coordination with WiSTEM to better Illinois Tech. Alisha is analyzing admissions for specific ethnicities given financial needs and academic performance. Alisha is creating a policy paper to increase diversity through admissions and undergraduate outreach. Barien is addressing period poverty and creating a plan to bring free feminine hygiene products to campus.
Regarding problems in higher education, WiSTEM had a two-part series in coordination with the Undergraduate Research Journal of IIT. Our board members are diverse in their ethnicity, and minorities in STEM because of their gender. We know what it is like to wonder if you really have a place in STEM because you don't see people like you in places where you would like to be. The focus of this series was representation. We first had a casual podcast-like discussion between presidents of both organizations discussing the importance of representation in higher education. This was followed by a panel discussion where minority professors shared their stories of how they got into research and what led them to the career path they have now. These events really encouraged our members to continue pushing through and persevering, because, in the end, it will be worth it. It was great to hear from accomplished minority professors in academia give advice they wish they heard when they were in our positions. This event also connected students to faculty members.
WiSTEM aims to address problems in higher education at Illinois Tech by providing a voice for the community through our newsletters. For every issue, we have an editorial that discusses a specific problem at Illinois Tech and what can be done to resolve it. For our first newsletter of Spring 2021, we released an editorial addressing IIT's Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity Committee, at that time chaired by Mike Horan, the Vice President for Finance and Administration. The piece questioned why he was the chair when none of his experiences qualify him for this position. The newsletter circulated overnight and in the morning the entire committee was filled with different people.
Seventeen events. One hundred and fifty mailing list subscribers. Six newsletters.
If we accomplished this as our first year as an organization, during a pandemic, with zero dollars and zero cents, imagine the change we will bring to Illinois Tech when we are financially supported.
Events Updates
By: Christina Majercak, Events Manager of WiSTEM
Meet Your Major
Meet Your Major was our first community event of March! Our goal of this event was to allow students to mingle during the lunch hour with their fellow classmates. Topics of discussion included fun campus-related questions as well as helpful tips to succeed in specific major-related classes. WiSTEM was able to also lighten up the conversation with a few quick games to encourage some competition and laughs!
Due to the pandemic, it is much harder for students to meet new people inside their major. As a remote learner, I can see the difficulty with communicating with people in my classes. I would normally just talk to people before class starts or walk with them after, but this has limited any ability to do that. I think it can easily be said that many of us miss having true connections with our peers! It is important to all stay connected during these distant times and make the most out of the chances we do get to branch out to each other. Our lunch event encouraged members to feel as if they were just casually sitting at ‘The Commons’ after class and enjoying fun yet serious conversations. The event was very much enjoyed by all attendees and it was very exciting to see people de-stress and just have a great time during their lunch break! WiSTEM works to unite students at Illinois Tech and aims to keep building up the community aspect.
Social Responsibility: Why Should We Care?
WiSTEM was fortunate enough to have an event in collaboration with SoReMo. SoReMo is a faculty-run initiative that aims to encourage members of the Illinois Tech community to pursue one’s passion and ‘look for ways - within that discipline - to have an impact, make a difference, inspire change.’
After brief introductions, Dr. Petrovic and Barien Gad dove in to define social responsibility and why it should be acknowledged by everyone on campus, staff or student. Social responsibility is essentially the framework that supports the model that it is an individual’s responsibility to effectively work and cooperate with others in order to benefit society as a whole. In order to confirm that an action is ‘socially responsible’, it must be validated that it does not cause any harm or threat to an individual or the environment.
During the event, participants were fortunate enough to hear real-world examples about non-socially responsible decisions and how those have affected society. It was especially interesting to hear about the projects that are being held here on our own campus!
Alisha Khan is working on a project that aims to develop strategies for increasing/ensuring diversity at Illinois Tech. This includes analyzing Undergraduate Admissions data and finding underlying patterns in it.
Barien Gad is also one of SoReMo’s fellows. Her project aims to provide adequate resources, facilities, and amenities for women and gender minorities. Dr. Petrovic provided students with an accurate road map to determine how to implement social responsibility in their everyday lives.
The event also included some breakout rooms with both faculty and staff in order to spark conversation about how we as a community can work together to address issues in an effective manner. The conversation about how to practice social responsibility on campus and in one’s specific field sparked very powerful discussions. These are the types of conversations that are very important to have. WiSTEM and SoReMo hope that all attendees walked away with some sort of powerful message or motivation to make change. To learn more about the event and the mission of both organizations, visit our website to find a link to the event slides!
Letters and Listeners: An Inbox of Experiences
We were very proud to host our ‘Letters and Listeners’ event as it was a very original idea. The vision of this event was to allow students/faculty to take certain things off their chests in the form of an anonymous letter addressed to a ‘Fellow Member of the Illinois Tech Community’. The purpose of the letter was to tell someone about a topic that maybe they have been keeping inside for a while. Writers were encouraged to share anything that they personally felt comfortable with.
Some very powerful letters were shared. Some writers chose to write about lighter topics or success stories in their recent coming, while others wrote about the immense stress that they have been experiencing. Reading the letters, it was clear that many people have had these feelings bottled up for a while and they felt some form of relief writing it out in their pen name.
To elaborate on the letters, this event was hosted to prompt discussion about the topics. Of course, anonymity remained and there were set guidelines to ensure that privacy was respected. Attendees were split up into breakout rooms to discuss the common themes of their letters and how they reacted to reading them. The most insightful part of the event was when the question of: If you could reply to the writer, what advice/support would you suggest? This carried a strong sense of care once participants began expressing their sympathy and/or support for some of the writers in need. It was made very clear that the Illinois Tech community is full of individuals who are very understanding and are willing to help a peer in need. I hope that this event inspired people to reach out for support if needed because the positive feedback that we received proved that the IIT has this support system within organizations like ours.
An Hour of Empowerment: Stories of Strength and Perseverance Featuring Elaine Montilla
We were fortunate enough to have TedX speaker Elaine Montilla come speak to us for ‘An Hour of Empowerment’. Ms. Montilla is the founder of an organization 5xminority that looks to highlight how businesses can be powerful platforms for social change and empower the minorities within them. Of all those who attended, there was very highly positive feedback in interest in the speaker’s journey and mission. Ms. Montilla provided us with phenomenal suggestions on how to increase your presence as a minority in your workplace or even class. This included suggestions on how to make sure you are always being respected and never being talked over as well as reflecting on reactions to different emotions in the workplace. It was very beneficial to receive a unique perspective on one’s successful journey as a minority in STEM. Along with her personal journey, Ms. Montilla also provided facts and theories about women in the workforce. This was especially interesting when she spoke about how a woman may be set behind on getting a raise/promotion just because she may not have the same social interactions as her male co-workers may have.
