Who We Are
The Anti-Racism Alliance in the Sciences (ARAS) at Brandeis University was a collective of current and former Brandeis students working to promote a culture of inclusive excellence and advance structural changes toward diversity, equity, inclusion (DEI), justice and healthy workspaces in the Brandeis Science Division.
We are no longer active at Brandeis but are happy to share our resources. Reach out to antiracism.aras.deis@gmail.com for more information.
Mission Statement
We are a coalition of former and current students working to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion in the sciences at Brandeis. It is clear from the lived experiences of students and institutional reports (e.g. 2018 Campus Climate Report, All Together Separate: Race, Ethnicity, and Religion on the Brandeis Campus) that racism and other forms of marginalization limit the success and belonging of graduate and undergraduate students of color, as well as other underrepresented students, in the STEM departments and elsewhere at Brandeis. BIPOC students routinely experience manifestations of bias that hinder their development as scientists and scholars, requiring time and significant mental/emotional labor to overcome. Our overarching goal is to catalyze culture change that will accord dignity, respect, and healthy workspaces to all students and trainees who work and learn in the Division of Science. We advocate for diverse and equitable practices that will not only increase access for, but enhance retention of, BIPOC students within the Division.
Our current action items include the following:
Working with the Center For Teaching and Learning and the Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion to improve Teaching Assistant training.
Providing extensive documentation of initiatives, incidents, and ongoing issues surrounding DEIJ at Brandeis, to act as a reliable repository of institutional memory.
Collaborating with the office of the Chief Diversity Officer and the Dean of GSAS to provide continuing feedback on anti-racist plans implemented in the Division.
Meeting with faculty, departmental and divisional leadership, GSAS administration, ODEI, and other offices to highlight issues in the Division of Science and work towards solutions.
Drawing continued attention to injustices through awareness campaigns via our social media outlets and elsewhere.
Updating and educating the larger Brandeis community about our work in op-ed contributions to the Justice.
Promoting the adoption of a Code of Conduct by individual research groups.
Engaging in activism to support Black students at Brandeis as outlined in the Black Action Plan.
Last updated March 30th, 2024