Each summer, one SDE-GWIS chapter hosts a national conference, drawing members from all over the country to present research, network, and talk about issues faced by women scientists.

The 2014 Annual 93rd GWIS Conference will be held at East Bank of the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis Campus-June 25-29, 2014. All events are within walking distance from each other. Thursday (6/26) and Friday (6/27) will be the National GWIS Business Meetings at the Campus Club and all members are invited to attend.

This year’s conference (6/28) is called, “Building Bridges: Practicing Science in the Modern Era,” and focuses on the “soft skills” that are needed to become a great scientist. Science is no longer just about sitting at a bench doing research – today’s scientists are called upon to be engaging teachers, accessible spokespeople, good team players, creative writers, and a whole host of other roles. The conference will provide opportunities to meet other women scientists, STEM participants, and scientific vendors from around the metro area, in addition to the educational speakers and panel discussion. This event will be in the Great Hall of the Coffman Memorial Union (CMU) from 8:30 to 5:00. Check the web site for more information about speakers and registration-Xi Chapter

Saturday evening, we will proceed to the Weisman Museum for our banquet. This is a short distance from CMU and we will have a tour of the exhibits, networking, a silent auction, and a buffet while overlooking the Minneapolis skyline. We will have a welcome video from our Senior Senator in Washington, Amy Klobuchar, and this year’s keynote banquet speaker is Dr. Jorge Cham, writer and cartoonist of Piled Higher and Deeper, a popular comic strip about the trials and tribulations of graduate school and academia. He will speak on the “science gap” – check out his recent TED talk on the subject!