Ms. Montilla is a true role model for a powerful woman. She has proven herself to be strong and resilient to challenges she has faced in her career. From hearing about her upcoming, we learned to truly admire the hard work and progress she has made throughout her journey. Personally, Ms. Montilla provided me with the motivation to push myself to be greater and work to my fullest potential. For example, she spoke about how she used to be afraid of public speaking and how she joined an organization called ‘Toastmasters’ to overcome this fear. Now it is incredible to see her speaking in front of crowds and especially having her own TedX talk. From her life stories, it could be seen that Ms. Montilla does not dwell on setbacks, but rather acts to improve herself and her situations.
Lastly, Ms. Montilla spoke about having a strong level of self-love and pride for what you are doing! This felt very inspirational because it seems like as humans we sometimes forget to pat ourselves on the back for all the great things we have done. Instead, many of us get caught in doubting the work we have done. Ms. Montilla advocated keeping track of accomplishments so that you can physically see your progress even when others may not see it!
Upcoming Events
We hope you join us for our events and we look forward to creating more events that will benefit the Illinois Tech community.
A Conversation with Dr. Michael Benitez JR.
Join us virtually for an in-depth discussion regarding how to address problems with inclusion at Illinois Tech. This event is brought to you by the Student Run Initiative to Address Social Issues
Dr. Benitez is a nationally acclaimed scholar-practitioner and educator in the field of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Dr. Benitez serves as Vice President for Diversity and inclusion at Metropolitan State University, Denver.
April 22nd, 5-7 PM CT
Editorial: The Perpetrated Culture Behind Covid Study Days
By Elizabeth Karagiannes, Representatives Manager of WiSTEM
What is three words, and is guaranteed to get a groan from any student at Illinois Tech? Covid Study Days !!
This isn’t a hate piece to criticize the school’s actions to combat the current ongoing pandemic, in fact I applaud Illinois Tech’s many efforts to sustain low numbers of positive test cases, and I can see they have done so very successfully thus far. However, this piece is merely a reflection of the many needs of the students that have been neglected in the pursuit of succeeding in this one area.
It comes down to this: does the students' physical health trump and triumph over all other aspects of a students' life, including and not restricted to, their mental health, job and summer planning, academic performance, and personal sustainability? You might think I am exaggerating about the impact that a spring break can have upon a student, but in that case, consider yourself lucky that you have the privilege to not face these damning circumstances. Personally, I hate to use the word privilege in conversations, the tone of the word often translates into hostility, judgment, or even resentment, but it’s important to use this hard word in this context, to emphasize the many struggles taking place behind the scenes that can accumulate from a nonexistent spring break.
Yes, I said nonexistent spring break because sorry to tell you, Administration and SGA, but Covid Study Days are not a spring break nor a consolation for a spring break. On the contrary, Covid Study Days have turned out to be some of my more stressful days of the semester compared to a normal school day or weekend. On almost every Covid Study Day I have had either MULTIPLE tests scheduled for the following day or a bulk of assignments and labs due in the classes following the day off. I’m sorry, but I didn’t realize that the days that are supposed to be spent relaxing and regenerating should be the most immersive work days of my semester. I wish I could say that's the most subpar part of the Covid Study days, but no no, it gets worse. On the first Covid Study Days there were so many professors trying to record or hold classes and labs on those days that SGA had to send out Google forms asking students to report professors attempting to do this. This didn’t just happen on the first few Covid Study Days, but just this last study day I had a professor who tried to pre-record a lecture for us to watch, and it wasn’t until the students spoke up that the professor backtracked their plan. It’s all admirable and applaudable that SGA was able to jump in in some of these scenarios and take some action, but why, why must these actions be taken at all in the first place? This simply speaks volumes about the culture that we are perpetrating here at Illinois Tech.
Academic rigor is an essential component of the curriculum at this institution, and I immensely respect that, as this was even one of the factors that led me to choose Illinois Tech over other universities. I love competing, working hard, and learning, but how far and at what costs should the university be drilling down to pursue this constant academic rigor at? Where should the line be drawn to protect and foster a healthy environment for Illinois Tech students to succeed? Students at this school shouldn’t be made to feel weak, vulnerable, or not up to snuff because they need a break or a second to catch their breath. Unfortunately, there are many professors and practices here on campus that are making students feel exactly that way. It was at our Letters and Listeners event that this point really came into perspective for me more than it had in the past. I have endured professors the past months jibing at us for moaning about not having a spring break or begging for a little let up, yes yes all very funny…However, at our Letters and Listeners event, I was able to see that there are many professors, all whom were granted anonymity of course, who downright did not respect or take time to reflect on some of the circumstances that were taking place in students' lives. The stories ranged from close friends and family members' deaths and illnesses, severe mental health struggles, and valid outside stresses. Now, I try to be sympathetic to these professors, it would be ignorant of me to say they are not facing their own struggles and obstacles, and let's face it students can often lie and stretch the truth to push their luck, but these aren’t normal times and these are not normal circumstances. We are still, no matter how long it’s been since it started, in the middle of a pandemic. Forget the outstanding circumstances which many students are pushing through right now, purely living through the pandemic presents its own challenges. A study conducted with students at the University of Michigan showed that 83% of students believed online schooling was affecting their mental health negatively. Online school is hard, and it's hard on everyone, not just students, so it’s disheartening to see that our mentors and professors here at Illinois Tech are not always taking the initiative to work with us and even acknowledge the situation.
Excerpt from an email sent out on February 4th from the office of the provost
"No one, no student should be made to feel inadequate or not capable of pushing through and succeeding here, but unfortunately this is exactly what’s happening.
Now, what does Illinois Tech culture and views on mental health have to do with us not having a real spring break? Well just about everything.
Let's be honest here, Illinois Tech is not the typical college and all its students are not the typical college students. The majority of the students' spring breaks wouldn’t be spent binge drinking and partying all around the country during the pandemic. Not to say that there aren't any who would be participating in such activities, but just not the majority. Instead, spring break is used by college students for multiple respectable and commendable reasons. For instance, many students will spend the break filling out applications for summer internships, research opportunities, or scheduled interviews. All these tasks take strong orientation focus and time and should be executed with the utmost effort. Therefore spring break presents the ultimate time to crank out all the work needed to be done for these tasks without distractions from school work. Students also often use spring break to find extra shifts or working opportunities to offset living costs and expenses for the rest of the semester. Living in Chicago and attending a university is not cheap at all, and a lot of students want to be able to provide for themselves and be able to stress less about stretching money than they would normally during a semester. Another important fact to consider is that around 30% of the students here at Illinois Tech are international students, and a great portion of them are currently in their home countries doing school online. For them, spring break would’ve presented the perfect opportunity for them to catch up on sleep from the insane lecture schedule times that they are currently pressed to following. Having just one week of not waking up at five a.m. or staying up until two a.m. to attend a lecture would’ve been extremely beneficial not only for their mental health but also their physical health.
