Academic Year 2022-2023
Results
A Renewed African American Festival 2022–23 (University Park) [PY2]
The PSU African American Music Festival celebrates the music of African Americans and representative composers. Occurring in February (Black History Month), it includes performances by faculty, students and guest artists. The festival was created by Dr. Tony Leach, the long-standing director of the Essence of Joy choir, featured at the conclusion of the Festival. The festival has grown to include African American instrumental music and composers, though programming has been impacted by remote instruction and the transition into Dr. Leach’s retirement. We wish to expand the current programming and increase the number of off-campus participants.
African American Studies Writing Retreat (University Park) [PY1]
The African American Studies Department will host a weekend writing retreat to provide advanced graduate students with the opportunity to workshop a seminar paper with the goal of publication. This program intends to assist graduate students researching Black Studies through the process of preparing their first article for publication in a peer-reviewed journal. Session topics will include: determining which journals to publish in, Q+A with a journal editor, and an opportunity to workshop a paper. The retreat will provide participants with valuable insight into the process of publishing in Black Studies, expand their networks, and offer an opportunity to develop a publishable article.
Brandywine Student (PAL-Peer Assistance & Leadership) Peer Mentoring Program (Brandywine) [PY2]
Brandywine’s Chancellor’s Commission on Empowering Women is continuing to establish a Student Peer Mentoring initiative aiming to assist first year students to understand college and student support resources. Overall goals include building learning support communities and a coalition of peer mentors who empower women, increasing retention for women, students who come from historically marginalized populations, and supporting investigation and certainty in students’ choice of major at the conclusion of their first year. Implementation utilizes the First Year Seminars (FYS) to reach students in their first year of college.
Celebrating Women in Energy and Water Research Seminar Series (University Park) [PY2]
In Fall 2021, EME launched a seminar series to celebrate women doing energy and water research. The objective of this program is twofold: (i) engage female students in research activities to enhance retention and promote academic and research-related careers; (ii) provide opportunities to women faculty to establish and nurture their professional network and mentoring relationships. The impacts of the project include (i) encouragement and inspiration to pursue research careers in energy, and (ii) faculty retention by creating experiences that decrease isolation and provide a means for networking. We seek support to continue the seminar series in AY2022-23.
DEI Book Club for Penn State Global Staff (University Park) [PY1]
We are looking to fund a book club specifically dedicated to books written by DEI authors about DEI topics to increase PSG staff's understanding of topics surrounding DEI. We will be following a monthly calendar and will be discussing different DEI topics every month. There will be a list of books to choose from that are offered from the Penn State libraries each month, and we will have a group discussion about the important takeaways from our reading at the end of each month.
Diverse Student Champion Program (Hershey) [PY2]
The health care field is a complicated and intricate landscape to traverse. Multiple studies have shown the highly successful navigators are those that had and continue to have mentorship along the way. This Diverse Student Champion Program will work to benefit students that identify as underrepresented in medicine (UiM) by pairing them with faculty and alumni mentors in their respective educational focus and diverse background. These mentors will provide guidance, support and knowledge as the students navigate the professional educational and health care world by fostering connections, interactions and a nurturing environment which will diversifying the healthcare workforce.
Establish the Brandywine Anti-Hate, Anti-Bias Council (Brandywine) [PY1]
This proposal focuses on the supportive work needed to establish a campus Anti-Hate, Anti-Bias Council comprised of a cross-section of students, staff, and faculty that considers and addresses incidents of racial and ethnic inequity. The creation of a council promises to improve the campus climate and increase student leadership around equity but presents numerous logistical and institutional challenges. This proposal seeks to involve necessary campus stakeholders in a period of intensive study and planning to produce two guidebooks that will lead to the establishment of the Council: an Anti-Hate, Anti- Bias Council Implementation Guide and an Anti-Hate, Anti-Bias Resource Guide.
Expanding the field: A pilot program for recruiting historically excluded groups to graduate school in Geography (University Park) [PY1]
We will develop and pilot a mentorship program to support underrepresented undergraduates in applying to graduate programs in Geography – at Penn State and beyond. Our program will directly remedy the historical exclusion of racially marginalized people, including Black, Latinx, and Indigenous, from the discipline. Specifically, we will bring racially underrepresented students from across the US to Penn State for a weeklong program guided by Department of Geography faculty from Penn State and other universities. Undergraduate participants will be mentored about the ‘hidden curriculum’ of successful graduate school applications and will learn about careers in Geography that require graduate degrees.
Finders’ keepers: Retaining and developing a community of leaders for women and historically underrepresented employees at Penn State University Libraries (University Park) [PY1]
Penn State University Libraries (PSUL) strives to honor its commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion as outlined in its strategic plan. Women and historically marginalized employees have been systematically underrepresented in leadership and managerial positions within academic libraries. Following the PSUL Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Commitment Statement, this proposed multifaceted program establishes both a speaker series and reading group discussions throughout 2022-2023. The outcomes of this program are to: (1) increase retention of intended participants, (2) develop leadership skills, and (3) increase the sense of community within the Libraries.
