By, Mary Haley, Asst. Social Media Editor
Manhattan College celebrated the achievements of its alumnae, provided networking for current students and encouraged prospective students at a women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) event on Jan. 28.
Students and faculty from the School of Engineering and the Kakos School of Science presented panels on past and present research endeavors as well as upcoming research opportunities for students.
This was the first women in STEM event hosted by the college, and one that will hopefully become a tradition considering the success and awareness that resulted from the event.
Panels highlighted the accomplishments of STEM alumnae, students and faculty to interest prospective students and to represent female accomplishments in “male dominated fields”.
Benjamin Boivin, director of undergraduate admissions, spoke with The Quadrangle on why he organized this event and what it means for the college moving forward.
“A lot of engineering and science programs are known as male dominated fields for college students, and I don’t really think [male dominated] is a word we want to use in 2023,” Boivin said. “Not only do we have very successful women that come out of Manhattan College for STEM, but they’re also some of the leaders in their fields.”
Walaa Abdallah, Ph.D., assistant professor of chemical engineering, spoke on what this event meant to her as a woman in STEM, an alumna of MC and a current faculty member in the college’s School of Engineering.
“I myself have a daughter, and I don’t want her to think that STEM is just for males…I don’t want her to think that any of these fields are not for her,” Abdallah said. “If we at least did one thing it was to show everyone that women can not only study in STEM fields, but [they can] also excel in their fields.”
Students and faculty prepared topics to cover before the event in order to best present their STEM studies and what their plans are for the future. As an alumna who returned to Manhattan College to teach after receiving her bachelor’s degree in 2013 and subsequently receiving her master’s degree in 2014, Abdallah explained to the panel why she chose to return to Manhattan to teach.
“Out of the seven faculty we have in chemical engineering, five of us graduated from here and came back, and I am one of them,” Abdallah said. “So [the faculty panel] was more like why do we like where we are… and assuming that you could’ve gone to any other place, why would you choose to stay in [Manhattan College].”
Panelists were welcomed with a breakfast in Kelly Commons, to prepare for a day of presentations. Many alumnae reunited and reminisced on their years at Manhattan College. Despite MC being a small, tight-knit community, some coworkers did not realize their MC connections until the panel. Two Manhattan graduates speaking at the engineering panel realized their roots to the college for the first time while at the event.
“I was really impressed with how some of the panelists that were sitting together that had just met for the first time that day actually ended up having connections through their industries,” Boivin said. “[Two MC alumnae] are working for engineering firms that are completely different, but they work on similar projects. So technically they work together, and they [did not] even realize.”
Prospective students were also welcomed at this event, as these panelists showcased their many successes resulting from their MC education. Students and faculty spoke on the many programs offered to engineering students, including what is offered for the different engineering disciplines.
According to manhattan.edu, prospective Jaspers were given a tour of the engineering department, in both the Higgins Engineering and Science Center and Leo Hall.
Shirali Patel, a senior computer engineering major and member of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE), spoke on what this event meant for the school and what she hopes will come from it.
“I think [the event] gives room for the program to grow… it would just bring more people and attract more people to the program,” Patel said. “…and hopefully add more classes and concentrations. I know that at bigger schools like MIT or NYU or Columbia, they have a lot more concentrations and classes to choose from.”
The event not only highlighted the educational caliber of MC but also demonstrated the unity among its students, past and present, and their goals to uplift each other and be successful.