So again we are brought back to the question, should physical health outweigh every other aspect of a student's life? Before making that distinction though, it's important to look at a few circumstances surrounding the spring semester, one of them being that a great number of students enrolled at Illinois Tech are currently at home doing online classes and are NOT even on campus. Therefore the number of students that will actually have an effect of covid case rises and the health and safety is limited. Now speaking of the students that are on campus, many of them do not even attend lectures in person, but instead watch them from their dorm. When attending my classes, except for the one I have that is offered in person only, I usually see only three to ten students come out of the thirty to seventy that are enrolled in the class. Again, this shows that Illinois Tech has an even more limited amount of interactions between students.
Now, the biggest argument against having a spring break is the number of students who would go home or go on vacation away from the school. I fully agree that this is a potential issue that should not be taken lightly and needs to be treated and addressed with the utmost delicacy, but one thing to point out is that due to classes being offered all online nothing is stopping students from going on vacation and visiting family in other states. I know of multiple people who have grabbed their laptop and gotten on a plane to wherever their heart contends, while still attending school in the meantime, and then coming back to campus when they were done. Some did it with every precaution taken, others did not; however where there's a will there's a way, and taking spring break away will not stop anyone from doing exactly what Illinois Tech doesn’t want them to do.
Excerpt from an email sent out on February 4th from the office of the provost
Instead, it is merely infringing upon those already struggling. In the end then is not having a spring break really contributing to the physical health and safety of all the students to an extent that it should be even seen in contention with mental health, academic performance, and self-sufficiency?
I want to stress that my purpose is not to deface Illinois Tech, because I do respect how much they’ve tried to be cautious and careful about Covid, I really do ,instead, I intended to show some of the underlying nuances of the culture that are being perpetrated without careful consideration here on campus. I hope both students and professors alike can be more thoughtful in their responses and reactions, knowing the strenuous pressure and circumstances the pandemic is pressing on everyone.
It’s important to keep on asking the best from our students and perpetuating academic rigor, but more importantly, as we move forward it's paramount for Illinois Tech to always ask themselves at what cost they are willing to do this.
Update on the Previous Editorial: A University with a False Promise to Inclusion
By Barien Gad, Cofounder and President of WiSTEM
The previous editorial discussed the poor response from the university in regards to a retired professor, Dr. Philip Nash, his Islamophobic hate speech, and the long-term implications of their actions. It is disappointing to say that there has been no change or effort on the administration’s part since. Just another incident that IIT successfully swept under the rug.
By continuing to ignore and not formally admit their faults, the administration is contributing to the toxic cycle at our university that repels minorities from the university. Instead of openly hosting a discussion with the community to gauge the damage and provide resources to help support Muslim students traumatized by Nash’s words, the university has remained silent and silence is the loudest action.
The lack of response is beyond disappointing and all we can do at WiSTEM is continue to raise awareness. The environment at our university is continuing to spoil and there is no action being taken. It should not be the responsibility of students or student organizations to spearhead the battle against bigotry and ignorance - there needs to be more support from the administration’s end. It is difficult to continue to defend the university and support its mission for diversity when its actions speak so harshly against inclusion.
Because the administration failed to properly handle Nash’s actions, WiSTEM along with other student organizations and the support of Dionna Anderson and Dr. Nicole Legate, invited Dr. Micheal Benitez, a nationally acclaimed scholar-practitioner and educator in the field of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, for an in-depth conversation regarding how to address problems with inclusion at Illinois Tech. The discussion will take place virtually on April 22nd from 5 pm to 7 pm. If you are interested, RSVP here.
New in STEM: A Possible Cure for COVID
By Christina Majercak, Events Manager of WiSTEM
Recent media has highlighted the success in finding and implementing new COVID-19 vaccines. But what about a possible cure for coronavirus? The vaccine serves to generate an immune response to the virus, whereas this scientific finding would work to eliminate the virus upon exposure.
Illinois Tech’s very own team of researchers have worked this topic extensively and may have found a promising treatment for the virus. Associate Professor of Biology, Oscar Juarez leads the team in the project. The starting point for their research all came about when they had discovered the human enzyme that deactivates COVID-19. When starting the project, Dr. Jaurez’s goal was to find the parts of the human processes that the virus depends on. This finding was crucial in allowing the team to take their research to the next level. With this, they began researching how to stop the virus from harming cells.
Professor of Chemistry David Minh and Professor of Biology Karina Tuz worked alongside Dr. Juarez with the goal of finding out how the human body interacts with the virus. The key difference here is that they did not root their research around the virus itself, but rather on the human interaction with the virus.
The therapy technique that they have created was named CROWNase. The drug is shown as an inhalant, but can also be carried out in the form of injection, pills, and even eye-drops. A defining characteristic of their findings is that CROWNase can be used to fight several strains of COVID-19, even some that may not be fully protected against with the vaccines that are on the market now. Not only will the drug treat coronavirus, but Dr. Minh stated that there are high hopes that this drug can be used to treat other respiratory infections such as Influenza.
CROWNase is an enzyme which cleaves part of the sugar portion of the spike glycoprotein of the coronavirus to expose only the protein portion. This allows for easy identification by the immune system and prevention of infecting cells. It also contains ACE2, which is a protein found in the human body that helps to facilitate binding and internalization of the coronavirus. By conjugation with ACE2, this allows for more effective binding of the virus to CROWNase.
Their only competitor that is FDA approved right now is VEKLURY (remdesivir). Remdesivir advertises that it will decrease an individual’s COVID-19 recovery time by approximately five days. This drug is received through an intravenous infusion and prevents viral RNA replication by its action as a nucleotide analog. As of now, the most commonly reported adverse effects have been nausea and elevated liver enzymes.
If all goes well, the team hopes to receive the proper funding and take their research into preclinical trials. Their research is highly advanced and has proven to be successful in eliminating the harms associated with viral infection. The team is writing a manuscript for publication in a scientific journal and they have recently received a patent for this novel approach.
On behalf of WiSTEM, we are so proud to see our very Illinois Tech professors and researchers take on such a crucial research topic. It is so inspiring to see the great results that are coming out of research facilities at IIT.
Featured Researcher: Dr. Nina Tandon
By Savanna Gonzalez, Treasurer of WiSTEM
Dr. Nina Tandon, as well as her three siblings, was interested in science and encouraged by others to study the applications of the field early in her life. Tandon took a specific interest in the human body and the science behind it because her siblings had eye conditions such as color blindness and night blindness.
