Association for Women in Mathematics Service Award 2014

The Association for Women in Mathematics (AWM) presented Tai Melcher and Katharine Ott with the AWM Service Award at the AWM Reception held during the Joint Mathematics Meetings in Baltimore, MD, January 15-18, 2014. The AWM Service Award, established by the AWM Executive Committee in November 2012, recognizes individuals for helping to promote and support women in mathematics through exceptional voluntary service to the Association for Women in Mathematics. After an inaugural class of ten awardees in 2013, the award will be given annually to one or two AWM members in recognition of their extensive time and effort devoted to AWM activities during the previous seven years. Presidents (past, present, and elected) and current officers are not eligible for the award.

From a vast list of volunteers, the 2014 awardees were chosen for their extensive work and service to AWM during recent years.

Tai Melcher, University of Virginia, was recognized for her service to AWM as a PI on the successful NSF Sonia Kovalevsky Day Grant. Furthermore, her involvement in the organization of the AWM activities at the 2012 USA Science and Engineering Festival (USASEF) has been exemplary. She engaged thousands of children in doing mathematics. The activities she designed were fun and challenging! She brought energy, enthusiasm and creativity in designing the event, and this has been positively noticed by the NSF program officers among many others. Melcher has once again volunteered to be on the team representing AWM at the 2014 USAEF.

Katharine Ott, University of Kentucky, was recognized for her service to AWM as a PI on the successful NSF Sonia Kovalevsky Day Grant. Furthermore, her involvement in the organization of the AWM activities at the 2012 USA Science and Engineering Festival (USASEF) has been exemplary. She engaged thousands of children in doing mathematics. The activities she designed were fun and challenging! She brought energy, enthusiasm and creativity in designing the event, and this has been positively noticed by the NSF program officers among many others. Ott has once again volunteered to be on the team representing AWM at the 2014 USASEF. Additionally, as a writer for the AWM Newsletter interview series, she continues to contribute to the AWM.