UAlbany Celebrates STEM for International Women's Day
ALBANY, N.Y. (March 11, 2025) — When College of Nanotechnology, Science, and Engineering (CNSE) Professor Kathleen Dunn first started her post doctoral work at what was then the School of Nanosciences and Nanoengineering, she noticed a distinct lack of other women working at the groundbreaking facility. This wasn't the first time for Dunn to feel a little isolated while pursuing her passion for materials science.
She had experienced the same thing while earning a bachelor's degree in applied and engineering physics from Cornell in 1991, as well as during her graduate work in materials science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. But just as she had learned to do at those previous stops, Dunn embraced the environment and forged ahead in the way that made the most sense to her. First and foremost, this meant never being afraid to be special.
"The goal for a career is to stand out, and to have a personal brand," said Dunn, while delivering the keynote address at a celebration in honor of International Women's Day on March 7. "None of us are the herd. We are all individuals, for lots of reasons. So don't suppress that."
Dunn's discussion, "How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Just be a Unicorn," encouraged the students and faculty in attendance to never shy away from the spotlight, simply because you think you are supposed to behave in a certain manner.
For Dunn, it meant sharing how, during her studies at Cornell, she received a form letter encouraging her to consider dropping her applied physics major since it "wasn't for everybody."
Dunn went home, spoke with family and spent time crying and doubting herself. But when she returned to school, she was resolved to complete the program.
"I thought, who the hell were they to tell me not to do this," said Dunn to the audience. "I got so mad that I didn't do any of the things this letter told me to do. I went and found the people that I needed to help me succeed."
And succeed she did. Dunn went on to become a full professor at CNSE and one of the nation's leading experts on materials engineering. She's also a past winner of the UAlbany Bread and Roses Award for promoting gender equity on campus, and the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Teaching.
"You can't control all of the things that will happen to you," summarized Dunn. "But you can decide not to be diminished by them."
Dunn was one of several guests to speak before nearly 100 students, faculty and staff at the event, organized by CNSE, the UAlbany chapter of the Society for Women Engineers, AIM Photonics and the Women's Innovative Network (WIN) at NY CREATES.
Other panelists included:
- Sarah Baranowski, SI photonics integration engineer at AIM Photonics
- Ekta Bhatia, research scientist at NY CREATES
- Andrea Unser, research scientist at HUmonix Biosciences
- Vidya Narayan, principal quality engineer at TEL
- Tara McCaughey, strategic university partnership manager at Global Foundries
- Xiaoli He, device engineer at IBM
"I want to thank the speakers for providing their valuable insight and sacrificing their time to be at this event to inspire our young UAlbany women," said Raji Venkat, educational and workforce outreach program coordinator at CNSE and lead organizer of this event. "The women were brilliant and engaging — truly inspirational."
For those in attendance, the sentiment was shared.
"In a field where visibility can be a constant challenge, the International Women's Day networking event was a powerful reminder of shared experience," said Margaret Amarjargal, a sophomore from Brooklyn who attended Friday's event. "Watching those women speak with such vulnerability and strength ignited a once-dormant confidence within me. It was a vital boost, a reminder that we can rise together, and I'm inspired to pay it forward."
For Amarjargal, a biology major who is minoring in mathematics, the event has her thinking seriously about upgrading her minor to a double major. She has also been inspired to share her current work at the third annual Showcase Day at UAlbany on April 30.