By Ryan Vasquez | Reporter
Baylor celebrated the accomplishments of its female faculty and staff Tuesday at the annual breakfast honoring research contributions and overall excellence.
Female faculty, as well as friends and family members, were welcomed to a complimentary breakfast hosted by the Office of the Provost in the Foster Campus for Business and Innovation.
Dr. Coretta Pittman, vice provost for community engagement and belonging, opened the program with a reading of the poem “Triumph Like a Girl” by Ada Limón, which was followed by a prayer led by Vice President and Provost Nancy Brickhouse.
Whether through a grant, a research accomplishment or an award, Baylor’s female faculty were highlighted throughout the morning.
Director of the Science Research Fellows and Chair for Baylor Women in Science and Engineering Rizalia Klausmeyer was recognized for “significant contributions to the academic community in ways other than teaching or research.” Klausmeyer, who has worked at Baylor for 26 years, said she is grateful for the award.
“It’s recognition of all the work that I have done throughout the years I have been at Baylor since 2000,” Klausmeyer said. “I started as a part-timer, and then I started teaching full-time and little by little it accumulates. So it’s nice to be recognized for all the hard work.”
As well as celebrating the many awards, grants and research Baylor’s female faculty has achieved, the breakfast focused on the theme of protecting women in powerful spaces, specifically academia.
Dr. Lisa Shaver, interim undergraduate program director for professional writing and rhetoric, said it’s important to continue celebrating the accomplishments of women, especially during March, which is Women’s History Month.
“It’s part of Women’s History Month, just to kind of collectively see all the things that women are doing at Baylor to support each other and also just the work that they do,” Shaver said. “So I think it’s a great opportunity to do that. Oftentimes, especially with some of the service and great teaching, it goes behind the surface, and it’s not recognized, and so I think this is one of those events that’s important.”
President Linda Livingstone, who spoke at the breakfast, is a large part of the culture among female academics at Baylor, according to Dr. Theresa Kennedy, professor of French and director of women’s and gender studies. Faculty, staff and students all feel this culture, Kennedy said.
“I certainly think [the event] has a huge effect on the women faculty,” Kennedy said. “I wonder if the fact that the faculty leadership does have a woman president and a woman provost has something to do with women being able to see themselves in those kinds of leadership positions.”