During an interview with Vogue magazine, Tandon said, "I was very interested in all these electrical currents that underlie the nervous system and I started learning how those currents are also involved in almost every process in the body, from embryonic development to wound healing, and that is what I wanted to follow.” This curiosity that Dr. Tandon had pushed and encouraged her to pursue degrees with high honors.
She began her college education at the age of 14 by taking her first college course ever. She later went on to receive her Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from the Cooper Union in 2001. Tandon furthered her education at MIT earning her Master’s in Bioelectrical Engineering, then continued receiving her MBA and Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from Columbia University.
In between receiving her bachelor’s and master’s degrees, she briefly worked at Avaya Labs in telecommunications, soon stopping due to receiving a Fulbright Scholarship to study biomedical engineering in Italy. While in Italy, Dr. Tandon had the opportunity to work on developing an “electronic nose” that would be used to "smell" lung cancer. After working on this project, Tandon was able to become a consultant at McKinsey and Company, soon devoting and dedicating her time to biomedical engineering.
While Dr. Tandon was working on growing cardiac tissue, she met her soon-to-be co-founder Dr. Sarindr Bhumiratana, who was working on bones at the time. The two of them decided to form a partnership in which they would both bring their skills to the table and create a business plan, that they soon brought to reality, called the EpiBone. According to Dr. Tandon, this company “would be the first company growing living human bones for skeletal reconstruction”.
EpiBone uses stem cells from patients who need new bones based on their DNA profiles. Due to this DNA profiling, there is less of a chance of rejection to the new bones, simplification of surgeries, and a possible chance of shorter recovery times. EpiBone is based on a three-step process; the first step involves imaging and stem cell extraction, then graft and bioreactor design, and finally bone growth. All the steps that constitute EpiBone’s process have been approved through the FDA to begin using their technology on human patients for a trial.
In addition to Dr. Tandon’s research and the trials she is conducting with EpiBone, she has authored ten journal articles, six book chapters, and is the co-author of Super Cell: Building with Biology. In 2011, Dr. Tandon was named a TED fellow and soon after that, in 2012 she was named a senior TED fellow.
The research that Dr. Tandon has been able to conduct will be revolutionary and life-changing. She and her colleagues will change the way that procedures are conducted when it comes to skeletal reconstruction. Dr. Tandon is an excellent representation of a researcher in STEM and deserves to be celebrated and recognized to the same extent as men in the field.
Featured Woman in STEM: Dr. Sonja Petrovic
Biography
Dr. Petrovic's research is in nonlinear algebra and nonlinear statistics. She develops, analyzes, and applies statistical models for discrete relational data such as networks. She also studies randomized algorithm approaches to computational algebra problems whose expected runtimes are much lower than the well-known worst-case complexity bounds, develops probabilistic models to study average and extreme behavior of algebraic objects, and uses machine learning to predict and improve the behavior of algebraic computations.
Prior to joining IIT in 2013, Dr. Petrovic was on faculty at Penn State Statistics. In 2015 she became an Elected Member of the International Statistical Institute (ISI), received the College of Science Dean’s Junior Research Excellence Award, and in 2018 the College of Science Excellence in Teaching Award. Dr. Petrovic's research has been supported by the NSF, AFOSR, and DARPA.
She also actively mentors and involves students in her projects.
Dr. Petrovic co-organized the department's Nonlinear algebra and statistics (NLASTATS) seminar, led the NLASTATS research group, and is a Managing Editor of the new journal Algebraic Statistics. In 2020, she was one of the organizers of the international Algebraic Statistics Online Seminar.
Inspired by the various difficulties of the year 2020, Dr. Petrovic led the creation of SoReMo: an initiative to help train students in multidisciplinary communication & enhance their social responsibility portfolio.
Apart from mathematics and statistics, she loves living in Chicago and watching its spectacular sunsets, traveling (yes, still, even with small kids in tow!), playing bass guitar, dancing, biking, improvisational cooking, some easy rock climbing, and swimming in Lake Michigan (in the summer only!).
An Analysis of Dr. Petrovic’s Journey to STEM
Dr. Sonja Petrovic was born and raised in Belgrade, Serbia where she remained until she immigrated to the United States for her education with the support of her parents.
When talking to Dr. Petrovic, she spoke honestly about how she did not know what she wanted to pursue professionally. She knew that she wanted a successful life where she “wore high heels to work”, traveled, and experienced new adventures. She figured the field of study most likely to help her achieve her city girl dreams was Computer Science, so she initially majored in the field.
She then discovered her hidden gem which entailed “a famous guitarist and composer” motivating her to switch to a music major. She soon left music because she felt it was unfortunately unsustainable for her as an immigrant trying to succeed. Barien understands and sees first hand the pressure immigrants face in giving up their passions to make it in the States.
Eventually, Dr. Petrovic declared her last and final major: Mathematics just because “she enjoyed the classes.”
Alongside Dr. Petrovic’s passion for math, her mentor influenced her decision to attend graduate school where she realized that being a Professor was the right job for her. Being a professor allows her to live where she wants, wear what she wants, flexibility in her schedules, and the freedom to walk away from her job if she does not enjoy it. Her need for flexibility in her profession is evident in Dr. Petrovic’s job requirements and speaks to her extraordinary ability to adapt to situations. Dr. Petrovic decided to pursue her Ph.D. in Pure Mathematics at the University of Kentucky.
Dr. Petrovic’s mentor, Dr. Stephen Feinberg at Carnegie Mellon, was essential in her choice in research during the last year of her Ph.D. He called her theorem “relevant” and made her feel valued. This monumental moment in Dr. Petrovic’s life serves as a reminder that language can deeply influence the lives of others. Soon she started a collaboration with his group with the support of Dr. Uwe Nagel, her Ph.D. advisor, and that was her informal switch to statistics.
As mentioned in the biography, Dr. Petrovic's research interest is Algebraic Statistics. The question that Dr. Petrovic is researching is determining the best way to summarize data based on its structure. People can create all kinds of visualizations and measures, but we really only care about them if they are statistically relevant.
During Alisha’s SoReMo fellowship, Dr. Petrovic's expertise guided the way she analyzed and presented her data. She showed Alisha different hypothesis tests she could use to present her observations quantitatively. This helped her with framing her project so her findings were as accurate as possible.
A Home Away from Home
A city is something that Dr. Petrovic cannot live without. In most places in the country, Dr. Petrovic feels like she doesn't belong there. If she doesn't have "hot days, cold days, art, music", specifically orchestra, and vibrant culture, she cannot imagine living in that area.
