SiSTEM: How Muslim Women are Reclaiming Space in the STEM Classroom

In Western cultures, science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) research is known for its rigid procedural methodology. Most experimental research in STEM relies on objectivity and the removal of bias. However, Vivian Ali Zohery ’17, M.A. ’20, Ph.D. ’24, who recently completed her doctorate in teaching and learning, policy and leadership, mathematics and science education specialization, at the University of Maryland, believes that instilling elements of faith and culture can enhance meaningful research.

Zohery, who comes from a rural Egyptian background, began her mission to incorporate Eastern practices and methodology into Western STEM education by exploring how science is taught and discussed within Western schools and universities. For her, STEM is not as rigid as most Western scientists believe but can include unique cultural contexts and the engagement of local communities.

“Science for me has always been a spiritual thing, not devoid of faith,” said Zohery.

In her dissertation research, Zohery organized a group of four Muslim women undergraduate STEM students and studied their experiences as they examined both their own and other Muslim women students’ experiences in STEM fields. The group used an approach called participatory action research (PAR), which helps remove unequal power dynamics between researchers and participants, while allowing the researchers to study issues that directly affect them.

When Nusrat Meetul ’25 first heard that Zohery was recruiting students for the project, she felt inclined to learn more. Entering UMD as a freshman nearly four years ago, she felt detached from her Islamic heritage. As a computer science major, she felt isolated; among the small number of women in her classes, she rarely met any who shared her Islamic identity.

“I thought it would be a good way of getting that Islamic exposure that I wasn’t getting,” said Meetul.

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