Center for Minorities and People with Disabilities in Information Technology
 
Text | Link
June 2019
Volume 9, Issue 6
 
Welcome to the June 2019 issue of the CMD-IT newsletter.  We are pleased to announce that registration for #Tapia2019 has opened!  Our program is up on the website; we encourage everyone to check it out.  Be sure to register before our early bird pricing ends on July 8th.

We are also pleased to devote this issue to the recipient of The 2019 Richard A. Tapia Achievement Award for Scientific Scholarship, Civic Science, and Diversifying Computing: Dr. Cristina Villalobos at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley.

We also want to wish everyone a safe and happy 4th of July. 

Best Regards,
CMD-IT Leadership   
Cristina Villalobos Awarded
 Richard A. Tapia Award 
CMD-IT is pleased to  announce the winner of The Richard A. Tapia Achievement Award for Scientific Scholarship, Civic Science, and Diversifying Computing is Cristina Villalobos, the Myles and Sylvia Aaronson Professor in the School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and the Founding Director of the Center of Excellence in STEM Education. The Richard A. Tapia Award is given annually to an individual who is a distinguished computational or computer scientist or computer engineer and who is making significant contributions to civic areas such as teaching, mentoring, advising, and building and serving communities.  The individual is also one who demonstrates extraordinary leadership in increasing the participation of groups who are underrepresented in the sciences. 

"Cristina Villalobos is a leading mathematician in the fields of optimization, optimal control and modelling," said Valerie Taylor, CMD-IT CEO and President. "Throughout her career she has significantly impacted different applications areas through her research in optimization; impacting areas such as the treatment of eye disease and the design of antennas. In addition, Cristina has focused on strengthening STEM academic programs and providing resources for the academic and professional development of students and faculty as well as increasing the number of underrepresented students attaining STEM degrees. She has been a leader in student mentoring, increasing the number of Hispanic students pursuing PhD's in mathematics."

The Richard A. Tapia award will be presented at the 2019 ACM Richard Tapia Celebration of Diversity in Computing Conference. Themed "Diversity: Building a Stronger Future," the Tapia Conference will be held September 18-21, in San Diego, California.  The Tapia Conference is the premier venue to bring together students, faculty, researchers and professionals from all backgrounds and ethnicities in computing to promote and celebrate diversity in computing.

The early bird pricing for the Tapia Conference ends July 8th.  For more information and to register for the Tapia Conference, visit www.tapiaconference.org .
Cristina Villalobos:  The Interview
We sat down recently with Cristina Villalobos, the Myles and Sylvia Aaronson Professor in the School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and Founding Director of the Center of Excellence in STEM Education, and the winner of the 2019 Richard A. Tapia Achievement Award for Scientific Scholarship, Civic Science and Diversifying Computing. She will be accepting her award and speaking at the Tapia Conference Banquet on September 20th in San Diego.

Tell me a little about your childhood.
My parents were born, raised, and married in Mexico and came to the US and worked in canning factories. I am the eldest of three children and was raised in Donna, Texas, in the Rio Grande Valley, where I initially began schooling at a Head Start Program, a school where my mother later worked as a custodian. During summers while in high school, I participated in the Texas Pre-Freshman Engineering program that was offered at our regional university and had my first exposure to computer science and physics.

How did you end up in mathematics? 
I always enjoyed math. Originally I was not planning to go to college, but I tutored peers in high school and decided I would be a high school math teacher, which meant I needed to go to college. My family did not travel much due to limited means.  When in high school, I competed at the University of Texas at Austin for a state competition and that's how I learned about UT. Thus, I attended the University of Texas Austin, becoming the first in my family to attend college.

And how did you decide to go into academia?
During my time at UT Austin I had some faculty mentors who guided me into summer research programs at places like UC Berkeley, Sandia National Laboratories and Rice University. The faculty in those programs all encouraged me to go to graduate school. While I was an undergrad I read about Richard Tapia, a Mexican American who had become a elected to the National Academy. A friend and I drove from Austin to Houston to meet him. He and his wife invited us to dinner with other mathematicians. His welcoming spirit and kindness changed the course of my life. While still an undergraduate, I attended Richard Tapia's Spend a Summer With a Scientist Program. After this experience, I attended Rice University for my PhD and Richard Tapia became my PhD advisor.

What are you working on today?
I work with colleagues in various science areas, modeling and solving problems using optimization methods. With faculty in Electrical Engineering, I am creating models around antennas. With other colleagues I am working in the area  mathematical biology, modeling potential drug therapies to battle retinitis pigmentosa. Recently, I received a grant to reform precalculus, calculus 1, and calculus 2 courses at the university level by infusing active learning through recitation labs to increase pass rates; these are our gateway courses for students entering STEM fields.

The award also honors your work in diversifying computing. Can you tell me about the Center for Excellence in STEM Education? In 2011, my university was awarded one of three five year grants from the U.S. Department of Defense HBCU/MI program to create a Center of Excellence in STEM Education. Our mission is to increase and retain the number of students going into STEM programs and to strengthen STEM academic programs. All of this is done with the mindset that we need to develop Latino leaders for careers in academia, government, and industry. We organize programs and workshops on a variety of topics such as applying for summer research programs and internships, resume writing, and creating successful research posters. Part of our goal is to increase the number of underrepresented minorities attending STEM graduate programs. We also keep young alums engaged by inviting them to give talks.

What advice do you offer to students in STEM? 
I share my mother's advice: Take the Initiative! Go out and ask questions about what is available. People do not ask you what you need, you need to go out and seek the resources you need. I've applied this advice many times during my undergraduate and graduate career and even now as faculty. For example, when I was a first-year student at UT, I learned about the Emerging Scholars Program and inquired about becoming a part of it. This program formed the foundation that led to my current path.

We look forward to seeing you at the Tapia Conference.
I am quite honored to be receiving the Richard Tapia Award as it has significant meaning to me personally. I wish to thank my family, colleagues, friends, and mentors for their continued support.
In This Issue
#Tapia2019 Due Dates and Action Items
  • Registration Be sure to register today!
  • Submit your resume to our Resume Database our sponsors are scheduling interviews with conference attendees now!
  • Sponsorships are still available, sign up today!
July 8 - Early Bird Pricing Ends!

July 15 - Gold Sponsors Access Resume Database
Job Postings
Reed College


Khoury College of Computer Sciences,  Northeastern University

Lecturer
Division of Computing Instruction in the College of Computing, Georgia Tech

Assistant and Associate Professors
University of North Texas

Professor and Head of Department of Computer Science and Engineering
Texas A&M University

Tenure-Track Faculty Positions in Computer Science
Williams College

Tenure-track Assistant or Associate Professor of Computer Science and a Non-Tenure-track Instructional Position
Montana
 State University

Tenure/Tenure-Track Positions 
Vanderbilt University

Email job postings to jerri@cmd-it.org .
Community Calendar

28 July - 1 August 2019

18 - 21 September 2019

25-29 September 2019
Great Minds in STEM

2 - 4 October 2019

15 - 17 October 2019
2019 NSF Cybersecurity Summit

22 October 2019
       
30 Oct - 3 Nov 2019

4 November 2019

7 - 9 November 2019

14 - 17 November 2019


Want us to l
ist your events or due dates, please email us.
Stay Connected with CMD-IT
CMD-IT Supporters