AWISSAZ is a local chapter of the Association for Women in Science, located on the University of Arizona campus, Tucson, Arizona.
AWISSAZ EXECUTIVE BOARD
Acting-President/Program Coordinator: Elizabeth Turtle, Research Associate, Lunar and Planetary Sciences, (520) 621-8284, turtle@lpl.arizona.edu
Sec'y Treasurer: Beatrice Muller, Research Associate, NOAO (520) 318-8220, muller@noao.edu
Finance committee: Sheila Tobias, Lucy Carruthers
Past President(s):
Laurie Marnell, Research Associate, Dept. of Biochemistry, (520) 621-1418,
lmarnell@u.arizona.edu
Lindy Brigham, Assistant Research Professor, Plant Pathology, (520) 626-8307, lbrigham@ag.arizona.edu
(relayed From: Beatrice Muller (muller@noao.edu),
Date: Tue, 5 Oct 2004 09:46:55 -0700 (MST))
Dear AWIS Members,
As I complete my first month as Executive Director of AWIS, I find myself reflecting
on the whirlwind of activities that have filled my daily calendar. The Association
for Women in Science is embarking on a new chapter, with many exciting changes and
new programs. For example, you recently learned about our new institutional and
corporate membership opportunities. This is a natural connection-both for AWIS and
for the participating colleges and companies-because our goals for women in science
are so compatible. Pooling resources through these memberships will make the work of
everyone more efficient and effective.
The AWIS Executive Board also has been very busy. We met at the AWIS national offices
in Washington, DC for a strategic planning session on September 17-19, to discuss
directions and priorities for AWIS in the next five years. As part of those
productive discussions, the Board ratified a renewed mission statement that more
clearly defines the vision and goals of the organization. I share this with you here.
Association for Women in Science
Mission Statement and Organizational Goals
October 2004
"The Association for Women in Science is dedicated to achieving equity and full
participation for women in science, mathematics, engineering and technology. We are
a Network, a Resource, and a Voice."
From 2005 - 2010, we will focus on:
· Connecting, supporting and mentoring women in science at all levels
· Identifying areas of inequity and building awareness of the gap
· Nominating qualified women candidates for key positions in other organizations
· Influencing policy
We will do this by:
· Building coalitions among US women's STEM committees and networks
· Leveraging the knowledge and experience of our members, chapters and broader network
· Gathering data on issues relevant to women in STEM and disseminating information and advice
· Leveraging our Washington, DC location
· Building awareness of AWIS
AWIS has always been a "grass roots" operation. As such, the staff in the national
office is small, and the Executive Board often calls upon our membership to help in
the implementation of AWIS programs and activities. The next five years will be no
different: we will be counting on each of you to contribute your time and talents to
help us realize these goals that bring us together. Our mission is significant and,
as with all important things, requires lots of hard work and commitment. AWIS members
have always invested in making our mission a reality, and your dedication is the
reason we've come so far. This is truly your organization.
So, I'm not worried. In fact, I am energized by the outpouring of support from you as
I embark on this new adventure in my career. You have always been there to lend a
hand when I needed it-first as Editor of AWIS Magazine, then as Secretary of the
Executive Board, and now as Executive Director. You are the reason I applied for this
position; you are the reason I'm here. I want to extend a personal thanks to everyone
who made this opportunity a reality for me-I am looking forward to working with you
and serving the organization in this new capacity.
Of course, with the expectation that you will continue to lend your support also
comes the expectation that, in return, your voice will be heard. I want to hear from
you. I cannot promise that every idea will be implemented, but I can promise that I
will listen and respond. I know the AWIS Executive Board members feel the same.
So, drop me a line-and let's get started!
Sincerely,
Susan Ganter
AWIS Executive Director
sganter@awis.org
Subject: AWISSAZ meeting 16 Jan. and summary of previous meeting
Happy New Year, all! I hope that everyone had great holidays!
First, I wanted to remind everyone about our upcoming lunch meetings.
The first will be Friday 16 January from 12-1 in room 301 of the Kuiper Space Sciences building.
It would be helpful if people who plan to attend could let me know so I can make sure that this
room is big enough. (Also let me know if you need directions!)