First in Family to Study Abroad (FIFSA) (University Park) [PY1]
Study Abroad programs help to develop global fluency, self-reliance, communication skills, intercultural competencies and many more skills employers and graduate schools are looking for in future professionals (NACE, 2018). The college of Ag Sciences has the highest number (25%) of first-generation students at Penn State. First Gen students are disproportionately underrepresented students of color and low income (Engle & Tinto, 2008). We look to provide a study abroad opportunity with a decreased cost to make gaining international experience more equitable and attainable and provide students with opportunity to gain the skills employers and grad schools seek in their students.
Gen 1 Equity Evaluation Program (Greater Allegheny) [PY1]
Penn State Greater Allegheny is requesting funding to create a Gen 1 Equity Evaluation Training Program informed by the work of McNair, Bensimon & Malcolm-Piqueux (2020). The program will train faculty and staff to become equity-minded evaluators that can identify and eradicate institutional structures, policies, and practices that perpetuate disparate outcomes for underserved and minoritized students. The focus of this program will not be on ‘fixing individual students, but instead will examine the sociostructural dynamics’ (Castro, 2013) that reinforces systemic inequity at the campus level, and then identify equity-centered interventions that produce more equitable educational outcomes.
Integrating Diversity, Equity & Inclusion into the Curriculum (IDEIC), Part II (Great Valley) [PY1]
Penn State Great Valley’s (PSGV) faculty, working with the Diversity Action Council (DAC), will begin a multi-year Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) program to increase awareness, community engagement, and knowledge sharing which will enable DEI integration across our professional graduate curricula. The proposal aims to take a comprehensive approach to DEI by fostering diversity discussions within our community. DEI advocates will participate in structured best practice interviews, recorded for use in synchronous or asynchronous curricular/co-curricular settings. Outcomes include building a DEI curricular map based on the video library, classroom facilitation guides, and case questions.
Men in Medicine (Hershey) [PY2]
Minorities have been a growing portion of the United States population for decades. However there continue to be specific populations that remain underrepresented in the field of medicine. Of those underrepresented in medicine (UiM), men constitute a smaller fraction, particularly black men with reducing numbers. Reaching these students at a young age makes a considerable impression and can greatly alter their potential careers. This program renewal will expand opportunities to expose junior high and high school students (of all genders) to the medical field through the eyes of minority men, increasing their desire to pursue medical careers.
Micro-Internship at Shaver’s Creek Environmental Center (University Park) [PY1]
The field of environmental education is experiencing a pedagogical transformation. Revisions to curriculum and professional conduct to reflect culturally relevant approaches are underway across nature centers in the U.S. And yet, entering the EE field often begins with an internship experience. Traditional internships may require long-distance travel and other cost-prohibitive obstacles. As such, a reshaping of internships to support underrepresented students in the EE profession through micro-internships is a necessary endeavor. In support and celebration of the field’s efforts to create an inclusive learning and professional experience for all, we strive to develop a long-lasting micro-internship program at Shaver’s Creek.
Minorities in Medicine Weekend Retreat (Hershey) [PY2]
Racial and ethnic representation in health care in the United States is far below the country’s demographic makeup. These groups identify as Black, Latinx, Hispanic, Native American, Alaskan Native, Native Hawaiian and are underrepresented in medicine (UiM). Penn State College of Medicine (COM) UiM students are well below national average. Current COM students and prior applicants who declined admission indicated on-site experiences are important to deciding to attend. However, UiM students often face major obstacles preventing their ability to visit. This year-long, ‘cohort’ style program aims to build upon ongoing efforts to increase representation of UiM students at the COM.
Parents and Families Guide: Spanish (University Park) [PY1]
Literature shares that college students benefit from engaged parents and family members (Kiyama and Harper, 2015). This is, in its most basic form, the goal of the Penn State Parents Program. But we are not meeting the needs of non-English-speaking families. Non-English-speaking families rely on their students to translate materials and explain University processes. A resource exists to support English-speaking families. The Parents and Families Guide is produced and shared with new families each year at New Student Orientation. In partnership with Penn State Global, we are planning to translate the guide into Mandarin and Spanish. Penn State Global will provide funding for the Mandarin version and will provide partial funding for the Spanish-language text. Therefore, we are looking for funding for the Spanish version. Providing support for our Spanish-speaking families will help these families learn about University resources and how to support their Penn State student. While this is a University Park-led effort, the translated content will be shared with all campuses.
Passport to Success for Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students workshop (University Park) [PY1]
The purpose of this orientation workshop is to provide guidance and support to Penn State College of Engineering first-year students from abroad with their transition to Penn State and life in the U.S. This workshop targets incoming international students who have either not attended school in the United States or have done so for a short period of time, and for U.S. citizens who have spent most of their lives abroad. This two-day annual workshop offered at the beginning of the fall semester is designed towards greater inclusion, integration, retention, and success of culturally and linguistically diverse engineering students by introducing them to campus resources as well as strategies for success throughout their cultural adjustment, social integration, and adaptation journey at Penn State.
