President Klawe Wins 2014 Women of Vision ABIE Award

Harvey Mudd College President Maria Klawe is one of three leading women technologists to receive the 2014 Women of Vision ABIE Award, the Anita Borg Institute’s annual award that recognizes women who have made exceptional contributions to innovation, leadership and social impact in the technology field.

“It’s an incredible honor to receive this award,” said Klawe. “The Anita Borg Institute does amazing work to encourage women to pursue and excel in tech careers, for the benefit of all. I’m especially thrilled to have been chosen by such talented peers whose creativity, dedication and accomplishments I admire.”

The Anita Borg Institute, a non-profit organization dedicated to connecting, inspiring and guiding women in computing, created the Women of Vision ABIE Awards in 2005 to annually recognize three distinguished women who are leading technology innovation around the world. The awardees are chosen by a panel of their peers for their contributions in one of three categories: technology innovation, industry leadership and technology-driven social impact.

Klawe will be recognized in the leadership category. A renowned computer scientist and scholar, Klawe is the first woman to lead the College since its founding in 1955. She supported the Harvey Mudd Computer Science Department’s innovative efforts to attract women to CS, which increased the percentage of female CS majors at the College from 10 percent in 2005 to a current average of 40 percent. Klawe is passionate about making science, engineering and mathematics education more accessible to diverse groups and has emerged as a national thought leader on women in STEM education. Dr. Klawe received her Ph.D. in Mathematics from the University of Alberta.

Tal Rabin, Manager and research staff member of the Cryptography Research Group at IBM’s T.J. Watson Research Center, is being celebrated for innovation and Kathrin Winkler, chief sustainability officer and senior vice president of EMC Corporation, for social impact. The honorees receive their awards at the Anita Borg Institute’s Women of Vision Awards Banquet on May 8 in Santa Clara, Calif.

“From cyber security to education to sustainability, our 2014 ABIE Award winners are true leaders in shaping technology today and the future,” said Telle Whitney, president and CEO of the Anita Borg Institute. “These awards give us the perfect opportunity to celebrate the indelible impact and influence Tal, Maria and Kathrin have made on technology every single day. They were chosen from a very strong group of nominees and are role models for women aspiring to succeed in technology.”