At this meeting I think we should:
- prioritize our goals and the projects that will achieve them, in both the short and long term
(see list below from 6 Dec. meeting)
- assess how our chapter's goals fit into those of AWIS and how we compare to other organizations,
e.g., WISE, CSW, and their programs. What do we provide that's unique or that overlaps with
these groups? It would be very useful to have representatives of some of these organizations
attend the meeting. If anyone on this list is a member of such an organization and can attend
next Friday, please let me know.
- We will also have a report from the finance committee.
- Please let me know if there's anything else you would like to hear discussed or anything you'd
like to report.
The second meeting will be 30 January also from 12-1, but in room 309 of the Kuiper Building.
Secondly, it's long past time that I compiled and distributed a summary of our last meeting!
We had a great lunch and enthusiastic discussion at Sheila's house on 6 December. Many thanks to
Sheila for hosting the event and to everyone who participated! We had good representation of a
variety of fields and job descriptions and discussed a wide range of topics:
We made progress in establishing a leadership committee:
Acting president/Program Coordinator: Zibi Turtle
Acting vice-president: any volunteers??
Secretary/Treasurer: Bea Muller
Finance committee: Sheila Tobias and Lucy Carruthers
Web-page coordinator: Renu Malhotra
We came up with a number of goals for our chapter as well as specific ideas to pursue to achieve
these goals (in no particular order):
Provide support and mentoring (for people at any level)
Develop a source of knowledge about (and perhaps even a liason to) campus resources for women,
especially in cases of problems, e.g., ethics breaches and mediation
Reduce attrition rates among students -- need data, what info does UA have?
Establish liasons between AWIS and undergraduate student groups
Provide support for students, e.g., covering AWIS memberships, providing funding for student
group meetings (e.g., food)
Raise funds for such purposes, AWF, alums, community, businesses?
Establish listserv(s) for discussion of various issues, to some extent facilitating
mentoring/support by email
Improve coordination with the national organization as well as other local groups
What are current programs/goals of national AWIS?
How do these compare to our goals?
Develop program to provide speakers about various topics to schools
Improve our visibility on campus:
Run workshops for guidance counselors on campus
Talk to VP for student affairs re becoming known to and providing resources for student
advisors, RA's, sororities, orientation programs
Create resource/support center
Update AWISSAZ web pages and link to grad college page
Create letterhead for fund-raising
Get meetings on Univ. calendar
Explore official status with Univ.?
pro = more visibility?
con = more responsibility to Univ.?
Connect with Rio Nuevo science center
Connect with Pima
Approach women on faculty one-on-one
Suggestions for future meetings:
Establish regular meeting time: monthly or bi-weekly Friday brown-bag lunches
Meet at Desert Vista and Pima campuses some times
Provide child care and food
Possible topics:
science talks
member and non-member speakers with experience or info about relevant projects,
e.g. mentoring programs (Mentornet), Marie Reyes, someone from San Diego chapter
attrition rates: undergraduates students tend to leave science entirely,
graduate students leave degree programs
support issues, e.g., dealing with stress
Looking forward to seeing you next week!
--Zibi
Our Mentoring Luncheon program was established by the Southern Arizona chapter of the Association for Women in Science, Southern AZ Chapter (AWISSAZ) and the UA Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) program. Lunch is provided thanks to generous support from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the College of Science, the College of Engineering and Mines, WISE, and the Commission on the Status of Women.
Attendance at the first two lunches, held on 23 October and 3 December, was high. The topics of discussion at the first were the roles that AWIS and WISE play as well as the mentoring in general. Prompted by student suggestions, at the second lunch a panel of professional women discussed career options. In addition, at each event time was left open to allow the students and mentors at each table to talk among themselves. Approximately 60 students and mentors participated in each event. Especially encouraging was the large number of mentors who attended. In the Spring we had smaller groups and the students benefited from a high mentor to student ratio. We plan to continue this exciting program next year.
Contact the board if you are interested in joining or volunteering to help with AWISSAZ.
Last edited January 14, 2004
Webpage maintained by: Renu Malhotra, renu@lpl.arizona.edu