Office of Undergraduate Education

Picture this: six girls who don’t know each other living together in an apartment in a country foreign to all of them – and they only have one hair drier among them. If that doesn’t scream “recipe for disaster” to you, you may well be the bravest soul on this planet. Six girls with beautiful, long hair, who all have to leave for work between eight and nine in the morning, sharing one hair drier?

I was among one of those six girls who traveled from Duke to Dublin, Ireland for two months last summer, and I needed that hair drier just like the rest of them. But I can’t think of a single instance when I was rushed to dry my wavy locks faster than you can say “bad hair day,” or when I had to fight someone using my yellow-belt karate skills from fifth grade to steal the gadget away. There were no verbal or physical attacks between us girls during our two months there – regarding hair dryers or anything else, for that matter. (more…)

BY MATT GOAD : The Herald-Sun

Feb 22, 2009

DURHAM — The best way to show girls they can excel at science, says Duke junior Jennifer Chen, is to get them in labs and have them learn it.

That’s exactly what the FEMMES — which stands for Females Excelling More in Math, Engineering and Science — Program does, using Duke’s resources to reach out to Durham fourth- and fifth-grade girls. The program presents science and math subjects in a fun way.It includes a once-a-week after-school program, as well as Saturday’s event that drew 250 girls to campus to learn directly from Duke faculty members. (more…)

Everyday on campus students, faculty, and staff offer their time and service to great causes, both big and small—they might never win a Rhodes or get promoted, but nevertheless they persist. This spring, the Division of Student Affairs will honor these unsung community members in their third annual Distinguished Leadership and Service Awards ceremony. Nominations are open to all students, faculty and staff members including individual awards for student organizations and administrators. You can nominate individuals or groups online at the student affairs website. The event, taking place April 15th, will be open to the public.

Twenty Duke women volunteered to spend fall break helping rebuild houses for two families who lost everything in Hurricane Katrina. The Office of the Dean of Undergraduate Education co-sponsored the trip, along with the Baldwin Scholars, and the Women’s Center. More than 50 students applied for 20 spots and worked through the non-profit St. Bernard Project.

Ryan Brown, a senior who went on the trip, wrote about it for the Duke Chronicle. Read her account here.