The School of Mathematics, Statistics and Actuarial Science (SMSAS) is delighted to announce that it has successfully submitted an application to the Athena SWAN Charter and has been awarded an Athena SWAN Silver Award for its ongoing commitment to embed equality, diversity and inclusivity in the School.
The School is the first department at Kent and one of just nine university mathematics departments in the UK to receive the Athena SWAN Silver Award. Making a successful application for the Award is no mean feat as around only 40% of Athena SWAN Silver Award applications to the Athena SWAN Charter are successful, 40% are given a Bronze Award and 20% are unsuccessful.
Head of School, Professor Peter Hydon, gave his thanks to the staff members instrumental in achieving the Award by writing, “Congratulations and many thanks to everyone who has contributed to this success, particularly Rowena Paget for leading and writing the application, James Bentham for statistical analysis and a very clear presentation of our data, and Peter Clarkson for leading our SAT and doing so much to spread good practice to the University and the UK mathematical sciences community”.
SMSAS was the first department at Kent to receive a Bronze Award in 2014 and has since made headway in increasing the number of female role models in the School, ensuring that more women are invited to speak at seminars and conferences, providing opportunities for students in the School to connect with staff and alumni through the School’s ‘Inspire Network’, and ensuring balanced representation at applicant days and open days.
Alongside these initiatives, the School has also developed a flagship Maternity Leave Policy which has been highlighted as an example of best practice and adopted by a number of departments at Kent, and hosted dedicated outreach events such as ‘Girls in Maths’ to encourage young females to pursue mathematics beyond GCSE level.
The School will shortly be holding an all-school event to celebrate the achievement.