AWM Service Award 2018

The Association for Women in Mathematics (AWM) presented Jacqueline Dewar, Sarah Greenwald, and Jacqueline Jensen-Vallin with AWM Service Awards at the AWM Reception and Awards Presentation held during the Joint Mathematics Meetings in San Diego, Ca, January 10 – 13, 2018. The AWM Service Award, established by the AWM Executive Committee (EC) 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. The award is given annually to a select group of AWM volunteers in recognition of their extensive time and effort devoted to AWM activities during the previous seven years. Presidents (past, present, and -elect) and current officers are not eligible for the award.

Jacqueline Dewar, Loyola Marymount University, is recognized for her active involvement as a member of the AWM Education Committee since February 1, 2014. She immediately started serving as co-chair of the committee with Pao-Sheng Hsu and in January 2017 she graciously agreed to extend her term on the committee until the end of July 2018. The committee under the tutelage of Jackie and Pao has been very active; it updated the portion of the AWM website related to education and organized three math education panels at JMM (including one at JMM 2018). Jackie is on the Newsletter Team where she serves as editor of the Education Column.

Sarah Greenwald, Appalachian State University, is recognized for her active involvement with the AWM on several fronts. Sarah served as a member-at-large on the AWM Executive Committee for four years and in that capacity chaired the Policy & Advocacy Committee. After rotating off the Executive Committee she continued as a member of the Policy & Advocacy Committee for an additional four years. Sarah is a member of the Newsletter Team. In addition to serving as the associate editor of the newsletter, working closely with editor Anne Leggett getting the newsletter ready for print, she is also coeditor of the Media Column.

Jacqueline Jensen-Vallin, Lamar University, is recognized for being a driving force behind the AWM activities at MAA MathFest, going back to 2011 where she was one of the organizers of and the moderator for the AWM panel “Moving Up the Career Ladder in Academia.” For the next three years she was actively involved in ensuring AWM would have a panel at MathFest. She was instrumental in picking a theme for the panel, writing and submitting a proposal to the MAA, and moderating the panel at the meeting. In January 2013 when AWM officially established a MathFest Committee under the umbrella of the Meetings Portfolio, Jackie was asked to join the committee. As a member of the MathFest Committee she has continued to help organize AWM events at MathFest.

All three of this year’s Service Award winners edited volumes in the AWM Springer series. Jackie Dewar is a coeditor with Pao-sheng Hsu and Harriet Pollatsek of Mathematics Education: A Spectrum of Work in Mathematical Sciences Departments. Sarah Greenwald and Jacqueline Jensen-Vallin are coeditors with Janet Beery and Maura Mast of Women in Mathematics: Celebrating the Centennial of the Mathematical Association of America.