Fortunately, Chicago fulfilled all of Dr. Petrovic’s requirements.
After she finished her Ph.D. at the University of Kentucky, Dr. Petrovic applied for jobs near the west coast and east coast, but she also applied for jobs in Chicago.
After this round of applications, Dr. Petrovic chose to work at the University of Illinois at Chicago, completing a three-year postdoc, during which she fell in love with the city. After only a couple of months living in Chicago, Dr. Petrovic felt like she would not want to live anywhere else. Chicago was the only place she felt at home other than her hometown, Belgrade.
Subsequently, Dr. Petrovic landed a tenure track job at Penn State, which was an amazing opportunity, especially for statisticians. Despite being in the tenure track process at Penn State, Dr. Petrovic still craved to fulfill her city life dreams. She wanted to move back to Chicago.
Dr. Petrovic's late mentor, Dr. Stephen Fienberg, was not quick to let her leave and questioned why she wanted to leave Penn State when she had such a remarkable position. She defended her choice by discussing how she wanted to live in the city. Dr. Feinberg was accepting and respected her choice, but reminded her to "make the job work" for her. Dr. Feinberg's conversation with Dr. Petrovic became a pivotal moment in her life that she reflects on frequently. She also had amazing mentors at Penn State, notably Dr. Donald Richards, who wholly supported her decisions and prioritizing family life.
Her experiences with Dr. Feinberg remind us that mentors serve to help you live out your best self and support your dreams - not theirs. WiSTEM has stressed the importance of a reliable mentor and had multiple speakers discuss the impact of their mentor. It was an exciting opportunity for Barien and Alisha to hear about Dr. Petrovic’s mentor as Dr. Petrovic slowly becomes their mentor.
Over the years, Dr. Petrovic visited Illinois Tech a couple of times to attend seminar talks with a friend, Dr. Despina Stasi. Dr. Petrovic loved the beautiful campus and had her eye on Illinois Tech ever since. While at Penn State, Dr. Petrovic applied as soon as openings were available at Illinois Tech.
Dr. Petrovic started at Illinois Tech in 2013 as an Assistant Professor and in 2017 was promoted to an Associate Professor.
Illinois Tech and SoReMo
Dr. Petrovic enjoys being at Illinois Tech and values the diversity of research within the department. While it is small, she fits right into the culture of the Applied Mathematics department.
Dr. Petrovic especially appreciates the constant support she receives from several colleagues and the department chair, Dr. Chun Liu. In a conversation pre-pandemic, Dr. Liu asked Dr. Petrovic what she really wanted to do.
This conversation led Dr. Petrovic to reflect on her passions and planted seeds for SoReMo later. She told us that Illinois Tech is the kind of place where she felt empowered, and we could not agree more.
As Alisha reflects on her college decision process, she recalls the reasons why she liked Illinois Tech. In particular, Alisha appreciated the culture of innovation that can be seen through Illinois Tech's promotional material as well as the design of MTCC, the State Street Village dorms, and the Kaplan Institute.
Although every university has its problems, Alisha believes that at Illinois Tech there is a community of people who care and want to better the environment on campus. She appreciates this about Illinois Tech and hopes that students at other universities also have such a community present on campus.
The pandemic hit all of us hard, and for Dr. Petrovic, it was a time where she did a lot of pondering and reflecting. She kept on asking herself "What am I teaching my students? What will they do with the material I teach? Is it just for grades?"
Grades are not of importance in the height of a global pandemic. Dr. Petrovic stated "people were worried about leaving the country. Why would they care about grades?" And although grades are not important, the topics taught in class can be very powerful when applied in meaningful projects.
Reflecting on the question that Dr. Chun Liu, the Applied Mathematics department chair, asked her, Dr. Petrovic started thinking about what she is passionate about and what she wanted to do. Dr. Petrovic wanted to start something meaningful in this pandemic, that shows people that "we are still here, we care about each other, and we care about society."
Social Responsibility was a hot topic on LinkedIn in 2020 and continues to remain as one. Social Responsibility encourages individuals to work for the benefit of society at large, to see beyond making a profit. This includes components of ethical, legal, and economic responsibility.
Dr. Petrovic wanted to allow students to use what they learn in classes for projects they are passionate about, as well as build a community at Illinois Tech for people who care about such issues.
Dr. Petrovic thought of the name "SoReMo" on a Sunday evening while having wine on her balcony, and watching the traffic grow sparser on the highway. What does SoReMo mean? So: Socially, Re: Responsible, Mo: Modeling. SoReMo. It is a "network of faculty and professionals providing a framework for social responsibility to become a core value in research and education at Illinois Tech."
The SoReMo fellowship invests in students and allows them to "integrate data, statistics, analytics, design, and ethics in finding solutions to societal needs." The bridge between faculty and students that Dr. Petrovic made is changing the way students at Illinois Tech relate mathematics and computing to solve problems outside of class.
Before her SoReMo fellowship, Alisha didn't know what she wanted to do with her Computer Science degree. School felt kind of meaningless to her and she didn't know what she was working towards other than putting a good GPA on her resume. Through Alisha's SoReMo project, she found that she could relate content from her classes and utilize them in her project.
Barien went into SoReMo looking for support for a project she had previously been working on that involved combatting period poverty on college campuses. SoReMo was the perfect opportunity to grow her project with the support of highly qualified faculty. Dr. Petrovic coordinated with other faculty members to guide Barien to properly research period poverty and work on building an implementation plan for the university. More than anything, Dr. Petrovic’s efforts with SoReMo instigated confidence in Barien’s capabilities.
Identity
Individuals such as Dr. Petrovic have multifaceted components to their identity. We asked Dr. Petrovic how she felt the different factors of her identity contributed to her profession and teaching style. She began by discussing what it means to be a woman in STEM stating that she never had trouble, unlike what some women may feel in different countries. She was always filled with questions and was encouraged to speak up and ask. We agreed that the cultural differences between US education and Serbian education were a contributing factor.
Dr. Petrovic credits her courage to ask questions to the multiple oral exams she had growing up. As an immigrant who experienced primary schooling in the United States, Barien can confidently say she never had any oral exams and to this day have yet to have one.
In fact, Dr. Petrovic now integrates oral exams into her courses and encourages questions and comments when teaching. Dr. Petrovic firmly believes “If you can’t communicate what you are learning, you have not learned it”, something many educators preach.
As an Applied Mathematics minor, the majority of Barien’s classes will contain one other woman and she rarely hears them speak up or ask questions. One of the biggest reasons Barien decided to pursue a math minor was because of her high school math teacher. She was this strong, opinionated, intelligent woman who reminds her a lot of Dr. Petrovic.