Pathways to Penn State, Formerly Incarcerated College Awareness Pilot Program (University Park) [PY2]
Formerly incarcerated students are underrepresented in college, especially those from historically marginalized racial/ethnic and socioeconomic communities. The purpose of the Pathways program is to instill the belief that college, including Penn State, is a viable option for formerly incarcerated adult learners in Pennsylvania, and to provide tools to help make that option a reality. The program is part of a larger project to develop programming that supports the recruitment and retention of formerly incarcerated students at University Park and across the Commonwealth Campuses. The program was funded by EOPC this year, our pilot year. It will conclude this spring.
Postdoctoral Seminar Program in Chemistry (University Park) [PY1]
Maintaining a diverse faculty is a challenge that is endemic to academia. Our program is designed to broaden our pool of applicants by building relationships with 8-10 postdoctoral scholars from underrepresented groups (members of racial, ethnic, gender, and/or other minority groups). Program participants will: (1) meet with our faculty in one-on-one sessions and (2) give research talks to a technical audience, in formats that are comparable to an on-site interview. We will document and provide constructive feedback to each of the participants. These activities are intended to amplify the participants, potentially helping them to secure independent faculty positions.
Professional Development Series (Fayette, The Eberly Campus) [PY1]
The Penn State Fayette Inclusion Diversity Equity Alliance has a multilayered process to address racism and social justice issues. This process is designed to equip faculty and staff with knowledge and tools through professional development opportunities that are intended to build their capacity to challenge racial injustice, understand structural racism, and improve racial and cultural awareness. In addition, the professional development program intends to promote greater equity for historically underrepresented and underserved groups by creating a campus community that will be able to identify systems, processes, and procedures that adversely impact underrepresented and underserved faculty, staff, and students.
Professional Development Series (Greater Allegheny) [PY1]
The Penn State Greater Allegheny Taskforce on Racial Equity and Justice has a multilayered process to address racism and social justice issues. This process is designed to equip faculty and staff with knowledge and tools through professional development opportunities that are intended to build their capacity to challenge racial injustice, understand structural racism, and improve racial and cultural awareness. In addition, the professional development program intends to promote greater equity for historically underrepresented and underserved groups by creating a campus community that will be able to identify systems, processes, and procedures that adversely impact underrepresented and underserved faculty, staff, and students.
Professional Development Series (New Kensington) [PY1]
The Penn State New Kensington Anti-Racist Steering Committee has a multilayered process to address racism and social justice issues. This process is designed to equip faculty and staff with knowledge and tools through professional development opportunities that are intended to build their capacity to challenge racial injustice, understand structural racism, and improve racial and cultural awareness. In addition, the professional development program intends to promote greater equity for historically underrepresented and underserved groups by creating a campus community that will be able to identify systems, processes, and procedures that adversely impact underrepresented and underserved faculty, staff, and students.
Student Pathways to Undergraduate Research (SPUR): Facilitating undergraduate research experiences for traditionally excluded students (Altoona) [PY1]
Undergraduate research is a high-impact practice providing benefits for undergraduates (Carter et al., 2016), thereby increasing marketability for employment or graduate programs. These benefits are disproportionately realized by research students from traditionally underrepresented and marginalized groups (Stanford et al. 2017). At Altoona College, our data indicate that Black and Indigenous people of color (BIPOC), first-generation college students, or at the intersection of the two are disproportionately not represented in undergraduate research. Our program will broaden student representation by removing exclusionary practices restricting access to research opportunities, while enculturing students early into research to gain the most benefits from the experience.
Students Underrepresented Network of Interdisciplinary Training and Education (UNITE) Program (Hershey) [PY1]
The health care field requires support in the form infrastructure, mentorship and interpersonal networking. Studies have shown mentorship (formal, informal, hierarchal or peer-to-peer) increases the success of those mentored, with downstream benefits to their institution. Networking is part of that process and allows for building strong, long-term relationships. Students racially and ethnically underrepresented in medicine (UiM) have less structural support, peer mentoring and networking. This holds true at Penn State College of Medicine (COM). This program creates a structured environment for students to develop peer relationships, navigate their ecosystem and receive/give mentorship support, leading to academic success and institutional engagement.
Towards an Inclusive Research Ecosystem: Enriching Penn State Research with LGBTQ+ Undergraduate and Graduate Researchers (University Park) [PY2]
It is known that the quality of STEM research increases with the diversity of research groups. It is also well-documented that there are significant barriers to the participation, progress and retention of LGBTQ+ people in STEM research. The purpose of the proposed program is to improve Penn State research by fostering a climate that encourages participation by LGBTQ+ researchers. The program will develop an LGBTQ+ and ally STEM research community. The intent of the proposed program is to increase the number of LGBTQ+ trainees in STEM research groups, and to support and retain them in research training through graduation.