Boston Women in Bioinformatics

Chairs’ Message

As we close 2025, we want to begin by expressing our deepest gratitude to the incredible people who make Boston Women in Bioinformatics possible. To our volunteer committee chairs who dedicated countless hours to advancing our mission, our generous sponsors who believed in our vision, and our engaged members who bring energy and expertise to everything we do—thank you. Your commitment is the foundation of our community.

This year has been remarkable for BWIB. We organized more than 20 events that brought together women across all career stages in bioinformatics, from workshops and networking sessions to technical talks. Our community is strong—over 800 followers on LinkedIn and 400 members on Slack, reflecting the expanding need for spaces where women in our field can connect and thrive. A particular highlight was celebrating our 10th anniversary with 60 attendees and three inspiring keynote speakers who generously shared their career journeys, reminding us of how far we’ve come and the paths still being forged.

Perhaps most significantly, BWIB officially became a nonprofit organization in 2025. This milestone provides us with the stable infrastructure needed to sustain and grow our programs, secure funding more effectively, and serve our community for years to come.

We also recognize the challenges ahead. In an era where funding for science and diversity initiatives faces increasing restrictions, opportunities are becoming scarcer. We see this reality, and we acknowledge its impact on our members. And yet the current climate makes our work more critical than ever—we will continue standing with and supporting this community through these uncertain times.

Looking forward to 2026, we remain committed to organizing meaningful events, creating welcoming spaces for connection and growth, and launching new initiatives including mentoring circles to strengthen peer support networks. We’re also developing a field status survey to gather and share data about the state of women in bioinformatics, ensuring our advocacy is grounded in evidence.

Thank you for being part of this journey.

With gratitude,

Lorena Pantano Chair, President and Founder Boston Women in Bioinformatics

Yevgenia Khodor Chair, Vice President Boston Women in Bioinformatics

Events Committee

Lina Faller, Diveena Becker, Shayna Simonstein, Liyang Diao, Samantha Klasfeld, Isha Parikh, Rachel Utama, Aysheh Alrfooh, Lakshmi Kuttippurathu, Mary Piper, Ozge Tasdemir Yilmaz

Mission

The Events Committee creates diverse programming focused on professional development, technical skill-building, and community engagement to serve the Boston-area bioinformatics community.

2025 Accomplishments

Event Portfolio & Reach

Successfully executed 20+ events throughout 2025
Professional Development (8 events): Career coaching series with Dr. Jenn Felsted-Knight (3 workshops), resume review and interview tips session, panel discussions on career navigation, industry insights events (Sprout Informatics AMA, JustAJob demo), and Unique Value Proposition workshop with Joanna Ghayad
Technical Skill-Building (3 events): Introduction to GitHub (Parts 1 & 2) and R Packages workshop, all featuring hands-on learning with experienced instructors
Community Building (8+ events): Monthly lunch meetups across Boston-area locations (Cambridge, Watertown, Fenway, Seaport), 10-year Anniversary Celebration (90 registrations, 63 attendees), lightning talks co-hosted with BCBB, and networking event at ASHG with Sentieon (100 attendees)
Outreach & Visibility (3 events): Cambridge Science Festival booth, Festival of Genomics speed networking session (50+ participants), and Nextflow Summit booth representation

Community Growth

Built a community of 369 active members on Lu.ma, with many regularly attending multiple events throughout the year
Maintained high engagement despite challenging job market conditions

Partnerships & Fundraising

Established collaboration with Boston Computational Biology & Bioinformatics (BCBB) meetup
Secured sponsorships from Sentieon, DiamondAge, and Eli Lilly
Cross-promoted events with Cambridge Biotech Club
Raised $2,000 from sponsors and $1,655 from ticket sales and donations for the 10-year Anniversary Celebration

Operational Excellence

Successfully transitioned from Meetup to Lu.ma platform for improved event management
Developed standardized processes for event communication and feedback collection
Created comprehensive documentation for hosting various event types
Welcomed new committee members and developed mentorship pathways for event organizers
Built sustainable volunteer model with buddy-system approach

Impact

The Events Committee created safe spaces for technical learning and professional vulnerability, fostering repeat participation and deep community connections. The diverse programming successfully brought together women across all career stages in bioinformatics, providing valuable networking and skill-building opportunities.

2026 Plans

The Events Committee has established a strong foundation of diverse programming, sustainable partnerships, and operational excellence to continue serving the Boston bioinformatics community in 2026 with ongoing professional development, technical workshops, and community-building events.

