Gabby Hurd - Presenting at a conference

    This weekend I had the opportunity to present research at the National Association of Mathematicians (NAM) 35th Undergraduate MATHFest at Tennessee State University, a conference in which students studying mathematics come together to form connections, present research, and share ideas. NAM was founded in 1969 after Black mathematicians were denied access to spaces like the American Mathematical Society and the Mathematical Association of America. NAM’s MATHFest then, was a unique experience, as almost all of the student attendees were students of color. It was also much smaller than the word “conference” often suggests, and, consequently, I was able to form some great connections.

    I attended MATHFest with my friend and classmate Carson Smedley, and we were perhaps two of only three first-years there. As such, I was grateful to have the support of three Spelman professors there with us: Dr. Harris, Dr. Smith, and Professor Frost (all in the math department), although all of the people at NAM were incredibly welcoming. We also had the honor of meeting Dr. Cynthia Bozeman, a former Spelman professor and prolific mathematician in her own right. Carson and I began our research this summer as a part of the Women in STEM (WiSTEM) Program here at Spelman; my own focused on race, wealth, and educational spending in St. Louis-area school districts. We were definitely worried that our projects weren’t “mathy” enough—especially compared to what our peers were presenting research on—but we supposedly held our own. People were very complimentary of each of our projects, and they offered a lot of ideas about further research we could go into.

    I think the best part about this weekend, however, was realizing that math really is the major for me. Considering the fact that I’m only in my first semester, most of the topics and presentations went way over my head. In no way was it discouraging, however. In fact, this weekend helped me realize what I do—and perhaps just as importantly don’t--want to do in and with math, and showed me what I have to look forward to in the coming years. On the other hand, the “fun” math problems and proofs we were posed this weekend reaffirmed my love of the subject and the creativity it requires. I was consumed by the puzzle of a proof all weekend, my mind constantly returning to it because I didn’t have an answer; Dr. Harris, my professor and research advisor, told me that means I really should be a mathematician.

Gabrielle Hurd