Workshop on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Held on March 26, 2021

Workshop Mission and Vision Statement

The goal of our workshop is to collaborate towards building a welcoming and inclusive environment within the Society for Mathematical Biology (SMB) and scientific community more broadly.

We recognize that structural barriers have and continue to limit voices within our field based on race, gender identity or expression, disability status, sexual orientation, and immigration status among others. These barriers marginalize individuals at all educational and career stages.

We invite our community to join us as we engage in a critical reflection of our practices in order to cultivate a culture in which all voices are heard, valued and validated. Together, by sharing stories and identifying concrete actions, we can make space for everyone.

Recorded Talks and Other Resources from the Workshop

Keynote Address

Critical Transitions: Redefining Your Scope of Work for Equity and Inclusion in STEM

Dr. Pamela Harris | Associate Professor in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at Williams College

Dr. Aris Winger | Assistant Professor of Mathematics at Georgia Gwinnett College

Harris_Winger_slides.pdf
SMB_DEI_Keynote.mp4

Invited Talks

NSF Can Transform Lives: My Story and Broadening Participation to Advance STEM

Dr. Erika Tatiana Camacho | NSF HSI Program Co-Lead, NSF ADVANCE Program Director, Professor in the Department of Applied Mathematics, Arizona State University

SMB_DEI_Workshop_Camacho.mp4
Camacho_slides.pdf

Cal-Bridge: Overcoming Barriers to Engagement of Underrepresented Students in STEM PhD Programs

Dr. Alexander Rudolph | Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona and Director, Cal-Bridge

SMB_DEI_Workshop_Rudolph.mp4
Rudolph_slides.pdf

Constructing Queer Subspaces in Math

Dr. Alexander Hoover | Assistant Professor in the Department of Mathematics, The University of Akron

SMB_DEI_Workshop_Hoover.mp4
Hoover_slides.pdf

Postsecondary Education Program for Students with Disabilities in STEM

Dr. Overtoun Jenda | Assistant Provost and Professor of Mathematics, Auburn University

SMB_DEI_Workshop_Jenda.mp4
Overtoun_slides.pdf

Increasing the Rate of Change

Dr. Candice Price | Assistant Professor in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Smith College

SMB_DEI_Workshop_Price.mp4

Breakout Sessions

Inclusive Pedagogy

Moderators:

  • Dr. Mario Bañuelos | Assistant Professor of Mathematics, California State University, Fresno

  • Dr. Reginald 'RB' McGee | Assistant Professor in the Mathematics/Computer Science Department, College of the Holy Cross

Recruitment, Hiring and Retention of Diverse Faculty

Moderators:

  • Dr. Marcella Gomez | Assistant Professor of Applied Mathematics, University of California Santa Cruz

  • Dr. Suzanne Sindi | Associate Professor of Applied Mathematics, University of California Merced

Disability and Accommodation

Moderators:

  • Dr. Overtoun Jenda | Assistant Provost and Professor of Mathematics at Auburn University

  • Dr. Suzanne Lenhart | Chancellor’s Professor of Mathematics and Cox Professor, Mathematics Department, University of Tennessee Knoxville

Underrepresented Genders in Mathematical Biology

Moderators:

  • Dr. Stacey Smith? | Professor in the Department of Mathematics and Faculty of Medicine, The University of Ottawa

  • Dr. Rebecca Tyson | Professor of Mathematical Biology, University of British Columbia, Okanagan

Diversity in Graduate Admissions

Moderators:

  • Dr. Ashlee Ford Versypt | Associate Professor in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University at Buffalo

  • Dr. Alexander Rudolph | Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona and Director, Cal-Bridge

General Discussion and Reflection

Moderators:

  • Dr. Mikahl Banwarth-Kuhn | Postdoctoral Scholar in Applied Mathematics, University of California, Merced

  • Dr. Roeland Merks | Professor of Multiscale Mathematical Biology at the Mathematical Institute and the Institute for Biology, Leiden University.

  • Dr. Elissa Schwartz | Associate Professor in the School of Biological Sciences and Department of Mathematics & Statistics, Washington State University


Closing Remarks

SMB_DEI_Workshop_ClosingRemarks.mp4

Outcomes of the Workshop

White Paper to appear soon!

Workshop organizers and Breakout Session Facilitators are working on a conference White Paper that will contain not only a record of the Workshop itself (including all content and references mentioned in the talks) but specific calls to action and recommendations for further activities by the SMB.

Workshop Organizing Committee

Mark Alber | University of California, Riverside

Paul Atzberger | University of California, Santa Barbara

Mikahl Banwarth-Kuhn (Co-Chair) | University of California, Merced

Mario Banuelos (Co-Chair) | California State University, Fresno

Weitao Chen | University of California, Riverside

Erika Rutter | University of California, Merced

Stacey Deleria Finley | University of Southern California

Marcella Gomez | University of California, Santa Cruz

Elissa Schwartz | Washington State University

Suzanne Sindi (Co-Chair) | University of California, Merced

Stacey Smith? | The University of Ottawa

Roya Zandi | University of California, Riverside

Lihong Zhao | University of California, Merced