A biology professor at Connecticut College is leading a team of 10 educators and students exploring ways to address under-representation of Black, Hispanic and Indigenous students in science, technology, math and engineering education, thanks to a $55,000, one-year grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.
According to a 2021 report from Pew Research Center, Black people earned 7% of STEM bachelor’s degrees in 2018 while making up about 13% of the U.S. population, and Hispanic workers represented 8% of the STEM workforce compared to 17% of the overall workforce. That’s despite research showing that Black and Latino students enter STEM programs at the same rate as white students.
Professor Mays Imad said diversity in STEM is important “not just so we can say, ‘Look we have x number of…’” but because “those different perspectives and different histories” can help us dig deeper into societal problems, such as the climate crisis, the pandemic and poverty.
Imad emphasized that the grant is not for another diversity, equity and inclusion program that looks at what to do about programs, but to instead prevent gaps by addressing their roots.
She’ll be working with people from Connecticut College and from other parts of the country, including STEM faculty, leaders of higher education institutions, and students, and including people with experience in teaching, administration, counseling, policy and community advocacy.
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