2021 VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT OF THE DAY SERIES

I was thrilled to volunteer my time and join the MEF funding Council as an alumni representative.

During my undergrad years, I was part of the group of students who helped set up the fund and served as the Director thereafter. At the time we had a vision that the endowment fund could have a meaningful impact in helping fund math student initiatives. Of course, in the beginning the money available wasn't large.

It's been exciting to return 20+ years later and see the meaningful impact the fund is having across a variety of projects in which math students lead and participate. My experience in Math at Waterloo has had, and continues to have, a sizeable impact on my life both in terms career and personal development.

I'm excited to be able to give back to the Math community to help create opportunities for Mathies, present and future, as others who came before did for me.

I’ve dedicated my volunteerism to encouraging the next generation of women to consider careers in STEM fields, where the gender ratio is chronically disproportionate.

Since 2016, I’ve participated as a career mentor for the “Think About Math!” workshop, which fosters enthusiasm for math to high school girls by demonstrating that math is fun, relevant, and leads to exciting careers. It is coordinated by the University of Waterloo – one of 5 institutions in North America where a Bachelor of Mathematics can be earned.

The pride that I feel in giving back to a community that has taught me to be confident in the skills that I offer is undeniable, and I am honoured to have the opportunity to share that enthusiasm with the next generation of leaders.

The CEMC’s community of volunteers bring their tremendous experience and expertise to support the important educational work in mathematics and computer science that we do.

These volunteers, many of whom have been part of the CEMC family for decades, include current, past and future educators from across Canada and around the world.

At this time of the year, we would normally be preparing to host more than 250 markers in Waterloo to hand-mark almost 40 000 Euclid, Fryer, Galois, and Hypatia Contests. Because of the global pandemic, we cannot meet in person (we are looking forward to 2022 already), but we will instead have almost 400 markers join us online from an even wider geographical area.

We could not provide the quality of opportunities to learners and educators that we do without you — thank you!

I’m quite passionate about supporting female representation in STEM fields, especially math.

When I was a student in the Math Faculty, the were few female students compared to male students. As humans, we tend to want to belong, and being around people similar to us helps with that feeling of belonging. I know if I had more female peers at the time, I would have felt less like an outsider.

What’s more, math is more than just symbols and numbers, it’s way of problem solving that opens the door to so many opportunities.

If I can support any student pursue a career in math, however small, then I know my time was well spent.

I’ve never once questioned how well my time at Waterloo prepared me for my career in software, and I really enjoy finding ways to help ensure that the opportunity Waterloo represents continues to develop and grow as our community evolves.

I love when an event or activity that I helped bring to fruition really affects someone. Whether that be through mental health events, mentoring first years, inspiring future students or simply people having a fun time. I also feel, in a way, that I'm giving back to the community.

So much of the volunteering that I have done has been with clubs or events that really helped or currently help support me. Think about Math! is what drove me to study math, Double Degree Club supported me in the transition and now Women in Math and the Waterloo Women's Impact Network encourage me to keep going!