Research Mentoring to Advance Inclusivity in STEM
This mentoring professional development program was offered from 2018-2020.
Leaders: Colleen Webb, Jennifer Neuwald, and Meena Balgopal
https://rmais.colostate.edu/
ECOL 592: Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) in Ecology
Instructor: Meena Balgopal (with support from Dani Lin Hunter and Emily Stuchiner, GDPE grad students)
Offered: Fall 2020
Course Description: Issues of diversity, equity, and inclusivity issues are well-documented across STEM disciplines but are only recently being uncovered within ecology. Although the field of the community of ecologists is changing, there are still disparities, which are being discussed in research papers, blogs, and commentaries. Some minoritized groups have almost no representation in ecology (e.g., those who identify as Black, and Latinx, or with physical disabilities). Furthermore, representation in ecology does not preclude bias (e.g., women). In this class, we will read about, and discuss, the following topics: 1) what is stereotype threat; 2) who is and isn’t represented in ecology; 3) why some groups are not represented in ecology (from the perspective of recruitment, retention, and persistence); and 4) how can and whose responsibility it is to diversify ecology; and 4) strategies for inclusive mentoring, inclusive pedagogy, and inclusive public engagement. Students will be asked to reflect on a vexation (based on their own experiences and observations, readings, and class discussions) and to develop a venture (action plans using whatever form of expression they prefer: blog, written, poetry, visual arts, digital media, formal presentation, interpretative arts, etc.) to increase diversity, equity, and inclusivity in ecology.
This mentoring professional development program was offered from 2018-2020.
Leaders: Colleen Webb, Jennifer Neuwald, and Meena Balgopal
https://rmais.colostate.edu/
ECOL 592: Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) in Ecology
Instructor: Meena Balgopal (with support from Dani Lin Hunter and Emily Stuchiner, GDPE grad students)
Offered: Fall 2020
Course Description: Issues of diversity, equity, and inclusivity issues are well-documented across STEM disciplines but are only recently being uncovered within ecology. Although the field of the community of ecologists is changing, there are still disparities, which are being discussed in research papers, blogs, and commentaries. Some minoritized groups have almost no representation in ecology (e.g., those who identify as Black, and Latinx, or with physical disabilities). Furthermore, representation in ecology does not preclude bias (e.g., women). In this class, we will read about, and discuss, the following topics: 1) what is stereotype threat; 2) who is and isn’t represented in ecology; 3) why some groups are not represented in ecology (from the perspective of recruitment, retention, and persistence); and 4) how can and whose responsibility it is to diversify ecology; and 4) strategies for inclusive mentoring, inclusive pedagogy, and inclusive public engagement. Students will be asked to reflect on a vexation (based on their own experiences and observations, readings, and class discussions) and to develop a venture (action plans using whatever form of expression they prefer: blog, written, poetry, visual arts, digital media, formal presentation, interpretative arts, etc.) to increase diversity, equity, and inclusivity in ecology.