Author Archives: Karen Saxe

About Karen Saxe

Karen Saxe is Director of the AMS Office of Government Relations which works to connect the mathematics community with Washington decision-makers who affect mathematics research and education. Over many years she has contributed much time to the AMS, MAA, and AWM, including service as vice president of the MAA and in policy and advocacy work with all three. She was the 2013-2014 AMS Congressional Fellow, working for Senator Al Franken on education issues, with focus on higher education and STEM education. In Minnesota she has served on the Citizens Redistricting Commission following the 2010 census and serves on the Common Cause Minnesota Redistricting Leadership Circle. She has three children and, when not at work especially enjoys being with them and reading, hiking and sharing good food and wine and beer with family and friends.

Mathematicians are at work in the federal government; you too?

Are you wondering what you might do after you receive your PhD or finish a post-doctoral appointment? Are you post-tenure and thinking that you might want to explore science policy work? There are opportunities for mathematicians to come give federal … Continue reading

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Science under fire in the U.S.A.

Sadly, this topic keeps begging me to write about it; you can consider this a continuation of sorts of my August 28, 2017 and December 1, 2017 posts. Brace yourself, this post is longer than usual and (I hope not … Continue reading

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The AMS & Gerrymandering

The 2018 Joint Mathematics Meetings were fantastic. One of my favorite talks was — surprise, surprise — the fabulous Saturday afternoon MAA-AMS-SIAM Gerald and Judith Porter Public Lecture, given by Tufts University professor Moon Duchin on Political Geometry: Voting Districts, … Continue reading

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Of Mathematics, Congressional Briefings, and President Trump’s National Security Strategy

On December 6, Shafi Goldwasser — RSA Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT — spoke at the U.S. Capitol on “Cryptography: How to Enable Privacy in a Data-Driven World.”  Dr. Goldwasser will take up a new post … Continue reading

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Professional Societies in the Mathematical Sciences: The Landscape

As you are surely aware, there are several professional associations with opportunities (benefits and volunteer) for mathematical researchers, educators, and students. Many members of the AMS are also members of one or more of our sister societies. Do these associations … Continue reading

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Tuesday Tax Post Update

I’ve added the Senate conferees to the post, in case you want to reach them also!

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Tuesday tax update! Act today

The next step for the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is that it will “go to conference” where the differences between the House and Senate versions will be reconciled. The result will then go to the President for his signature … Continue reading

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How does U.S. investment in science compare to that of other countries?

I know you’ve been wondering. Federal investment in science supports the research of professors and graduate students at American universities, and funds our national laboratories. About half of U.S. basic research is conducted at universities and is funded by the … Continue reading

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Update: Taxes and Education

On November 6, I wrote about the GOP tax bill introduced in the House of Representatives. That bill is due to be voted on this week. Meanwhile, the Senate has introduced their own bill and it differs significantly from the … Continue reading

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The Tax Bill and Potential Impacts on Graduate Education and our Universities

The “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” was introduced last week in the House and is moving quickly through Congress. It contains several provisions that, if signed into law, would affect the AMS community. I will add something to this post … Continue reading

Posted in Advocacy, Congress, Grassroots Leaders, Higher Education, Mathematicians, Uncategorized | Tagged | 8 Comments