Barien doesn’t know if she would have ever decided to pursue a study in mathematics if it were not for the women mathematicians in her life, which reiterates the stress to include more women in male-dominated studies.
Dr. Petrovic admits that her research interests were highly influenced by her gender identity explaining that at conferences where the research field was male-dominated she struggled to speak up and feel comfortable. Instead, she chose a field of research that has a higher concentration of women and younger individuals than other math-related fields, but not just for the sake of her gender but as well for the presence of diversity. She reflects on how working on diverse teams was always more “energetic” and “exciting.”
Another notable aspect of Dr. Petrovic’s identity is her immigrant background. While she had the support of her family when immigrating it is still important to recognize the sacrifices made by immigrants. She continues to stress the constant social annexation of immigrants, “You leave your home, you leave everything, and you show up and you are different.” As an immigrant Barien recognizes that no matter how young you immigrate, the social pressure to conform exists. The insecurity of feeling you don’t belong and are not wanted will get the best of many immigrants and force them back. This discrimination will prevent many from ever succeeding and achieving the American dream. It was being different that empowered Dr. Petrovic, she described herself being, “the math nerd at a social party, the musician in math grad school, the European in small-town America.”
Dr. Petrovic recognizes, accepts, and celebrates her accent proudly saying “I have an accent. I know I have an accent. It is not going away.” But no matter how confident Dr. Petrovic is about her accent, it never prevents discrimination. Many have told her to “shut up” but the negativity did the opposite and inspired her, even more, to speak up.
A continual theme with Dr. Petrovic is how strong she is. She does not let others speak over her, take her ideas, take her deserved credit, and she always defends herself.
On the note of living through xenophobia, Dr. Petrovic argues “You fight back with everything you have because you are an immigrant” reiterating the countless sacrifices individuals will make to immigrate.
Being an immigrant has made Dr. Petrovic appreciate her international students more as she knows the struggles they go through. She recognizes that she would be a different person if she grew up in the states and is grateful for the insight that being an immigrant gives her.
The final aspect of Dr. Petrovic’s identity that we chose to discuss was motherhood. While we praise the healthy balance we see in Dr. Petrovic’s personal and professional life, Dr. Petrovic is quick to disagree and humbly admits that there is room for growth but then argues there is no right balance and that all decisions have sacrifices.
Dr. Petrovic reflects on when she first came across a working mother in academia: her first Ph.D. student showed her how it was possible to have both lifestyles. Dr. Petrovic acknowledges how privileged she was to have her first child after she was tenured.
We had an insightful conversation with Dr. Petrovic on how there needs to be more recognition of the difficulties and choices of motherhood and how women do not deserve to be discriminated against for choosing motherhood.
The sacrifices of motherhood are evident and Dr. Petrovic acknowledges and accepts that her accomplishments are bound to decrease as her children need more and more attention. She stressed that “every mom needs to give herself a break.”
More importantly, Dr. Petrovic highlighted what motherhood gave her, her children. She credits her children for making her curious by always asking “why” and for making her open-minded with their willingness to try new things. She voiced how she has “never met anyone in my life who is more open-minded than my toddlers."
We conclude the conversation by asking Dr. Petrovic what advice she has for her daughters, swiftly she says, “trust your intuitions.”
Illinois Tech is truly lucky to have faculty like Dr. Petrovic who make students want to learn, want to better themselves, and want to achieve their biggest dreams. On behalf of our team at WiSTEM, thank you Dr. Petrovic for everything you do for women, immigrants, mothers, students, and much more.
I am grateful that I had the opportunity to meet Dr. Petrovic in the middle of this pandemic. I was introduced to Dr. Petrovic through SoReMo, but our conversations always go beyond just my project. Dr. Petrovic truly cares for students beyond the classroom and went out of her way to found SoReMo as a way to cultivate a community at Illinois Tech. I admire her knowledge and kindness and wish Dr. Petrovic the best on her sabbatical. I am very thankful to have a figure that I can look up to like Dr. Petrovic in my life.
--Alisha
Dr. Petrovic reminded me that representation is important and I am extremely grateful to have had the opportunity to work with her this past year. Dr. Petrovic takes the time to get to know the students she works with past a surface level and is always supportive of my choices and dreams. More importantly, Dr. Petrovic always takes the time to find opportunities for her students. Every time I see her name pop up in my inbox with a video or article she wanted to share, I smile because I feel remembered. I respect Dr. Petrovic beyond words can describe and admire her ability to speak out against injustice. I am very grateful for the opportunity to have such a strong and talented individual like Dr. Petrovic present in the most crucial years of my professional and personal development.
--Barien
Title IX Training
By Barien Gad, President of WISTEM
“Umm, yeah you can read this section on your own time.”
“Yeah, that is there if you need it but that will not be happening in my class.”
“Yeah this is kind of bad and I will not tolerate it.”
Many professors fail to devote adequate time to discussing Title IX in a classroom setting and this is negatively impacting the learning environment of many students. It is time we hold the administration accountable for not training their faculty or students properly on this matter.
How effective is the Title IX training required of all members at Illinois Tech? At what point does the convenience of online training undermine the retention of information?
How many students take the training seriously and how many just skip through it? I hear of students completing the training for each other, students blocking the email reminding them to complete the training, and students never completing the training.
Inside scoop: my freshman year, I never received an email about training or anything Title IX related. I was just confused as to why everyone was complaining about some training they had to complete and was grateful I did not have to do it.
How many professors take the training seriously and how many skip through it? Classified administrators have anonymously disclosed that there is a key that gets passed among faculty members to pass the training.
Dr. Nick Menhart has been the only one among my professors to publicly discuss Title IX and accurately educate his students on what qualifies as Title IX misconducts. He was the first person I encountered who ever defined the term “hostile work environment” or explained how to file Title IX complaints. How was I supposed to know that I was experiencing hostile work environments if I never knew how to define them?
In fact, I am very confident that I could have easily gone all of my time at Illinois Tech without any formal education on Title IX in the classroom setting.
I know these conversations are difficult, but we need to have them. I know the words rape and assault are chilling to hear, but we cannot sweep them under the rug. We must educate the Illinois Tech community about these topics, so that students are cognizant of their severity. Students should be able to bring up these issues without fear of repercussions, so we can finally start addressing issues of gender based discrimination and sexual assault.
Recently, a peer of mine shared how excited she was to have her first women professor this semester and how that specific professor had also been the first to ever explicitly establish classroom expectations with regards to Title IX and appropriate behavior.
I propose that all professors spend at least ten minutes discussing Title IX. This short time commitment will make a tremendous difference for so many students.
