Mathematics OR Candidate Research Talk, Mayleen Cortez-Rodriguez
December 2, 2025 8:25–9:25 a.m.
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Shanahan Center, B442
320 E. Foothill Blvd.
Claremont, CA 91711
Contact
Melissa Hernandez-Alvarez
mhernandezalvarez@hmc.edu
909.607.3618
Details
Mayleen Cortez-Rodriguez, a finalist for a tenure-track faculty position in the Department of Mathematics, will deliver the lecture"Estimating Causal Effects in the Presence of Interference with No Network Knowledge"
Abstract
Do phone call reminders to vote increase voter turnout? Does a vaccine decrease disease rates? The answers to causal questions like these can inform public policy decisions and public health strategies. A broad goal of causal inference, the field that studies causality, is to quantify the causal effect of a treatment (e.g. phone call or vaccine) on an outcome (e.g. voter turnout or disease rate) to answer a causal question of interest. Randomized Control Trials (RCTs) are considered the “gold standard” for estimating causal effects because they satisfy an important independence assumption about the treatment. However, even RCTs can be subject to interference, where the treatment of one individual can affect the outcome of another (e.g., vaccines and herd immunity). Many approaches to addressing interference have arisen in the last decade and most begin by modeling the interference as a network. However, the majority of these approaches require full knowledge of the underlying network, which is a problem in many practical settings where such information is unavailable. Thus, to address this critical gap, Cortez-Rodriguez presents an approach that achieves unbiased estimates of causal effects without requiring fine-grain knowledge of the underlying interference network. Then, she presents a way to incorporate two different types of network information to improve performance. Cortez-Rodriguez concludes with some promising directions for future work.
This event is for: faculty, staff, students
Community Connections events provide opportunities for HMC faculty, students and staff to cultivate community, foster open conversations and share important information as together we live out our mission and shape the future of the College.
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“We don’t want to live in a society in turmoil. In the U.S., 93 percent of people want to reduce divisiveness, and 86 percent believe it’s possible to disagree in a healthy way. Yet with increasing political and social fragmentation, many of us don’t know how to move past our differences. Civil rights scholar john a. powell presents an actionable path through ‘bridging’ that helps us communicate, coexist and imagine a new story for our shared future where we all belong.” (description courtesy of Othering and Belonging Institute)
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In most situations, if you feel shaking or receive an earthquake alert, you should immediately:
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Cover your head and neck with one arm and hand. If a sturdy table or desk is nearby, crawl underneath for shelter. If no shelter is nearby, crawl next to an interior wall. Stay on your knees; bend over to protect vital organs.
Hold on until the shaking stops. If you’re under shelter, hold on to it with one hand and be ready to move with your shelter if it shifts. If you are not under shelter, cover your head and neck with both arms and hands.
For the purpose of this exercise, we encourage community members to practice these steps for one minute upon receiving the Mudd Alert notification. Thank you for your time and participation in this important emergency preparedness exercise.
“We don’t want to live in a society in turmoil. In the US, 93 percent of people want to reduce divisiveness, and 86 percent believe it’s possible to disagree in a healthy way. Yet with increasing political and social fragmentation, many of us don’t know how to move past our differences. Civil rights scholar john a. powell presents an actionable path through “bridging” that helps us communicate, coexist, and imagine a new story for our shared future where we all belong.” (taken from Othering and Belonging Institute)
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This learning community is for everyone, from those who are already experienced in community engagement to those who are curious about learning more about this high-impact educational practice. Faculty participants will discuss readings, meet with outside speakers, share ideas, and think collaboratively about implementing community engagement into the 5C students’ experience.
Welcome to HMC’s Community Conversations for the fall 2025.
HMC Community Conversations* use conversation guides with a structured format to help people with different viewpoints and experiences build understanding. There will be 3–5 other people in a table group. It is not a debate, and the goal is not to change one another’s opinions. There are Conversation Agreements like “Listen and Be Curious” and “Show Respect and Suspend Judgement” that create the framework for diving into the questions. The questions are designed to draw out our personal experiences rather than opinions around the topic.
The overall purpose is to learn more about the experiences others have around the topic and build a sense of community.
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Kickstart your career journey by joining us each week for the OCS career and professional development series! From expert panels to hands-on workshops and presentations, each session dives into a new topic designed to help you build skills and confidence for your future.
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“We don’t want to live in a society in turmoil. In the US, 93 percent of people want to reduce divisiveness, and 86 percent believe it’s possible to disagree in a healthy way. Yet with increasing political and social fragmentation, many of us don’t know how to move past our differences. Civil rights scholar john a. powell presents an actionable path through “bridging” that helps us communicate, coexist, and imagine a new story for our shared future where we all belong.” (taken from Othering and Belonging Institute)
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