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Moderator: Thomas Kling, Bridgewater State University
Jacob H. Olshansky, Amherst College
Alberto Lopez, Amherst College
Ji Chung, Amherst College
Alison Poussaint, Amherst College
In August of 2020, Amherst College announced Amherst’s anti-racism plan, aiming to “shape an academic community in which all students, faculty, and staff can succeed and thrive.” The Chemistry Anti-Racist Action Committee (CARAC) was formed in summer 2020 to create space for student and faculty conversations about anti-racist and inclusive practices in Chemistry. Since then, CARAC has been a liaison between students, the broader Amherst community, and the department on topics ranging from introductory course material to ways of supporting students outside of the classroom. The committee played a vital role in designing a new diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) requirement being added to the Chemistry department’s major requirements, and we also created a precedent for dedicating one of the weekly Chemistry seminars to discussions about DEI and a separate space for weekly open discussions. A significant part of the group's efforts have shown the importance of collaboration between students and faculty members, and the Chemistry department’s commitment to gathering broader community input. The events hosted by CARAC have gained positive student feedback, as evidenced by anonymous surveys in which participants express a desire for more discussion around diversity, equity, inclusion, and anti-racism in chemistry settings as well as unprompted feedback on the value of community-based CARAC events.
Jamie Kern, Bridgewater State University
Alex Whitman, Bridgewater State University
Thomas P. Kling, Bridgewater State University
The Physics Department at Bridgewater State University (BSU) consists of 60 students, 10 full-time faculty and staff, and numerous part-time faculty. The department’s Inclusion, Diversity Equity Alliance Team, associated with the American Physical Society IDEA program, set out to learn more about its culture through collecting stories from all department stakeholders. After an initial story collection, the BSU APS IDEA Team worked with University’s Vice President of Diversity and Student Success to bring in external moderators and facilitate a student discussion of themes drawn from the stories. The department has continued to collect stories through a website that is made publicly accessible through QR codes on flyers posted throughout the department. The hope is that these flyers, which state values and expectations as well as providing a means for feedback, will contribute to a broader effort to create a more inclusive and equitable environment.
Meline Kevorkin, NovaSoutheastern University
Greg Simco, NovaSoutheastern University
This brief presentation will share the benefits of a Talented Hispanic & Black NSU STEM Student Sounding Board, a strategy group representing the student voice. The Board had two primary functions: (1) meeting quarterly to provide the college administration with feedback on curriculum and instruction (e.g., content relevance from the perspective of today’s diverse college student), and suggesting new/updated co-curricular activities and wrap-around services; and (2) serving as outreach ambassadors/role models for potential and current STEM undergraduates. These student Board members coordinate with faculty and staff to develop their own creative research-informed ideas on how to engage with targeted students in-person, or via social media platforms (e.g., Twitter, Instagram, Tik Tok). This was designed to be responsive to the socioeconomic needs and priorities of Black & Hispanic youth and college students informed by sources such as information developed by students serving as advocates leading choice-focused talks and workshops helping college-bound underrepresented minority students navigate the high school to college journey. This covers both academic and non-academic matters, encouraging students to complete specific actions based on time frame (e.g., registering for classes, signing up for scheduled project activities), and referring students to academic support services (e.g., tutoring, writing support). Without being overly intrusive, this also helped to “nudge” students who may be experiencing any mental health/wellness/personal issues impacting their studies, referring them to internal and external resources and services (e.g., stress counseling, healthy eating/sleeping habits, physical exercise, eye strain due to excessive screen time, community financial and wellness resources).
Karen Lange, Wellesley College
Ann Trenk, Wellesley College
At Wellesley College, students are serving as Inclusive Excellence Student Advisors in STEM departments. In these paid roles*, the Student Advisors collaborate with faculty liaisons (and each other) to develop initiatives that enhance inclusion at the department/program level. We describe our collaboration with the Math Department Student Advisors and reflect on the advantages and further potential of this model. Our Student Advisors worked with us to develop a climate survey of students in core introductory math/stat courses in 2020-2021. They took the lead on administering the survey and analyzing the results. This year the Student Advisors coordinated student feedback during our faculty hiring process, and they have served as a sounding board for other issues. Having Student Advisors in place enables our department to solicit student views more efficiently and consistently, gives students a place to go if they have concerns or ideas, and sends all students the message that the department is open to feedback and values diversity and equity. The information gathered has been valuable for developing faculty understanding of student experiences and perspectives. This understanding, in turn, allows the department to take more effective action towards equity and inclusion. *These Student Advisor positions are funded by a grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.