Please provide a brief background and/or context of the setting in which you plan to implement a new strategy or strategies to nurture equitable opportunities for student success.

PSYC 603 syllabus excerpt: A core part of your experience in this class will involve participation in a major team service project for the Chico Children’s Museum (CCM). The CCM is a local non-profit in downtown Chico that serves children and their families whose slogan is #LearnConnectPlay. Teams are required to research their service topic in the context of developmental science, children’s museums, and non-profits. Teams will be self-selected and consist of 3 individuals from PSYC 603. This will involve a time commitment outside of class and off campus— at least 15 hours collectively (~5 hours per individual in group) spread over the term. If you cannot make such a commitment, do not take this class. There is no alternative way to complete this assignment. All projects will become intellectual property of the CCM.

The objective of this assignment is to promote your professional development by using your educational background in developmental psychology to serve your community. We will visit the CCM during a class period to orient you to the space and assist in generating ideas for a potential service project. Teams will be given a range of service topics to choose from (e.g., design/modify an existing exhibit to be more equitable or inclusive; develop curriculum to explain developmental benefits of an exhibit to be used by K - 12 teachers; develop advertisement to use exhibit as a therapeutic space; museum research/evaluation; develop programming with community partners; adult team building). If a group has another idea, I am open to discussing it with you all to see if it will meet the objectives of this assignment for the course. All projects must have a DEI component.

What resources, policies, and co-conspirators do you believe are already available to support your plan?

• Ann Schulte – background in community partnerships

• SRCD Anti-Racism Task force (of which I am a member) - DEI initiatives

What challenges do you anticipate?

• Meeting students at their level of awareness of DEI initiatives and bringing all students to a similar level of understanding

• Having students think critically about how DEI initiatives are actually implemented in practice

• Developing DEI portion of rubric.

I am happy to share my materials with interested parties.

• Check in points throughout the semester will help articulate to me how well students are grasping DEI concepts and how they are implemented

• Grading final projects