Women in the Academy (WITA)

Women in the Academy (WITA) offers mentoring groups aiming to empower and support the next generation of women in the academy. While the focus is on addressing topics of professional development that include issues unique to or of special interest to women graduate students, male graduate students are welcome to participate.

Last year, we had 42 women doctoral students and eight women faculty participants from across the institution, and we held a virtual group for our students in online programs.  We also introduced a new group of peer co-leaders, who were current doctoral students at Baylor who previously participated in WITA.  One co-leader worked with each faculty member to host and lead their group.

We look forward to growing our resources and support in 2025-26.

Our 2025-26 mentors and co-leaders are:

Robyn Driskell, PhD (Sociology) with co-leader Pacey Ham Mitchell

Annie Ginty, PhD (Psychology and Neuroscience) with co-leader Maggie Bryant

Dorina Mitrea, PhD (Mathematics) with co-leader Claire Mummert

Laila Sanguras, PhD (Learning and Organizational Change) with co-leader Nina Garcia-Vargas

Devan Stahl, PhD (Religion) with co-leader Blair Coe Schweiger

Watch the 2025-26 WITA Kickoff Presentation

The Kickoff event for the 2025-2026 Women In The Academy featured Dr. Mary Alexander, Baylor University Vice Provost for Administration and Operations.  Dr. Alexander spoke about specific considerations women in academia should be aware of, the importance of building a mentoring "board of advisors," and gave advice for navigating the job market.  Watch it here. 

WITA Faculty Mentor Information:

Faculty, please reach out to Sara Dolan with any questions.  Fill out the form below if you are interested in being a WITA faculty mentor for the 2026-2027 school year.