High school girls interested in math and science from Central New York will come to Syracuse University this weekend in honor of one Russian woman’s achievement in the field of mathematics.

The Sonia Kovalevsky Festival, an all-day event that takes place on Saturday, will bring at least six teachers and 30 to 40 of their students from seven different high schools to celebrate women involved in math and the sciences.

Marjory Baruch, a professor of electrical engineering and computer science, coordinated the event.

‘(Women) are good thinkers,’ Baruch said. ‘Some may not realize all the opportunities there are for girls.’

According to Carolyn Behm, administration secretary for the mathematics department at SU, the event has the potential to change some girls’ misconception that occupations dealing with math and sciences are only for men.

‘The sciences, especially math, draw a larger population of males,’ she said. ‘This is an opportunity for females in high school to rub elbows with other females in those fields.’

Kovalevsky, a Russian-born mathematician, transcended the male-dominated field by being the first woman to receive a doctorate in mathematics from the University of Gottingen in 1874. Her level of intelligence and work ethic earned her the degree, even though she hadn’t attended the university and never took an examination.

The festival includes workshops held by female professors and TAs from the mathematics and science departments at SU, where students will work on a variety of problems in science, math and engineering. Later, they will have the opportunity to discuss career goals and how to achieve them. A math-intensive workshop will also be offered to participating teachers.

‘Women play an important role as scientists and mathematicians,’ said Julie Hasenwinkel, professor of bioengineering, whose workshop this year deals with the mechanical properties of materials in the human body. ‘They play the same role as men do in many ways.’

This will be SU’s sixth year hosting the event. It began in 1998 and was originally funded by grants from the Association for Women in Mathematics. Now, the festival is fully sponsored by SU’s mathematics department, the Society of Women Engineers and the Technology Alliance of Central New York.

‘The math department has always supported (the festival),’ Behm said, adding that she feels there is always room for women in the fields the event covers.

Claudia Miller, a professor in the math department, will also facilitate a workshop.

‘Until you see women doing math, you don’t really think that they can,’ she said. ‘This is about exposure.’

Hasenwinkel said this year’s festival is important to gain female students’ interest in careers where men are still in the majority.

‘Women in the field often play mentor to younger girls to cultivate their interest in those fields,’ she said.

For Miller, the festival is more about the math that students learn in the classroom.

‘Many people think math is what you learn in high school algebra and calculus,’ she said. ‘This is showing them that there’s more involved.’

Published on November 18, 2004 at 12:00 pm