DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN — Though the number of U.S. college women majoring in mathematics continues to increase, the percentage of new female PhDs in the field has leveled out since 1999, averaging around 30 percent. A 2006 American Mathematical Society survey reported 1,245 new U.S. doctoral recipients, the highest number ever, but only 32 percent were women.

This trend disturbs two mathematics professors at New York City College of Technology (City Tech), Victoria Gitman and Delaram Kahrobaei, and they are doing all they can to change it. “The current statistics are not very encouraging,� says Kahrobaei, “especially since before 1999 there had been a marked increase in female mathematicians.�

Recently, these two professors won a National Science Foundation (NSF) grant to sponsor the Second Annual New York Women in Mathematics Network (NYWIMN) Conference on the City Tech campus. The upcoming May 2 conference will concentrate on interdisciplinary research in logic, group theory and theoretical computer science.

The goal of the NYWIMN conferences is to establish informal networks among female mathematicians, designed to provide young women with role models, and lead to fruitful mentoring relationships and research partnerships. “We hope that the interplay of these research topics will lead to many important collaborations and scientific discoveries,� Gitman says.

Gitman, who joined the City Tech mathematics faculty this past fall, and Kahrobaei, who started teaching here a year earlier, have been collaborating professionally since they met at The CUNY Graduate Center while Kahrobaei was finishing her PhD and Gitman was midway through hers.

Because they benefited so much from the support of their teachers and colleagues, and realized that this situation was not common for women in mathematics, the two women became determined to help other female mathematicians form the professional and social networks necessary for success. That’s why Kahrobaei and Gitman founded NYWIMN and in 2006 organized the group’s first conference, attracting 30 students and mathematicians from around the tri-state area.

Both women were drawn to the study of mathematics by the drive to understand the workings of the natural world. Kahrobaei knew since the age of 8 that she wanted to be a mathematician. “I was attracted to mathematics because it offered the possibility of attaining absolute truth,� she explains. “Mathematics, unlike politics and history, is not ruled by opinion; it is unequivocal.�

Gitman became intrigued after taking an Advanced Placement calculus course in high school. “This was when I realized that mathematics is not just about plugging numbers into formulas, but involves fascinating concepts and an unlimited supply of puzzles to solve,� she says. “I fell in love with mathematics because I always wanted to know why things are as they are, and mathematics was the only subject where I could find answers to my questions by understanding the proofs.�

Though Gitman’s relatives from her grandparents’ generation still believed that girls couldn’t do math, she says, “My mom always believed I could do anything I put my mind to.� Gitman, who came to the U.S. in 1990 at age 10 from Kiev, Ukraine, enjoyed her undergraduate education at Brooklyn College. “Its small mathematics department meant that I got a great deal of attention,� she explains. Through their activities, Gitman and Kahrobaei are indefatigable proponents of women in mathematics, pursuing their scientific work, publishing articles and traveling all over the world to lecture and participate in workshops.

Because they understand the value of mentorship, both women serve as mentors to City Tech students under the Emerging Scholars Program pioneered by Dr. Pamela Brown, dean of the School of Arts & Sciences. This program is designed to train students in research-oriented activities and allow them to develop long-term relationships with faculty. Gitman also maintains City Tech’s Mathematics Club website and regularly participates in the club’s activities.

The work being done by Gitman and Kahrobaei will no doubt have an effect on the number of women working in mathematics. “We look forward to seeing the positive results that are bound to occur from Victoria and Delaram’s efforts, both at City Tech and in the world of higher education beyond our campus,� says Dean Pamela Brown.

© Brooklyn Daily Eagle 2008
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