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Personal Profile of Dr. Maria M. Klawe

Biography
Maria Klawe began her tenure as Harvey Mudd College’s fifth president in 2006. A renowned computer scientist and scholar, President Klawe is the first woman to lead the College since its founding in 1955. Prior to joining HMC, she served as dean of engineering and professor of computer science at Princeton University. Klawe joined Princeton from the University of British Columbia where she served as dean of science from 1998 to 2002, vice president of student and academic services from 1995 to 1998 and head of the Department of Computer Science from 1988 to 1995. Prior to UBC, Klawe spent eight years with IBM Research in California, and two years at the University of Toronto. She received her Ph.D. (1977) and B.Sc. (1973) in mathematics from the University of Alberta.

Klawe has made significant research contributions in several areas of mathematics and computer science, including functional analysis, discrete mathematics, theoretical computer science, human-computer interaction, gender issues in information technology and interactive-multimedia for mathematics education. Her current research focuses on discrete mathematics.

Klawe is a renowned lecturer and has given talks at international conferences, national symposia, and colleges across the U.S. and Canada about diversity in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines and industries, gender and gaming, and lessons from her own career in STEM industry and education. She has devoted particular attention in recent years to improving K-12 science and mathematics education.

Klawe is a board member of the nonprofit Math for America and of the Alliance for Southern California Innovation, chair of the board of the nonprofit EdReports.org, a fellow of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, a trustee for the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute in Berkeley and a member of the board of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Klawe is the recipient of the 2014 Women of Vision ABIE Award for Leadership and was ranked 17 on Fortune’s 2014 list of the World’s 50 Greatest Leaders. In 2015 she was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Canadian Association of Computer Science and the Achievement Award from the American Association of University Women, and she was inducted into the US News STEM Solutions Leadership Hall of Fame. She was honored by the Computing Research Association’s 2016 Distinguished Service Award.

Current/Future Committee Membership
Name Office Start Date End Date
Board of Trustees Mar 01, 2012 Feb 29, 2024
Committee on Trustees Mar 07, 2015 Mar 31, 2024

Past Committee Membership
Name Office Start Date End Date
Board of Trustees Mar 06, 2004 Mar 01, 2008
Board of Trustees Mar 02, 2008 Mar 01, 2012
Committee on Trustees May 16, 2006 Mar 01, 2007
Committee on Trustees Jul 30, 2010 Mar 01, 2011
Committee on Trustees Jul 06, 2012 Feb 28, 2013
Committee on Trustees Aug 08, 2013 Feb 28, 2014
Committee on Trustees May 01, 2014 Feb 28, 2015
Committee on Women in Mathematics Mar 01, 2015 Feb 28, 2017
Corporate Partners Committee Feb 28, 2008 Mar 01, 2012
Corporate Partners Committee Mar 01, 2012 Feb 29, 2016
Development Committee Nov 15, 2004 Mar 01, 2012
Development Committee Mar 01, 2012 Feb 29, 2016
Education Committee Nov 15, 2004 Mar 01, 2012
Education Committee Mar 01, 2012 Feb 29, 2016
Educational Advisory Committee Mar 01, 2008 Feb 28, 2015
Educational Advisory Committee Mar 07, 2015 Mar 01, 2020
Endowment Campaign Committee Mar 05, 2011 Feb 29, 2016
Recompetition Committee Sep 01, 2007 Jul 08, 2010
Strategic Planning Committee Chair (2/1/17-2/1/18) Dec 01, 2016 Mar 31, 2018