CONWAY, Ark. (February 6,
2018) – Ten Hendrix College students traveled to the University of Kansas to
attend the 2018 Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics (CUWiP), January
12-14, 2018. The CUWiP meetings are a series of regional conferences held
simultaneously around the U.S. and Canada for undergraduate women interested in
physics. The series encourages undergraduate women to pursue careers in physics
by giving them the experience of a professional conference, information about
graduate school and professions in physics, and access to women in physics of
all ages with whom they can share experiences, advice, and ideas. Currently,
only 20 percent of U.S. students who earn a bachelor’s degree in physics are
female, and CUWiP is part of the effort to increase that number.
“The CUWiP meetings are an
extremely important platform for encouraging women to persist in physics at the
undergraduate level and to seek out careers in physics after graduation,” said
Dr. Julie Gunderson ’06, Assistant Professor of Physics. “Research shows that
gatherings such as this conference play a positive role in the retention of
women in physics. We are grateful to the Hendrix Odyssey Program for providing
funding to make this trip possible.” The Department of Physics at Hendrix has sent students
and faculty to five annual CUWiP meetings since 2013, and the department plans
to attend the January 2019 CUWiP meeting in Tuscaloosa, AL.
Students who attended the
conference included physics majors Megan LaPlaunt ’21, Sarah Nicholson ’20,
Katherine Parham ’19, Alexis Rivera ’21, Bethany Starr ’19, Nancy Velasquez
’20, and Katie Welch ’21; and chemical physics majors Hailey Hayes ’20, Alexis
Krone ’18, and Inaya Molina ’20.
About
Hendrix College
A private liberal arts
college in Conway, Arkansas, Hendrix College consistently earns recognition as
one of the country’s leading liberal arts institutions, and is featured in Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That
Will Change the Way You Think About Colleges. Its academic quality and
rigor, innovation, and value have established Hendrix as a fixture in numerous
college guides, lists, and rankings. Founded in 1876, Hendrix has been
affiliated with the United Methodist Church since 1884. To learn more, visit www.hendrix.edu.