Community, Collaboration, and Climate
Abstract
Struggling with the lack of success in attracting students from underrepresented groups into the mathematics major, the Department of Mathematics & Statistics at Pomona College slowly moved away from a deficit model (e.g., lack of preparation among students) to focusing on the experiences of all of the students in the department. I will discuss the successes and challenges of a few of our concrete cohort programs as well as the role of collaboration, community, and climate in expanding access to educational opportunities in statistics, data science, and the mathematical sciences more broadly. Additionally, I will provide specific ideas and strategies for making the classroom accessible and engaged.
Bio
Jo Hardin is a Professor of Mathematics and Statistics at Pomona College. After graduating from Pomona College in 1995, she completed her PhD at UC Davis in Statistics. Her current research includes developing robust methods for high throughput data (think: genetic information), and she has an active undergraduate research group. Jo seeks to find ways to make statistics and data science more accessible, and she recently co-authored the online and completely free introductory statistics textbook Introduction to Modern Statistics. When not working with students or on her research, she loves running, hiking, and jigsaw puzzles.