On March 19, Freeman Hrabowski, President of University of Maryland, Baltimore County, spoke to an audience of about 150 people in Thomas Great Hall. Many students were in attendance, as well as faculty members from a range of institutions (Bryn Mawr, Haverford, Swarthmore, Arcadia, La Salle, Lincoln, Northampton Community College, Widener, Villanova). He raised interesting and thought-provoking questions about ways to support student success in math and science education, with a particular stress on building community. Before his talk, Freeman (as he asked us all to call him) met with a group of Bryn Mawr and Haverford students from Victor Donnay's course on Changing Pedagogies in Math and Science Education. He was very engaging and welcoming with them, as he was with all who met him.
Freeman's presentation was the culmination of a busy day of events around the theme of "Supporting Student Success in Math and Science". In the afternoon, we had an excellent panel of three recent Bryn Mawr Alumnae who spoke on their experiences followed by a faculty workshop with presentations about programs at Drexel, La Salle, Northampton, and Swarthmore. There were about 45 faculty and students in attendance at those events. While these sessions were going on at Bryn Mawr, President Hrabowski was visiting at Haverford for discussions with faculty and administrators there.
More information about the event is available at: http://www.brynmawr.edu/math/people/donnay/vjdwebpage/Hrabowski/FHindex.htm