Spectra: the Association for LGBTQ Mathematicians

We are raising funds to place Spectra, the Association for LGBTQ+ Mathematicians, on a solid foundation to expand its programming and better fulfill its mission:

“To support and encourage LGBTQ+ individuals in mathematics by working to create an inclusive and affirming environment that supports the well-being and professional development of LGBTQ+ mathematicians. Spectra strives for a time when LGBTQ+ mathematicians are able to bring their whole selves to the mathematical community.”

Since its founding in 2015, Spectra, the Association for LGBTQ+ Mathematicians, has worked to support and promote LGBTQ+ individuals working in and studying mathematics. Despite being an entirely volunteer-led organization and relying on the generosity of a few donors for the entirety of our small budget, Spectra has accomplished a lot in the last seven years. These efforts have included: organizing and sponsoring over a dozen events including the first bi-annual LGBTQ+ in Mathematics research conference held at ICERM in August 2021, working with various mathematical societies and publishers to adopt policies that are more inclusive to trans and non-binary mathematicians, and launching several initiatives to increase the visibility of LGBTQ+ mathematicians.

In response to both the growth in and the decided challenges faced by the LGBTQ+ math community, Spectra has taken this moment as an opportunity to reorganize and refocus our efforts and resources. With the adoption of a new set of by-laws, a formal board of officers, and official membership, we hope that Spectra can better serve and support the LGBTQ+ math community. In codifying these changes, we hope to create new and easier ways for individuals to become involved with and shape the future of Spectra. Further, we are extremely hopeful that these changes will allow Spectra to undertake larger and more wide-reaching initiatives to make mathematics a more inclusive place. You can read more about our efforts in this piece published in the Notices of the AMS:

https://www.ams.org/journals/notices/202206/rnoti-p898.pdf?adat=June/July%202022&trk=202206898&cat=interest&galt=none

To help jump-start the many excellent programs we are hopeful to launch in the near future, and cover the costs of expanding as an organization, we have created the Queer Foundations fundraising campaign. With this campaign, we hope to raise $30,000 to help place Spectra on solid ground for future growth. So far thanks to several extremely generous donors, we have already raised $15,000, putting us halfway to our goal. By launching this GoFundMe campaign, we hope to reach our goal of $30,000 and allow more individuals to help shape the future of Spectra.

The goals of the fundraising campaign are as follows:

Additional information about the campaign, including other ways to donate, can be found at: http://lgbtmath.org/fundraising. If you have questions or concerns, please feel free to contact Juliette Bruce (juliette.bruce@berkeley, President, Spectra).

Note: This GoFundMe is for the non-profit charity for the National Organization Of Gay And Lesbian Scientists And Technical Professionals (NOGLSTP), with which Spectra has been affiliated since 2007. In particular, NOGLSTP serves as the financial sponsor of Spectra handling our donation processing and accounts under a mutual operating agreement. This agreement dictates that all funds donated to NOGLSTP on behalf of Spectra can only be used for purposes approved by the Spectra board. Should Spectra incorporate or become a non-profit – the latter of which we are beginning to explore – all funds donated to NOGSLTP on behalf of Spectra shall be transferred to Spectra’s corporate accounts.