The conversion should go along the lines of: “This is the Title IX section, Title IX focuses on preventing sex based discrimination and protocol regarding misconduct. In this classroom, there will be zero tolerance for discrimination of any kind. Microaggressions will be reported and students will be asked to leave the classroom. Microaggressions include any comments directed towards any population of students that make any students feel uncomfortable. Legally, I am required to report any incidents that violate Title IX as I am a mandatory reporter.”
I firmly believe that in clearly establishing these standards at the beginning of the semester, students will be less inclined to participate in any Title IX violations in the classroom environment.
As well as Title IX, here are some organizations not affiliated with the university that you can reach out to for support, guidance, and information:
Understanding Your Options
By: Ursula Hersh, Co-Founder and Co-President of the Female Empowerment Movement
The Title IX process can be incredibly difficult for students: it is easy to feel overwhelmed, trapped, and disempowered. Unfortunately, many of our legal and social institutions fail to support survivors of sexual violence. However, it is important to know that there are resources for student survivors. Many organizations offer advocacy services (legal and medical), counseling, and support groups. If you or someone you know has experienced something that constitutes a violation of Title IX (harassment, assault, stalking, or other forms of sexual misconduct), it is important to be aware of the different courses of action that are available.
If you feel comfortable doing so, you may report the incident directly to the Title IX Office. The two primary contacts for the Title IX Office are Virginia Foster (foster@iit.edu), the Title IX Compliance Coordinator, and Esther Espeland (eespeland@iit.edu), the Deputy Title IX Compliance Coordinator. An anonymous report can also be filed at iit.edu/incidentreport. More information about anonymous reporting can be found here: Confidential Reporting
This page explains the confidential reporting options available. Both Resilience and the Student Health and Wellness Center have licensed practitioners on staff to provide confidential emergency and ongoing support to individuals who have experienced sexual misconduct.
Resilience (https://www.ourresilience.org/) is not obligated misconduct to the university. They will listen to you and make you aware of all your options. This is an organization that has partnered with IIT to help provide resources, but it is entirely distinct from the university. Resilience can offer you legal advocacy that will help you understand your rights under Title IX. They can also assist you in seeking accommodations and in navigating a case with the Title IX Office if you decide to pursue that. Resilience also offers free support groups and counseling.
CAASE (https://www.caase.org/) is another organization that offers free legal support. While Resilience employs ‘legal advocates,’ CAASE has a team of attorneys who specialize in both criminal and civil cases. They offer services to support students who are pursuing Title IX cases. CAASE also provides pro bono representation to individuals pursuing civil court cases. Examples of these would be no contact orders, which come in a variety of forms. Learn more about civil no contact orders here: Starting a case to get a civil no contact order.
CAASE also offers pro bono representation in criminal cases, but they do have a limited capacity. Even if they are not able to take on your case they will still help direct you to resources.
Resilience’s legal advocates, although they are not attorneys, have a comprehensive knowledge of the legal system and will work to support you in any way they can. They will review your options with you and are happy to accompany you to any meetings (in court, with the school, or in another context) to provide both support and advocacy on your behalf.
If you have experienced sexual misconduct outside of Illinois Tech, organizations like Resilience and CAASE are still here to help. In many cases, they can help you get accommodations for your classes even if you are not pursuing action via Title IX. If you are interested in pursuing a case outside of Illinois Tech, whether it be civil or criminal, these organizations can give you more information and guidance.
Another completely valid option is for students to decide not to take action through Title IX or other legal/criminal avenues. However, it is important that this is a freely made decision, not a coerced or pressured one. Checking in with an organization like Resilience can help clarify your options. Even if you decide not to pursue a case, they are there to help you in many other ways. They can work to help you obtain educational accommodations even if you are not pursuing a case against someone. Support groups and trauma-informed counseling can also be incredibly beneficial. KAN-WIN and Greenlight Counseling are two other Chicago-based organizations that offer free counseling services for survivors of sexual violence.
No one should have to experience sexual violence. Students should not have to fight for their rights and protections. We need to fundamentally reassess the way that institutions handle cases of sexual misconduct and work to change our campus environment.
Chicago-based organizations that support survivors of sexual violence:
Resilience: https://www.ourresilience.org/
CAASE: https://www.caase.org/
KAN-WIN: http://www.kanwin.org/
Greenlight Family Services: https://greenlightfamilyservices.org/
More details can be found under our linktree.
Our Stories
By Barien Gad, President of WISTEM
"Our Stories" serve to provide insight into true experiences on campus - certain details have been manipulated to protect the individual's identity.
I take a deep breath, hold my shoulders high, and reach into my pocket as I step out of the building.
I was mad at myself, how could I have let time slip so quickly. I knew I should try to get to my room as soon as possible but it was so rare that I had a night free of academic stress.
My heart was beating out of my chest, I was extremely on edge. I dialed the number I was told to save in my contacts during orientation for times like this.
“Hello”
“Hello - is this public safety?”
“Yes, is this an emergency?”
“Well no, but I am near Keating and I was wondering if I could get a ride to SSV?” I mean this was not an emergency but I did not feel comfortable walking the distance across campus alone this late.
“Yes sure will be there soon”
I hold my coat tighter around me to prevent the icy breeze from penetrating.
“Hello - I am calling again it has been almost 20 minutes and no one is here”
“Hi - yes you again. Can you meet the officer in front of Galvin Library?”
“Galvin? I said I was at Keating”
“Yes, I heard you the first time but the officer cannot come to you so if you meet them they can escort you”
I was too frustrated to even respond. Galvin was across from SSV - what was the point in even meeting the officer.
I tried to explain that I could not do that - but they seemed very uninterested and that I was an inconvenience to their quiet nights.
I grasp onto the comforting cylinder filled with toxins in my pocket and unlock it to ease my nerves as I start walking towards my destination.
I was hyper-aware of everything around me trying to constantly survey my surroundings.
The shadow behind me had been trailing me at least a block - but I was not sure. Was I being paranoid?
I could see the Michigan blue emergency beacon covered in cobwebs in the distance. I should press it just to be safe - but what if I am overreacting? Everyone will think I was being dramatic.
Only three more blocks and my mind will be at ease.
I should have tried public safety again instead of giving up.
I pull out my phone and FaceTime a number I knew would always answer.
“Hey what’s up?” my friend greeted me. I looked at her weary-eyed and responded, “not much.”
I quickly open my messages and text her that I was alone and think someone was following me. She immediately started telling me about her day and how “she was waiting for me in my room” until I reached the doors of my destination.
I finally release my breath and slump my shoulders as I am greeted by the heat of my empty room.
