This announcement was originally posted by the Association for Women in Mathematics.
In recognition of her distinguished contributions to mathematics and mathematics education, as well as her skill in delivering an expository lecture, the Association for Women in Mathematics (AWM) and the Mathematical Association of America (MAA) are pleased to announce that Dr. Suzanne L. Weekes, Executive Director of Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM), will be the 2022 Etta Zuber Falconer Lecturer. The 2022 Falconer Lecture will be delivered at the MAA MathFest, to be held in Philadelphia from August 3-6, 2022.
Dr. Weekes is a highly-regarded mathematician with a deep commitment to mathematical and statistical research and to outreach. She has won numerous awards including the MAA Deborah and Franklin Tepper Award in 2020 and the AWM M. Gweneth Humphreys Award for Mentoring in 2019. In 2006, Dr. Weekes co-founded MSRI-UP, a program designed to increase the representation of historically underrepresented groups in the mathematical profession. Through 2020, she served as co-director of MSRI-UP, which recently won the American Mathematical Society’s Programs that Make a Difference Award. Since 2013, she has been a founding co-director of the MAA/SIAM Preparation for Industrial Careers in Mathematical Sciences (PIC Math) program. Funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF), PIC Math increases awareness among mathematical sciences faculty and undergraduates about non-academic career options and prepares those students for industrial careers by engaging them in research problems that come directly from industry.
Dr. Weekes received a BS in Mathematics from Indiana University, an MS in Applied Mathematics from the University of Michigan, and a PhD in Mathematics and Scientific Computing from the University of Michigan. In 2021, she joined SIAM as its third Executive Director, and prior to that spent most of her career at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), where she is Professor of Mathematical Sciences. At WPI, Dr. Weekes served as Associate Head of Mathematical Sciences from 2006 through 2012, Director and Associate Director of the Center for Industrial Mathematics and Statistics from 2003-2014, and Interim Associate Dean of Undergraduate Studies from 2019-2020. Her work and initiatives have been funded by NSF, the National Security Agency, the Sloan Foundation, and the Henry Luce Foundation. She has collaborated on research projects with companies such as Bose Corporation, DEKA Research & Development, IBM, Massachusetts Department of Transportation, and Pfizer and has advised more than 35 undergraduate and graduate research projects.
Dr. Weekes is a dynamic lecturer who shines bright on a big stage; her talks are full of energy and offer important guidance for present and future mathematicians. She has given numerous invited lectures, including the NAM Claytor-Woodard Address at the 2020 Joint Mathematics Meetings (JMM), an MAA Invited Address at the 2013 JMM, and the 2019 Marjorie Lee Browne Colloquium at the University of Michigan. She was a featured speaker at the National Mathematics Festival in 2019 and an IBM Research Distinguished Speaker in 2021.
The Falconer lectures were established in memory of Etta Zuber Falconer (1933–2002). Her many years of service in promoting mathematics at Spelman College and ef orts to enhance the movement of minorities and women into scientific careers through many forums in the mathematics and science communities were extraordinary. Falconer lecturers are women who have made distinguished contributions to the mathematical sciences or mathematics education. Weekes was recommended for this award by a joint selection committee of Colm Mulcahy, Katie Spurrier Quertermous (Chair), Bonita Saunders, and Erica Walker.