Stimulating STEMinars

Since 2012, the AWIS Notre Dame Chapter (AWIS-ND) has fostered connections between women in STEM at all career stages and disciplines with its monthly STEM Luncheon Series. This gathering features a luncheon with a presentation from a local woman in STEM. The series enhances professional relationships, development, and interdisciplinary communication, and serves as a welcoming and supportive environment for the AWIS-ND community. This is imperative to the mission of AWIS-ND, which is “to initiate, encourage, and engage women in STEM in a welcoming and supportive environment, creating a sense of belonging and providing opportunities for success.”

The invited speakers are all women at the forefront of their fields in a wide array of disciplines, including statistics, mathematics, psychology, biology, chemistry, engineering, and physics. The speakers have included tenure-track professors, teaching professors, research scientists, and institute leaders from the University of Notre Dame. They discuss various topics, including their research and career journey, experiences and hardships as women in STEM, tips for navigating STEM careers, and the importance of past and current mentorships. These presentations give women in STEM opportunities for success by allowing them to learn about cutting-edge research across STEM disciplines while fostering an inclusive space where they can communicate freely to strengthen their personal and professional development.

Some of our most recent STEM Luncheon speakers have included Dr. Jordyn Wilcox, Assistant Teaching Professor in the Department of Psychology, Dr. Kate Biberdorf, Teaching Professor and Professor for Public Understanding of Science in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Dr. Beth Archie, Associate Chair of Biological Sciences and Director of the Amboseli Baboon Research Project in Kenya, Dr. Amy Hixon, Associate Professor and Director of Graduate Studies for Civil and Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences, and Director of the GLOBES Graduate Certificate Program, and Dr. Martina Bukac, Concurrent Associate Professor in the Applied and Computational Mathematics and Statistics (ACMS) and Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering Departments. These women have encouraged invaluable discussion within the AWIS-ND community by sharing their research, experiences, and lessons, while simultaneously creating a supportive and informative environment for women in all career stages. 

Given the success of our STEM Luncheon Series, we began a new series to further enhance scientific communication and professional relationships within the AWIS-ND community. Our Tea Time with Faculty Series is designed for a more personal discussion between AWIS-ND members and women leaders in STEM. Like the STEM Luncheon Series, Tea Time with Faculty includes a guest speaker who is a woman faculty member at the University of Notre Dame discussing her background and experiences as a woman in STEM. The event is limited to 12 people to foster more personal discussion and professional connections. Some of our recent speakers for our Tea Time with Faculty Series have included Dr. Vanessa Chan, Director of Undergraduate Studies and Assistant Teaching Professor in the Department of Psychology, and Dr. Katrina Adams, Assistant Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences.

Overall, these series aim to allow women in STEM to learn from and be inspired by women leaders within and outside of their discipline. These series provide a safe space for both the speakers and the AWIS-ND members to discuss their experiences as women in STEM. We believe it is incredibly important to foster connections between women in STEM at all career stages and disciplines. Providing these educational series gives our members the knowledge, motivation, and resources to pursue their passion for scientific research, education, and outreach.

https://awis.nd.edu/
Email: awis@nd.edu
Instagram: @awis_nd  
Facebook: Association for Women in Science – Notre Dame

The Notre Dame chapter is one of eight AWIS chapters who received a 2024 ‘Shooting Star’ Chapter Award. The other recipients were Boston, Chicago, Houston, Philadelphia, San Diego, Seattle, and St. Louis.