The Year of the Pandemic
By Savanna Gonzalez, Treasurer of WiSTEM
This academic year has been like no other, with a tremendous amount of surprises, disappointments, and learning experiences. Every executive board member of WiSTEM has had their own unique experiences during this global pandemic, from transitioning to college in a different country, to being in a different state, to being right on campus. Barien decided in the summer that she would not be returning to campus, instead, staying at home in California to complete her sophomore year of college. I started the academic year on campus and then later decided to spend the spring semester at home in California. Christina had to make the tough decision to move back to her home in the suburbs of Chicago after spending the fall semester on campus. Angela didn’t even have the chance to venture to Illinois Tech’s campus, as she was in Italy completing courses with a seven-hour difference. Alisha spent the entire year at her house in the suburbs and Liz was the only person to live on campus the entire time. Every single one of us has had our difficulties adapting and some are like no other.
Alisha Khan is a very studious and qualified student who is always looking for ways to strive and improve her skills. Alisha believes in the accountability that in-person lectures provide. She states, “I struggled with missing lectures fall semester, I was sick for a week, so I slacked off because everything was online anyways. I got behind with everything and I regret not communicating with my professors regarding this.” Realizing that slacking off wasn’t the best option, she was able to learn to better prepare herself for another semester of online learning. Alisha also misses the engagement that in-person learning allowed, especially the interactions she has with her roommate, Barien Gad. The interactions that Alisha was able to have last year were, “enjoyable and school didn't feel like a chore.” Friends weren't just a way to escape all the stress from college, but they were also a way to encourage and motivate each other to keep going and to achieve great things. Alisha has continued to strive and do her best in everything that she is involved in.
I have known Barien for the past two years we have spent at Illinois Tech together, and I can stand by the fact that she will always work hard and put the time in. She was always spending extra time studying or completing assignments on her trusty iPad, but now during a pandemic, she spends her entire day completing tasks on a list to complete for the day and repeating that for the next. It has become a physical pain for Barien to sit at her desk the entire day, causing as she said “headaches by the end of each night” and “getting sore and developing back pain”. She couldn’t handle the restrictive environment she was in, so she took matters into her own hands; she scheduled “mandatory virtual breaks for myself throughout my day when I would stand up and go talk to someone in my family or go for a walk and step away from all of my devices including my phone.” This was a simple solution to a problem that was going to last an entire academic year, and it was going to help for the better in all aspects. Barien didn’t only adapt to learning online at a desk, but she found solutions to try and help the situation and make learning somewhat entertaining again.
This year hasn’t been easy for anyone, and for Liz, the most difficult obstacle to overcome was her lack of self-confidence and assertiveness. Liz has had to learn how to have conversations with professors and other classmates through email, even if they don’t respond in a timely manner. This has impacted her ability to have meaningful and helpful conversations with professors. She states, “This drop in communication between me and my professors has proven to be more of a barrier in my learning process, as constant feedback and guidance is important to foster growth and confidence in the material at hand.” Online learning doesn’t allow for simple, quick conversations to be made, even if a one-minute conversation could make all the change with an assignment. Not only were the conversations useful that Liz used to have with working on assignments, but they allowed her to assess where she was among her classmates and if she was falling behind, or if she wasn’t the only one struggling. Having these conversations was important as she states that they “can often relieve stress, or provide useful information on how to better study or prepare for the work at hand.” Liz wasn’t able to have reassurance and this caused even more stress that wasn’t necessary. Being able to assess her placement in a course was of great importance to Liz.
Christina Majercak has always made academics an important part of her life and even furthering that in college. With everything being online, she hasn’t been able to get that assurance of certain courses and topics through different perspectives, especially the student perspective. I have known Christina for our entire journey through college and I have had the privilege of being her roommate for one of those years. Throughout the years, I’ve learned that Christina is a studious yet social person in everything she does. Christina is a person who interacts well with others, but as she stated, “I know that in most of my classes I don’t have faces for over 80% of the people, this makes it very difficult to try to interact”. This barrier of a screen isn’t allowing her to truly interact with her classmates. As well as being studious and vibrant, Christina is a person who is able to adapt to challenges that come her way. She was able to learn new ways in which to interact through different platforms, to keep that interaction going even if it was through a computer screen. Christina emphasizes, “I have grown to be more outgoing on online chats and have built confidence to ask questions in large online groups like Discord.” Christina has been able to take the setbacks of everything being online, to grow in confidence, and to create new connections.
For a college student, beginning your first year during a global pandemic is a very difficult transition. For Angela, this transition was even harder as she is an international student and has not stepped on campus yet. Unlike other incoming classes in which students were able to interact with each other on campus, Angela hasn’t had the opportunity to interact with students from Illinois Tech in person. She has had to accommodate her schedule to the Chicago timezone and has even spent her nights attending lectures to keep up. Not only did Angela have difficulty with the time difference between the two countries, but she also states, “As an international, first-generation student, I have received little support in my academic experience.” Angela hasn’t gone to in-person meetings with her advisors, and she hasn’t had the chance to go to the International student center, she has been given the least amount of opportunities. She didn’t let that stop her as she was able to make connections with some professors who are willing to help. These obstacles that Angela had to face, even though she is passionate about school, were more difficult than she could have imagined. College isn’t easy and the way that Angela has had to adapt to everything has made it all the more difficult.
For myself this academic year has been the craziest, to say the least, because I actually spent the first semester on campus, but decided to spend the second semester at home back in California. I have always been and will always be a family person, but when family and studies mix together, I’ve learned that they tend to clash. From having a little sister completing her junior year of high school online, to having a 3-year-old golden retriever who only wants to play, all the while trying to remember everything for school is in a different time zone. Not only was family a distraction but even being in lecture, I was able to just click on a new tab and start going off on a tangent when I should be learning about electric fields in Physics 2. I learned a little later in the spring semester of 2021 that you have to try to eliminate distractions to stay focused and get work done. I tried to be occupied with taking notes and to be totally honest, not checking the time during a lecture. Checking the time for me was a distraction because it either told me that the lecture was going by super slow or somewhat quickly. I tried to put my phone in a place that was not accessible for the hour and 15 minutes of the lecture. I had to learn and make changes that allowed me to eliminate some distractions around me.
Throughout this difficult year, the executive board has been working tirelessly to continue to achieve great things and to strive to be the best that they can, even while a global pandemic has taken over the world. Each and every single one of us has had our own and unique difficulties to overcome. This year has presented us with a mountain of obstacles, but the executive board has proven to be vigilant and has overcome all of them, growing even stronger through adaptation. Barien, Alisha, Christina, Liz, Angela, and I will always remember this year filled with struggles but great achievements as well. No matter what situation you are in, there is always space for growth and achievements and the executive board has proven all of that and more this past year.
Thank You for Reading
Chief Digital Editor: Barien Gad