2017 Student Chapter Awards

University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Winner of Community Outreach Category

The AWM student chapter of the University of North Carolina is receiving this award in recognition of their superlative community outreach events. The centerpiece of the chapter’s outreach program is their free, two-week summer camp, “Girls Talk Math,” at UNC for rising high school students. The program is implemented by chapter members and partially funded by the MAA. Student groups work on math problems and study the life of a female mathematician from a particular area of mathematics. Each group records a podcast and writes a blog post describing its project. Female mathematicians also give talks and lead campers on various mathematical explorations. Additionally, each year UNC holds a Science Expo for children of the surrounding community, an event where chapter members organize and run a table devoted to math-related games. We congratulate the chapter members on their exceptional programs and their impressive commitment to their mathematical community.

University of Texas at Arlington
Winner of Fundraising/Sustainability Category

The AWM student chapter of the University of Texas at Arlington is receiving this award in recognition of their creative and educational means of fundraising. The chapter members run two-hour review sessions for five large introductory math and statistics classes. The cost of admission is $5, and attendees also get copies of previous exams. From this tutoring program the chapter earns over $1500 each semester, which it uses to fund its other activities. Rewards for attendees are clear, and review leaders also gain confidence as presenters of mathematics and solidify their own mathematical background. The work of the chapter enhances the mathematical culture of the entire department, and makes it highly worthy of this award.

Youngstown State University
Winner of the Professional Development Category

The AWM student chapter of Youngstown State University is receiving this award in recognition of four excellent professional development activities. Firstly, they have established a Big/Little Mentoring, which increased first-year student interest in mathematical research. In response the chapter, along with a faculty AWM advisor, instituted two research groups of first-year students working on projects in mathematical biology. These students are presenting their work at MathFest this summer as rising sophomores. Thirdly, the chapter sponsors an annual Women’s History Month mathematics colloquium. Finally, their chapter held an event called “Pursuing an Inclusive Environment in STEM”, with a keynote speaker and a panel. The program created by the Youngstown student chapter has successfully encouraged an impressive number of young students to become engaged in mathematics and has helped to retain their interest and engagement with our field. We congratulate them on their exemplary work.

Brown University
Winner of the Scientific Excellence Category

The AWM student chapter of Brown University is receiving this award in recognition of their regional conference, Women’s Intellectual Network Research Symposium. This impressive undertaking was partially funded by the NSF and benefited over a hundred mathematicians in their area. The program included plenary lectures on a wide variety of topics, a student meeting of local AWM chapters, three tutorials, a panel on mentoring, 22 contributed talks and a poster session. In the follow-up survey, feedback from the conference’s participants was enthusiastic. The student meeting was particularly successful in initiating a wider communication among chapters, supporting young chapters, and encouraging the establishment of new ones. Their work embodies the spirit of the Student Chapter Awards and, we hope, will serve as a model to other chapters around the country.