Bozeman Magazine

Montana State University will host a series of special events to celebrate women and inclusion in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics Oct. 22-28.

The events will center around the virtual screening of the award-winning documentary “Picture a Scientist,” which will be available to stream from Thursday, Oct. 22, to Wednesday, Oct. 28.

On Tuesday, Oct. 27, there will be a virtual panel event featuring keynote speaker Corrie Moreau, the Martha N. and John C. Moser professor of arthropod biosystematics and biodiversity at Cornell University. Morneau will be joined on the panel by Robin Belton, a doctoral candidate in mathematics at MSU and co-president of Graduate Women in Science and Engineering; Connie Chang, assistant professor in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering; Jennifer Lachowiec, assistant professor in the Department of Plant Sciences and Plant Pathology; and Agnieszka Rynda-Apple, assistant professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology.

The panel will be moderated by EJ Porth, associate director of the Gallatin Valley Land Trust, and will discuss the film, the role of women in STEM, as well as the consequences sexism, racism and exclusion have for the sciences. The event will take place at 6 p.m. and is free and viewable by the public.

“Picture a Scientist” chronicles the groundswell of women scientists who are changing the face of science in the United States and around the world. The film highlights firsthand recollections of sexist and racist treatment, provides current data on the issue and points out the collective cost of exclusion within science. The film will feature an introduction by Suzi Taylor, director of the MSU Science Math Resource Center.

The film screening and panel discussion is sponsored by MSU’s President’s Commission on the Status of University Women, Norm Asbjornson College of Engineering, Women’s Center, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Center for Faculty Excellence, Science Math Resource Center, WISE and Diversity and Inclusion Student Commons.

Registration for the screening and panel discussion is required and must be done by Tuesday, Oct. 20. For more information and to register, visit https://www.montana.edu/calendar/events/35835.