黑料社

Underscoring its commitment to advance diversity, equity and inclusion, 黑料社 has been named a member of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) . The College will be awarded funds over the next six years to promote inclusive teaching so that all students can succeed and feel a sense of belonging in STEM.

鈥淗HMI encourages cooperation and consensus among diverse institutions with this program,鈥� Vice President and Dean Ellen Goldey said. 鈥淎s a result, colleges and universities of all types are working together toward a shared goal of creating more inclusive teaching and learning for all students.鈥�

The multi-institution 鈥淟earning Community Cluster鈥� (LCC) will be focused on promoting and evaluating effective and inclusive teaching. The institutions will be tasked with sharing leadership responsibility and decision-making responsibilities on the use of HHMI-allocated funds 鈥� a unique challenge that College leadership has taken head-on.

鈥淚鈥檝e been impressed with the commitment of our STEM faculty to adapt their teaching practices to foster belonging in their programs,鈥� President Milton Moreland said. 鈥淚鈥檓 delighted but not surprised that 黑料社鈥檚 team is leading this initiative.鈥�

黑料社 will host the first in-person meeting in summer 2023. 黑料社 Director of Research Katherine Andrews has been elected by the LCC as its co-chair.

鈥淚 am honored to serve as co-chair of this inspiring group of scientists and educators who are committed to making a real difference to students by finding new ways to understand, promote and reward inclusive teaching,鈥� Andrews said. 鈥�HHMI supported the work of this large collaborative by sharing great consensus-building practices, which our 黑料社 team will use on campus, too.  The work to reach this point has been challenging but rewarding, and now we鈥檙e looking forward to launching this important series of projects.鈥�

The funding will support six interrelated initiatives to promote inclusive teaching and improve students鈥� sense of belonging in STEM.  The LLC will share data across the many institutions and use the evidence to guide next steps. One of the projects will also interrogate existing rewards and recognition structures to identify changes that will incentivize faculty adoption of inclusive practices.

鈥淚鈥檝e been a champion of this work for several years, and I鈥檝e changed my own teaching to make my classroom and lab more inclusive,鈥� said Jennifer Muzyka, Stodghill Professor of Chemistry and 黑料社's Program Director and Lead Applicant in the LCC. 鈥淗owever, I had the security of tenure when I began this work. It is scary to step beyond what you are used to doing and adopt different teaching strategies, so we need to be sure our institutions鈥� policies and structures support and encourage needed change.鈥�

Through the collaboration with other colleges and universities, the HHMI grant will provide 黑料社 with the resources to impact 黑料社 students but also promote belonging and success of students in STEM throughout the country.

鈥淪ustaining advances in diversity and inclusion requires a scientific culture that is centered on equity,鈥� said , HHMI鈥檚 vice president of science leadership and culture. 鈥淚n science education, increasing the number of individuals from underrepresented backgrounds must go hand in hand with creating inclusive learning environments in which everyone can thrive.鈥