Website Committee

Samantha Klasfeld, Lorena Pantano, Yaseswini Neelamraju, Anushka Dongaonkar, Vishwa Talati

Mission

The Website Committee maintains BWIB’s digital presence through boston-wib.org, serving as a comprehensive hub where members and the broader community can discover our mission, find events, access valuable content, and stay connected.

2025 Accomplishments

Platform Launch & Infrastructure

Launched boston-wib.org in December 2024 to replace basic meetup page
Built on modern, fast, and accessible platform (Astro 4.0)
Implemented comprehensive documentation in README.md for all content types (events, blog posts, newsletters, team updates)
Automated code formatting via Prettier ensuring consistent quality
Established accessibility standards: alt-text requirements (under 125 characters), screen reader optimization, mobile-responsive design
SEO optimization with Open Graph tags, automatic sitemap generation, RSS feeds
Integrated Google Analytics for tracking engagement

Organizational Identity

Integrated BWIB logo as home button and for SEO/social media sharing
Created About page featuring BWIB’s mission and organizational structure
Developed committee pages with detailed leadership and member information
Built team directory with executive and committee member profiles
Selected BWIB slogan through member poll led by Vishwa Talati
Implemented donation page with Givebutter integration
Created contact page connecting to Slack, LinkedIn, and Luma
Prominently displayed Code of Conduct reinforcing inclusive values

Content Systems

Events: Timezone-aware event system (EST/EDT) with metadata management, home page promotion of next upcoming event, video archive for past meeting recordings
10-Year Anniversary Campaign: Comprehensive event page featuring email signup, speaker and sponsor profiles, sponsorship opportunities, detailed agenda with “add to calendar” functionality, and custom anniversary logo
Blogs & Newsletters: Multi-author blog platform supporting podcasts, deep dives, and quick takes; newsletter archive with customizable templates; category and tag system architecture; homepage promotion of most recent content
Community Campaigns: 2026 merchandise campaign infrastructure, national survey distribution platform, resource library featuring learning materials, career development resources, and connections to professional organizations and networks.

Impact

The website transformed from a basic meetup page into BWIB’s primary digital presence, providing a comprehensive, accessible, and professional platform that serves members across all stages of engagement—from discovery to active participation. The modern infrastructure enables efficient content management and community connection.

2026 Plans

Focus on enhancing accessibility, activating existing features, improving analytics, and reducing technical barriers:

Create video tutorials and simplified workflows to make content contribution accessible to all members, regardless of technical background
Develop new Website Committee members with ownership of specific projects (resource library, blog recruitment, analytics)
Further develop curated resource library featuring bioinformatics tools, learning materials, and career development resources
Recruit 5-10 new blog authors from diverse career stages and specialties to increase content diversity
Analyze Google Analytics data to identify content gaps and optimize digital presence
Maintain consistent site quality through regular blog posts, event updates, and newsletters

Advocacy Committee

Amulya Shastry, Katie Hughes

Mission

The Advocacy Committee establishes pathways for women to ensure equitable leadership and decision-making roles by collecting, analyzing, and summarizing data on the state of gender diversity in bioinformatics and adjacent fields.

2025 Accomplishments

Survey Development

Researched methods and created comprehensive survey to assess the current state of gender diversity in bioinformatics and computational biology
Designed survey questions based on common LinkedIn fields after exploratory data analysis
Tested survey with committee members and incorporated feedback
Built upon 2017 M. I. Stefan et al. study which showed women are underrepresented in computational biology, but focused on broader field beyond academia

Survey Distribution & Outreach

Promoted survey through multiple channels: BWIB social media, newsletters, event posts
Reached out to other bioinformatics groups including BCBB for broader community engagement
Achieved strong response during BWIB 10th year anniversary event
Engaged well-known bioinformatics professionals to share survey on LinkedIn

Preliminary Analysis

Collected responses from 194 participants (163 female, 28 male, 1 non-binary, 1 other)
Gathered salary data from 127 participants ranging from <$80,000 to >$200,000
Analyzed education backgrounds (bachelors, masters, doctoral, MD/PhD) across job types (academia, industry, government, big pharma, software, biotech)
Identified leadership gap: 21% of male respondents in leadership positions vs. 14% of female respondents
Analyzed salary patterns across education levels: 46% of masters holders, 28% of PhD holders, and 40% of bachelor’s holders reporting <$80,000

Impact

The committee successfully developed metrics to enable data-driven advocacy for gender equity in bioinformatics. The survey revealed important trends and biases in the field, particularly regarding the gender gap in leadership roles and potential salary disparities. Despite data imbalance, preliminary findings provide crucial baseline information for future advocacy efforts.

