Organizers

The first Math in Motion…Girls in Gear! was a Durham District School Board event organized by Judy Shanks in 2004. Since 2012 it becomes an annual outreach event of the department of Computer and Mathematical Sciences (CMS) at the University of Toronto Scarborough (UTSC). The event is organized and run by a motivated and dedicated committee of women, most of whom are alumni or faculty of CMS.

Judy Shanks

H.B.Sc., Comp. Sci. & Math (UTSC), B.Ed. (OISE/UT)

Prior to teaching, Judy worked in the Financial Services industry. Currently Judy teaches mathematics and is a Math Club and Competitive Math Team advisor at Pickering High School, DDSB, on the writing team for the Fryer, Galois and Hypatia Mathematics Contests, is the creator of Math in Motion … Girls in Gear!, and a co-creator of Think About Math at the University of Waterloo. Judy has eight siblings, is married with two adult children, and enjoys travelling, live theatre, reading, playing bridge and socializing with friends.

Sophie Chrysostomou

B.Sc(UTSC)., M.Sc.(UT)

Sophie is an Associate Professor, Teaching Stream, in mathematics at the University of Toronto Scarborough. She joined UTSC in 1989. Her passion and interest in mathematics has mutated over the years to include a passion of inspiring her students (and not only!) to study and to excel in mathematics. For this reason she has been involved in outreach activities to motivate young students to remain active in mathematics. She is a regional Representative of the Canadian Math Kangaroo Contest, an annual contest for grades 1-12 and also a co-organizer of “Math in Motion… Girls in Gear!” Sophie also enjoys traveling, board games, musicals, hiking, snorkelling and long walks at the beach.

Carol Miron

H.B.Sc, Math & Geo (UTSC),B.Ed. (OISE/UT), M.A, Mathematics & Statistics (York)

Carol is the Assistant Curriculum Leader for Math and Computer Science at North Toronto Collegiate Institute in Toronto. She is passionate about students using technology to experience, communicate about and create math in different ways. Carol is a member of several organizations including Math in Motion…Girls in Gear! and is the treasurer of the Scarborough Association for Mathematics Education. Carol enjoys spending time with her husband and son, reading, doing puzzles, skiing and binge watching television series involving music, cooking, or conspiracy theories.

Shreya LathiaB.Sc.(UT), MMPA (UTM)

Currently working in banking, Shreya is a chartered accountant with a degree in Mathematics and Economics. She is passionate about critical thinking in education and strongly believes that women’s advancement in all careers begins with encouraging excellence in early years. She spends her spare time with her husband, dog and daughter and loves reading literary fiction.

Sheila Lepoutre H.B.Sc. (UTSC)

Sheila is currently working at Brookfield Asset Management as a Business Analyst. She enjoys the fast pace of the industry and the always changing technologies that are used in the company. There are always problems to solve or a new application or system to learn when working in a large organization. Sheila enjoys spending time with her busy family and playing hockey and baseball. Math has always been Sheila’s favourite subject which influenced her decision to major in computer science and mathematics.

Zohreh ShahbaziB.Sc.(Sharif), M.Sc., Ph.D.(UT)

Zohreh Shahbazi is an Associate Professor, Teaching Stream at the Department of Computer and Mathematical Sciences and the Centre for Teaching and Learning of the University of Toronto Scarborough. She is also the Coordinator of the Math and Stats Learning Centre. She obtained her Ph.D. in pure mathematics from the University of Toronto in 2004. Her research interest is in the fields of Symplectic Geometry and Mathematics Education.

Lisa ShaoH.B.Sc. (UTSC), M.Sc. (UT)

Lisa Shao is currently working in medical editing and regulatory consulting at a healthcare digital marketing company where new technology is constantly being used to communicate complex medical information. Growing up, she was always fond of math and science. She joined the math club and science club throughout high school. She attended ‘Math in Motion… Girls in Gear!’ when she was in grade nine and continued to be involved in the event to inspire young girls to pursue subjects in STEM. At home, she enjoys spending time with her family, especially her younger brother, Kevin.

Gobika SithamparanathanH.B.Sc. (UTSC)

Gobika Sithamparanathan graduated with an Honours Bachelor of Science from University of Toronto Scarborough and is currently pursuing her Master of Science in Occupational Therapy at University of Toronto- St. George Campus. Growing up she has always liked math despite the challenges it threw in her way. She is passionate about continuing to contribute to accessible, holistic healthcare to as many as possible. Besides her busy academy schedule, Gobika is committed to giving back to the community through volunteer involvement both on and off campus. She also manages to take time to treat herself to episodes of Grey’s Anatomy and other TV series.

Minty ZhangH.B.Sc. (UTSC)

Minty started her career as a software development engineer after she graduated from UTSC in June 2016. She is an international student and enjoys helping others and getting involved in the communities. She has volunteered for the Department of Student Life at UTSC, the Math Kangaroo Competition and many community events, and of course, the “Math in Motion Girls in Gear” event since her freshmen year. While being strongly attracted by the art of algorithms and enthusiastically exploring the world of Computer Science, Minty is also a big fan of traveling in the physical world, she just started a resolution to visit 2 new countries every year since 2015, and is actively achieving it!

Alumnae Committee Members:

Cathy Jason

June Lee

Lisa Tucker

Stephanie Mckean

Brenda Yates