Women in Science
Where We Are
Our group is sponsored by UNC’s Training Initiatives in Biomedical & Biological Sciences (TIBBS) program within the Office of Graduate Education (OGE). WinS consists of diverse PhD graduate students and post-doctoral fellows at UNC, who plan professional development and career networking events per academic year, as well as an annual symposium in the Spring. All genders of faculty, staff, post-doctoral fellows, graduate students, and undergraduate students are welcome and encouraged to attend our events. Our previous academic year themes have been “The Shattered Glass Ceiling: Recognizing Women in Science,” “Visualize your future and take action” and “Stepping Up, Not Stepping Aside: How women climb to the top.”
Connect with Us!
Check out our website or Facebook page. Like our page, stay up to date on events we put on and support around campus, and connect with other people who support women scientists!
To contact us directly, send an email to wins@unc.edu and ask to be put on our listserv.
Events
Sample of Past Events:
- Monthly Committee Meetings:
- 1007 Genetic Medicine Building (GMB)
- Feb 15, March 15, April 19, May 17 from 9-10am
- If interested, elections for new executive board members will be held in April, taking nominations in March
- Spring 2017 Seminar Series: Journey to the Top: Women’s Paths to Success
- Feb 22nd 2-3PM Marsico 4004 – Dr. Kirsten Crapnell, Manager of Biological Sciences at BD Technologies & Innovation
- March 23rd – Dr. Paula Hammond, Head of Chemical Engineering at MIT
- April 7th – Dr. Katie L. Olsen, Founder and Managing Director of ScienceWorks
- May 17th 3-4PM Marsico 2004 – Dr. Jean Harry, Head of Neurotoxicology group at NIEHS
- Annual Spring Symposium
- Date – April 7th
- Location – The Sonja Haynes Stone Center
- Keynote Speaker = Dr. Kathie L. Olsen, Founder and Managing Director of ScienceWorks, former Deputy Director and Chief Operating Advisor at NSF and former Chief Scientist at NASA.
- Science Expo with the Morehead Planetarium
- Date – April 22nd
- Link – http://moreheadplanetarium.org/programs/special-activities/unc-science-expo
Our History
Dr. Virginia Miller, our former Associate Dean of Graduate Education and Director of the Office of Graduate Education, and Dr. Pat Phelps, former Director of the Science, Training, and Diversity (STaD) group, developed informal discussion groups to foster a supportive community for students and postdocs, including a group for young female scientists. In the fall of 2009, a meaningful number of female faculty from diverse programs gathered to build a community of support and establish a mechanism for discussing issues that particularly (but not exclusively) affect female scientists, referred to as the “Women in Science (WinS)” group.
In February of 2010, our first official meeting was held and all faculty, students, and postdocs were welcome to participate (as is still true today). The topic of the meeting was “Staying Competitive: Patching America’s Leaky Pipeline in the Sciences“. This topic sprung from a recent report from the Center for American Progress. Dr. Miller presented the key points from the report, as well as had two guests to provide different perspectives and facilitate the discussion, which lead to a very active discussion… and thus, WinS was born!
In April 2010, WinS met again for another lively discussion focusing on “Navigating a path to building a family and career in science“, which hosted several female scientists from diverse career paths for another successful event. Additional support from Dr. Patrick Brandt, former Director of the Training Initiatives in Biomedical and Biological Sciences (TIBBS) program and current Director of the Science, Training, and Diversity (STaD), aided the continuation of WinS by coordinating speakers and other meetings. However, due to busy schedules, it was difficult to sustain the group over time, and WinS became inactive. Fortunately, Dr. Erin Hopper was hired in 2011 to run TIBBS and was interested in reviving the group. Drs. Miller and Hopper discussed how WinS would work best: driven from the ‘bottom up’ rather than ‘top down’, where the OGE would provide support for what the student-driven group wanted to accomplish. In 2012, the modern, student-driven WinS planning committee at UNC was established.
Testimonials
“I hoped that [WinS] was reassuring to our trainees that it is possible to have a family and a successful career, and that there are many ways to achieve this.” –Dr. Virginia Miller, Professor and Founder of WinS at UNC
“Dr. Miller’s hope has become a reality; WinS events have initiated discussions with several male and female faculty and staff at Carolina who have clearly demonstrated it is possible to have a family and a successful career. I look forward to many more events… supporting and encouraging the current and future women in science.“ – Jaime Brozowski, PhD Candidate and former Chair of WinS at UNC
Resources
Women in Science and Engineering (WISE)
Rho Tau Graduate Women in Science (GWIS)
Advocates for MD/PHD Women in Science (AMPWIS)
Women in Medicine Deserve Opportunities and Mentoring (WISDOM)