In the wake of ongoing protests for racial justice, in the summer of 2020, the founders of the Mathematically Gifted & Black (MGB) website asked the general community to support our efforts to provide financial assistance to mathematics predoctoral students. The response we received in the way of donations was surprising and overwhelming. Although SIAM immediately made an offer to contribute, the MGB founders felt very strongly that SIAM could contribute in a way that directly helped dismantle the current status quo in the mathematical sciences, which arguably poses a more significant barrier to Black members of the mathematical community.  The response to MGB’s request was positive, and after a year of collaboration, the MGB-SIAM Early Career (MSEC) Fellowship was launched. 

The MSEC Fellowship recognizes the achievements of early-career applied mathematicians–particularly those belonging to racial and ethnic groups historically excluded from the mathematical sciences in the United States—and provides support for professional activities and career development. The MSEC Fellowship reflects a joint commitment by MGB and SIAM to promote long-term engagement of MSEC Fellows within SIAM and continued success within the broader applied mathematics and computational sciences community. Each year, a cohort of 5-8 MSEC Fellows will be awarded a three-year fellowship. Among other things, for the period of the Fellowship, MSEC Fellows will receive complimentary SIAM membership, have registration fees waived, and receive $700 of travel support to attend the SIAM Annual Meeting each year. In addition, fellows will be required to co-organize at least one minisymposium in their research area at the SIAM Annual Meeting or another SIAM conference of the MSEC Fellow’s choice in the United States or Canada and present a talk in at least one  Workshop Celebrating Diversity session.

Visit https://www.siam.org/students-education/programs-initiatives/mgb-siam-early-career-fellowship to learn more and submit an application by November 15, 2021.