Archives of American Mathematics Endowment

Dr. Eileen L. Poiani is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Douglass College with a PhD in mathematics from Rutgers University. At Saint Peter’s University, she is a professor of mathematics (and the first female instructor in the department) and special assistant to the president. She also served as vice president for student affairs from 1999 to 2011.

Dr. Poiani was the first woman elected president of Pi Mu Epsilon, the national mathematics honor society, serving from 1987 to 1990. She was named a fellow of the Association for Women in Mathematics. Among her many awards are: New Jersey Woman of Achievement Award by the New Jersey Federation of Women’s Clubs; Humanitarian Award from the National Conference for Community and Justice, New Jersey Region, Hudson County Chapter; and induction into the Nutley Hall of Fame. A former charter trustee of Rutgers and trustee of Saint Peter’s Preparatory School, she currently serves on several boards, including as a public member of the New Jersey State Board of Accountancy.

A longtime member of the Mathematical Association of America, Poiani served as governor of the New Jersey section from 1976 to 1979; founding director of the Women and Mathematics (WAM) lectureship program; chair of the United States Commission on Mathematical Instruction for the National Academy of Sciences; and member of the joint American Mathematical Society-Mathematical Association of America Archives Committee. In 1993, Dr. Poiani received the Mathematical Association of America New Jersey Section Award for Distinguished College Teaching.

Dr. Poiani made a generous contribution to the Archives of American Mathematics Endowment at the Briscoe Center. She joined the Archives of American Mathematics Endowment Steering Committee to help build the endowment principal through additional gifts from other donors so that it can support an archivist focused on building and managing the collections and providing research services to mathematics students, scholars, and other interested researchers. “I strongly believe in preserving mathematical heritage in order to provide resources that can lend context to mathematical breakthroughs and inform future mathematical discoveries,” said Dr. Poiani.