To foster a welcoming and supportive community for women and non-binary mathematicians; to work with the department of mathematics to enact policies that recruit and retain such graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and tenure-track faculty and that ensure their equitable treatment; and to take part in outreach activities that encourage women and non-binary people in mathematics.
Katie Waddle
Shivani Prabala
Gahl Shemy
Simran Khunger
Ruby Kim
Bridgett Slone
Choco Li
Contact us at awm-um-exec-board@umich.edu
Here are some quotes from AWM members (from the 2022–2023 academic year):
“It's been really wonderful to get to know early career women mathematicians, and hear about their journey from grad school and beyond. So many things are so relatable, and when they talked about these things face to face I felt hopeful about my future.”
“It's really encouraging to see as many folks from gender minorities as I can who have made a career in math, given how few and scattered we are.”
“These events provide a safe space where people can talk about concerns, stresses, and struggles they've had as a minority in math, without fear of judgment, fear of their thoughts getting tone deaf responses, fear of their concerns being dismissed as trivialities by people who've never had to face them, etc., which is unfortunately a common reaction to any time that someone who's been at a disadvantage tries to talk about it, in any field in general.”
“I've gotten to ask questions and ask for advice at AWM lunches about navigating the grad student life, and the informal friendly atmosphere really helps with being able to voice that.”
“The math world instills in everyone who's in it an unhealthy dose of imposter syndrome and a lack of self confidence, and this is compounded a thousandfold for any minority group. I for one am always intimidated of saying anything in math related gatherings, even when what I want to say has nothing to do with math. So being surrounded by other people in the same boat helps me deal with that better and I feel more confidently able to voice my questions and thoughts.”
"Lunches with colloquium speakers were great for me because I got to have involved personal conversations with colloquium speakers in a small group. Not only did we build a sense of community from shared experiences, but we also got to ask them more sensitive questions that would be difficult to ask in a mixed-gender environment. I'm really glad that we had these small lunches where we could network, build a more personal relationship with female mathematicians further along in their career, and have a better sense of what lies in our future, should we pursue academia."
“The AWM support group helped me create connections with other women in the math department. In particular, it allowed me to meet people in other stages of their careers. For whatever reason, I didn't meet very many other women postdocs, and the AWM support group was an absolutely necessary outlet for me to talk to other women. It gave me an opportunity to feel heard and validated about issues particularly relevant to gender that I felt uncomfortable bringing up in male dominated spaces.”
“During a difficult time in my life where I was dealing with a lot of things, it was nice to have a space where I could discuss them with people who had some similar experiences.”
“The AWM outings gave me the opportunity to meet grad students and fellow postdocs in a low-stress, inclusive environment. It's easy to feel isolated in such a large department, but participating in AWM events helped me feel a sense of belonging in the math community here.”
“Sometimes professors came to the dinners, and we don’t see them outside of class other times. I felt like I could have longer conversations that I could have with people that I had seen around the department. Having a meal with someone gives you time to both sit for a while and talk. When you just pass in the hallway you are rushing. I felt a warm sense of community when we were all together in one place with food.”
“Basically it’s just nice to be in a space that’s not dominated by men. Especially just starting this program it’s great to talk with people later on, they give great advice, and it’s empowering!”