As a little girl, Sophie Janszen-Spitman had always been good at math. She liked participating in math contests, but as she progressed through high school, she noticed fewer and fewer girls participating alongside her.
In grade 10, Janszen-Spitman’s mom encouraged her to sign up for Waterloo’s Think about Math! program, designed for high school girls to foster their enthusiasm for the subject. At the time, Janszen-Spitman had no idea that being accepted to the program would change the course of her studies and put her on a path to become a third-year math and business student at Waterloo.
“Think about Math! was the first time that I recognized I could pursue math as an option,” Janszen-Spitman says. It was also the first time she had visited Waterloo’s campus and met other women working in the math field. One of the speakers she met handed out tea bags with inspirational messages on them. Janszen-Spitman’s tea bag read, “I am smart enough.”
“I love tea and math — this message was meant for me, and I still have it,” she says. Janszen-Spitman keeps her tea bag as a reminder to not give up. “Even when other girls around me were leaving math, I felt a duty to represent.”
Hear from Janszen-Spitman and her female colleagues on what it’s like to be a woman in math
Women in math are not alone at Waterloo
Janszen-Spitman is no longer one of a few women in math at Waterloo. She feels supported by her strong group of friends, who even during this time of physical distancing, make it a point to connect online every week. She also remembers the affirming time she spent at Waterloo as a high school student and wanted to pay it forward to the girls coming along behind her. “I volunteered for Think about Math! in my first year at Waterloo … I was part of the first-year student panel,” Janszen-Spitman says. She loved the opportunity to share her experience and offer advice.
“If you are one of a few girls, I think it is expected that you will shrink away and not be part of the conversation,” Janszen-Spitman says. Her advice to other women thinking about pursuing math is to go for it and speak up. “Don’t take a sideline spot. Get a chair and actively participate in the conversation.
Building on a Waterloo tradition
Waterloo has a long history of encouraging women like Janszen-Spitman in Math. In fact, the first bachelor of mathematics degree to be awarded from the University was to Jean Elizabeth Anthes. Since that day, another 14,000+ women have received degrees from the Faculty of Mathematics.
We’re stronger together
The Waterloo Women’s Impact Network (WWIN) is all about building community, and helping inspire the next generation of leaders, just like Janszen-Spitman. With an investment of time, treasure, talent and collective voice, we can change the face of math and computer science fields, forever. Alumni, friends, allies and students all come together to benefit the greater good. We can be the heroes as diverse perspectives matter for teams of all sizes.
We don’t do this alone. All investments into WWIN, help support the work of our campus partners, who are committed to diversity, early outreach, and student success. They aim to arm these women with the tools they need to thrive and succeed when faced with challenges their male counterparts don’t always experience.
“Through a combination of persistence and community, each of us has taken a unique path to success that lead us to connecting in this network,” explained Pam Tatroff, BMath ’07 and WWIN member. “What a wonderful opportunity to be a part of someone else’s community; helping the next generation of leaders carve out their own unique path to success.”
