Pamela J. Williams, Ph.D.,
Technical Staff,
Sandia National Laboratories,
Former SaS student
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In 1998, I received my Ph.D. in Computational and Applied Mathematics
(CAAM) from Rice University. During my graduate career, I participated
in the CRPC-sponsored "Spend a Summer with a Scientist (SaS)" program.
Unique to the SaS program was its commitment to building not only good
computational scientists, but also good citizens. In addition to
scientific research, outreach activities, professional development
workshops, and open dialogue among the students characterized the SaS
summer experience. Following my first year in graduate school, I
needed summer financial support. Dr. Richard Tapia, Noah Harding
Professor of CAAM and director of the SaS program, suggested that I
apply to the SaS program. My application was accepted and I was
paired with a young scientist, Dr. Amr El-Bakry, to study primal-dual
interior-point methods for linear programming. I am grateful to SaS
for establishing the initial connection with Dr. El-Bakry. Dr.
El-Bakry has an infectious love for mathematics and research combined
with extraordinary teaching skills that inspired me to become a
better researcher. Our collaboration continued beyond that first
summer with the initial research project evolving into my doctoral
thesis and Dr. El-Bakry serving as co-chairman of my thesis committee.
Participation in outreach activities was considered an essential component of the SaS program. I traveled to Diboll, Texas with Dr. Tapia and Monica Martinez-Canales, a fellow SaS student, to motivate middle- and high-school students to pursue higher education. Monica and I also spoke to female students at La Escuela Rice (The Rice School) about our educational experiences in order to encourage their interests in the sciences. Furthermore, SaS students mentored Science Academy of South Texas students during their annual visits to Rice and Baylor College of Medicine. We talked to students at Xavier University, a historically black university, about the minority graduate experience on a majority campus. Dr. Tapia offered students the opportunity to teach classes, lead weekly meetings, and organize workshops. One summer, I taught a mini-course on the fundamentals of linear algebra. Other SaS students tutored at La Escuela Rice and taught applied mathematics modules to Science Academy of South Texas and Milby High School students. The CRPC's outreach activities made me cognizant of the need for underrepresented minority scientists to reach back to the community.Today, I mentor high-school students in Oakland and lend a hand to Northern California's Expanding Your Horizon program, whose goal is to introduce young women to a variety of interesting and challenge careers in math and the sciences.
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