June 14, 2021

The WPI Women’s Impact Network (WIN) has awarded $224,779 in grant funding this year, selecting 16 proposals to receive WIN Impact Grants and boosting the amount it has awarded to support initiatives from the WPI community to the million-dollar mark since the group began distributing funds in 2017.

WIN is a group of WPI alumnae, parents, and friends whose mission is to provide pathways to advance women at WPI through support of critical activities that create a positive impact in the WPI community. All WIN members have the opportunity to vote for the final grant award selections, choosing projects that resonate with the members’ most meaningful causes and areas of focus. Learn how you can join the Women's Impact Network (WIN).

“This only happens through the philanthropy of alumni, faculty, staff, parents, and friends,” said Stephanie Pasha, assistant vice president, Strategic Donor Outreach, who noted that all grants are funded through donations from WIN members. “The team of WIN members who review the grant applications to make the awards each year work very hard at ensuring the most ‘bang for the buck.’ They know there is significant need for many of these projects and they are so creative in maximizing the impact of the grant award dollars. For them, it’s a deeply rewarding experience and they appreciate the opportunity to interact with grant recipients and beneficiaries alike. It’s a terrific engagement, and the whole process gives them a broader lens into WPI’s plans, programs, people, and priorities.”

Grant proposals for initiatives from the WPI community met specific criteria, including providing pathways to advance women at WPI; increasing the number of women in STEM fields; creating a positive difference for women in the extended WPI community; and elevating WPI’s impact and extending its reach around the globe.

The 2021 grant recipients:

  • A Win for Mothers: Stigma, COVID-19, and Maternal Mental Health

Primary Author: Samantha Hines, graduate student, Psychological Science

Grant Award: $3,250.

  • Academic Coaching: Building Community Support with the Office of Accessibility Services

Primary Author: Amy Curran, Director, Office of Accessibility Services

Grant Award: $13,500.

  • WPI-Supported STEM Childcare: Impact & Opportunities

Primary Author: Mia Dubosarsky, Director of Professional Development, STEM Education Center

Grant Award: $16,000.

  • Worcester Women in STEM Pathway Initiative

Primary Author: Ryan Meadows, interim director, Office of Pre-collegiate Outreach Programs; Director, Pre-collegiate Outreach

Grant Award: $32,300.

  • Women’s Young Investigator Fellowship: Providing WPI Students and Faculty with Mentorship and Research Conference Opportunities for Research

Primary Author: Avery Harrison Closser, Graduate Student, Learning Sciences & Technology

Grant Award: $23,500.

  • WIN WISE Fellowship: Women’s Interdisciplinary Scholarship Engagement

Primary Author: Rodica Neamtu, Associate Teaching Professor, Computer Science

Grant Award: $3,500.

  • The Leadership Delta PEARL (Professional Education and Representative Leadership) Mentoring Program

Primary Author: Tiffiny Butler, Director, Office of Multicultural Affairs

Grant Award: $15,250.

  • Supporting Equity in Faculty Career Advancement During & After the COVID-19 Pandemic

Primary Author: Chrysanthe Demetry, Professor, Mechanical Engineering

Grant Award: $30,000

  • Quantum Pathways for Women: Women’s Quantum Science and Engineering Outreach and Mentorship Program

Primary Author: Raisa Trubko, Assistant Professor, Physics

Grant Award: $15,704.

  • Physics LAWS Competition (Physics Leader Achiever Women Students)

Primary Author: Snehalata Kadam, Assistant Teaching Professor, Physics

Grant Award: $2,500.

  • PBL to Go: Bringing STEM Experiential Learning to a Classroom Near You

Primary Author: Kristin Boudreau, Professor, Humanities & Arts

$25,800.

  • P.E.A.C.E Hackathon for Social Justice (Participation, Equity, Access, Civil Rights, in Education)

Primary Author: Tiffiny Butler, Director, Office of Multicultural Affairs

Grant Award: $17,025.

  • Lecture Series Highlighting Women Developing Guitar Technologies

Primary Author: VJ Manzo, Associate Professor, Humanities & Arts

Grant Award: $4,150.

  • Gender & Leadership Opportunity Workshop (GLOW) Series

Primary Author: Lindsay Davis, Assistant Teaching Professor, Humanities & Arts

Grant Award: $8,800.

  • Free Menstrual Products on WPI’s Campus

Primary Author: Alexandria Lehman, Undergraduate Student, Mechanical Engineering

Grant Award: $10,920.

  • Artificial Tongue for Oral Cancer Patients

Primary Author: Sarah Vasquez, Undergraduate Student, Electrical & Computer Engineering

Grant Award: $2,500.

The Period Agenda Receives Nearly $11,000 to Fund Free Menstrual Product Dispensers on Campus

Students lead research and funding initiative to address “period poverty” on campus, including funding the replacement of the current coin-operated machines with 32 new machines that will dispense products at no charge. The work is funded by a grant from the Women’s Impact Network.