• Message from the 2025-26 GWIS President
• GWIS 2024-25 Fellowship Awardees and Honorable Mentions
• GWIS National Committee Opening
• GWIS Programming Committee: 4th Annual Book Club
• GWIS National Mingle
• GWIS Events Google Calendar
• Join the GWIS Slack Channel
• GWIS Career Center
• GWIS Chapter News
• Discount code for Svaha USA STEAM-themed clothing

United in Friendship Through Science: A Century of Community and Change

Dear GWIS Members,

As we begin our 105th year as the Graduate Women in Science (GWIS), we look with admiration for our founders, for the members who built this organization across generations, and for each of you who continue to push the boundaries of what is possible in science, in equity, and in community.

This year marks 105 years since Adele Lewis Grant gathered twelve women graduate students atCornell University for a picnic in May 1921.In an era when women had only just won the right to vote and were often excluded from the full life of scientific academia, these women created their own space. They founded what would become Sigma Delta Epsilon, now GWIS, to support one anotherprofessionally, intellectually, and socially. Their vision was enduring: science should be open to everyone, andfriendship was not separate from science but foundational to its advancement.

This vision has carried us far-from that first meeting at Cornell with only a small group of graduatestudents to over 20 chapters across the globe and an international society that amplifies thevoices of women in all scientific disciplines.

Today, we continued to honor our past and advance our mission. Our archives at Cornell were listed online, ensuring our history remains accessible. The GWIS National Fellowship Program (NFP) continues to support outstanding researchers at pivotal career stages. We’ve also launchednew initiatives that foster engagement and highlight the work of our members: including a bookclub, invited speakers, science documentary coffee chats, and social media campaigns. Lookingahead,we are excited to announce that the 2026 National Conference will be hosted by the Black HillsChapterin Rapid City, South Dakota (June 11–13). This promises to be an inspiring gathering, and I hopemany ofyou will join us there.

GWIS has evolved in name, in scope, and in reach, but our symbols and spirit remain. The originalbadge of Sigma Delta Epsilon (designed by Dr. Viola Graham) depicted the interconnectedness ofdisciplines and the unity of purpose shared by women in science. Though we no longer use ourGreek name, we still honor its legacy: United in Friendship Through Science.

As we look to the future, we invite each of you to reflect on what that motto means today. In aworld still marked by inequality, uncertainty, and complex challenges, how do we foster friendships that upliftand inspire us, and science that includes everyone? How do we support each other as we navigate the challenges of research, teaching, leadership, and life?

We look forward to finding those answers with you and hope that, in your own space, you’rechampioning a more inclusive and empowering vision of science.

In solidarity and science,

Brooke Long-Fox
President, Graduate Women in Science

Sarah Oladejo
President-Elect, Graduate Women in Science

Carissa Philippi
Vice President, Graduate Women in Science

Meet the ten awardees of the 2024-25 GWIS Fellowship Program. Their project proposals were outstanding and we are excited to hear about their experiences this year. Also, we have 25 honorable mentions who submitted an application. Interested in knowing what this year's awardees proposed? 

Join us for GWIS’s 4th annual Book Club!
Over the next few months (July-September), we’ll be reading Mischievous Creatures: The Forgotten Sisters Who Transformed Early American Science by Catherine McNeur. The book, published in 2023, is widely available at libraries or check at your local bookstore (if nothing else get it from Amazon). This book uncovers the lives and work of Margaretta Hare Morris and Elizabeth Carrington Morris, sisters and scientists in early America. This portrait of two unsung pioneers places women firmly at the center of the birth of American science.

Scan the QR code or follow the link to get more information: https://forms.gle/YSLD91Kwo5pKy9ij9

Chapters 1-6 discussion: Friday, August 22nd, 2025, 8pm WAT and BST/4pm ADT/3pm EDT/2pm CDT/1pm MDT/12pm PDT/9am HDT (this meeting time favors US timezones) 

Chapters 7-11 discussion: Friday, September 19th, 2025, 3pm WAT and BST/11am ADT/10am EDT/9am CDT/8am MDT/7am PST/4am HST (this meeting time favors African and European timezones)

About GWIS

Founded in 1921, Graduate Women in Science is an inter-disciplinary society of scientists who collectively seek to advance the participation and recognition of women in science and to foster research through grants, awards and fellowships. We comprise over 30 active chapters of more than 900 women who are "United in Friendship through Science" to support and inspire member professional goals and mutual appreciation of science. Learn more at www.gwis.org.

Contact GWIS

PO Box 7
Mullica Hill, NJ 08062
www.gwis.org

President
Brooke Long-Fox
Editor
Zoey Jiang 
Membership
Ogochukwu Ozotta

GWIS Connect Copy Editor:
Selina Bruckner
Chapter News Editor:
Can Dong