As doctoral candidates in the Johns Hopkins Department of Biomedical Engineering, Haley Abramson and Tracy Chung are co-presidents of Women of Whiting, a group of graduate students and postdoctoral fellows that provides women in STEM with community building, networking, mentorship, and professional development opportunities.

Chung was inspired to join the STEM discipline by a high school teacher.

"She helped me realize that tending to my fascination for biology, for what cannot be seen by the naked eye, of creative engineering, was something that was definitely worth my while," Chung said.

After being cancelled in 2020 and held virtually in 2021, Women of Whiting will host their annual Women in STEM Symposium on April 30. The symposium will follow a hybrid format, offering attendees a virtual experience as well as an in-person option.

"Last year, our virtual format welcomed more than 200 attendees from around the U.S.," Abramson said. "This year, we hope to reach a broad audience once again with both a virtual and in-person community. We have a team of 16 incredible volunteers actively working to raise money, communicate with speakers, and create fun giveaways."

There will be a yoga session at the beginning of the day followed by keynote speaker, Julie Des Jardins, a historian of American women and gender. Des Jardins has done extensive research on woman and gender during her tenure.

The day will continue with a resume building workshop led by Tara Little, account manager at Proteintech Group. Rita Matta, senior systems engineer at Becton, Dickinson, and Co., will lead a discussion on how to move from a learning environment to a full-time career.

The event will also feature a breakout session with Teri Mascuch, director of technical innovation at McCormick Flavor Solution and a talk on leadership by Ritu Raman, assistant professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Don’t sleep on this opportunity, you can register online for the symposium.