2026 Plans

Create and organize advocacy events in collaboration with other BWIB committees
Promote the survey to ensure creation of a more balanced dataset
Expand the advocacy team to work on advocacy-related outreach and workshops
Work with other minority and underrepresented groups to build an equitable leadership pipeline
Develop data-driven recommendations to strengthen policies for a supportive women-led workforce
Explore questions with well-balanced dataset to further investigate bias related to gender gap, pay, and years of experience or education needed

Career Sponsorship Committee

Aysheh Alrfooh, Peili Zhang, Marissa Sumathipala

Mission

The Career Sponsorship Committee (rebranded as Mentorship Program) connects women at different career stages through structured mentorship relationships that promote professional growth, confidence, and leadership readiness in bioinformatics.

2025 Accomplishments

Strategic Pivot

Began as a pilot initiative to support women aspiring to leadership roles through networks, resources, and events
Successfully pivoted mid-2025 from a broad sponsorship model to a focused mentorship program after determining that direct, one-to-one guidance would create the most meaningful impact
Evolved from a single active member to an expanded team with a clear vision and structure

Mentorship Program Development

Created and finalized detailed mentor and mentee intake forms, gathering information on professional background, goals, learning preferences, and time commitment
Aligned questions across both forms to ensure easy matching between mentors and mentees
Defined clear goals for the program, including a framework for engagement, expectations, and support tools
Developed structure for six-month pilot program, including monthly meetings, optional workshops, and kickoff/closing events

Collaboration & Team Building

Worked closely with the Communications and Events Committee to ensure alignment across BWIB initiatives
Reviewed and refined forms, prepared communication materials for program promotion
Coordinated logistics for mentorship program rollout and related events
Successfully recruited new members: Co-Chair Peili Zhang and Committee Members Marissa and Mano Kumar

Impact

Despite starting as a challenging endeavor with limited resources, the committee demonstrated persistence and adaptability by redefining its direction to achieve a more focused and impactful mission. The groundwork laid in 2025 established essential tools, recruited committed team members, and created a clear framework to empower women in bioinformatics through mentorship and career advancement.

2026 Plans

Launch pilot Mentorship Program in early 2026:

Recruit mentors and mentees through coordinated outreach
Match participants based on shared goals and expertise
Host program kickoff event to launch six-month pilot
Facilitate monthly mentor-mentee meetings and optional workshops
Gather feedback throughout pilot to refine future cycles
Host a closing event to celebrate participant achievements
Continue collaboration with the Communications and Events Committee for effective outreach and engagement
Use pilot feedback to develop a sustainable long-term mentorship program structure

Communications Committee

Sakina Saif, Shreya Rajasekar, Samantha Klasfeld, Masoome Rezaei and Nishita Kalepalli

Mission

The Communications Committee strengthens BWIB’s visibility and community engagement by managing digital platforms, maintaining consistent messaging, and creating channels to share news, events, member spotlights, and community content that support professional growth and inclusion in bioinformatics.

2025 Accomplishments

Digital Platform Management

Managed and maintained consistent presence across multiple platforms: LinkedIn, Luma, and Givebutter
Implemented regular posting cadence for pre-event and post-event communications
Coordinated closely with Events, Sponsoring, and Cross-Functional committees and groups
Developed standardized communication workflows for improved internal coordination

Newsletter Launch

Successfully launched BWIB’s Organizational Newsletter as a major milestone
Created dedicated channel to summarize and communicate news, events, member and speaker spotlights, and relevant community content
Established newsletter as key tool for community engagement and information sharing

Strategic Communication Practices

Maintained consistent messaging to promote partnerships and community engagement
Implemented follow-up strategy with resources and thank-you notes
Enhanced visibility of BWIB’s mission to foster professional growth, networking, mentorship, and inclusion for women and gender-diverse professionals in bioinformatics

Impact

Communications played a critical role in amplifying BWIB’s impact within the Greater Boston bioinformatics and computational biology ecosystem. The committee’s efforts in maintaining consistent digital presence, launching the newsletter, and coordinating across committees successfully strengthened organizational visibility and community engagement, meeting all 2025 goals.

2026 Plans

Expand member spotlight and mentorship-related content
Explore additional analytics to better track engagement and conversations
Strengthen cross-posting with partner organizations and groups
Continue refining digital platform solutions for increased social media engagement
Welcome volunteer members with active and creative approaches to strengthen the team

Report compiled December 2025