Diversity Statement | Department of Chemistry

Diversity

Bridging Science and Diversity Website

Explore the BSD website for support, resouces about diversity, equity, and inclusion, the action plan for enhancing diversity in the department, and information on how to participate in BDS activities.

Diversity Statement

The Chemistry Department at Stony Brook University (SBU) is committed to providing a safe and productive environment to all members of its community. Diversity, equity, and inclusion play a crucial role in making this possible. A diverse community allows for greater breadth of experiences and perspectives, both of which often lead to greater knowledge and understanding. An equitable environment aims to nullify systemic disadvantages and ensure fair treatment and equality of opportunity for all. Inclusion efforts create a feeling of belonging by actively inviting the contribution and participation of all people in our community. The American Chemical Society (ACS) recognizes the importance of diversity and inclusion, and their Chemist’s Code of Conduct calls on chemical professionals to treat others with respect, not engage in discrimination, and be mindful of implicit bias and unconscious bias. Thus, at SBU, we continually aim to foster an environment that respects and understands differences in race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, economic status, and other circumstances.

Although we acknowledge that much work remains in creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment, we have taken concrete, substantial steps towards this goal. Our faculty members have a long history of promoting diversity in the chemical sciences at the national level, ranging from participating in the Open Chemistry Collaborative in Diversity Equity (OXIDE), advising on NSF/AAAS recommendations for gender equity in nanoscience, leading committees such as Women in Chemical Engineering (WIC) of the AIChE, fundraising for programming and scholarships to support underrepresented students, nominating underrepresented groups for professional awards, and designing workshops to support professional development and success of a diverse workforce in the chemical sciences. On campus, Chemistry faculty have worked with others to advocate for lactation rooms, all-gender restrooms, mechanisms to increase the number of underrepresented faculty, and the consideration of diversity, equity, and inclusion activities in tenure review, in support of a more inclusive campus environment. The Chemistry department has also led grants that include diversifying the PhD student population as part of their mission. These include a Department of Education GAANN, the NIH Chemistry-Biology Training Program (CBTP), and the NSF Research Traineeship (NRT) on materials. Additionally, we have hosted Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) programs that have increased the number of underrepresented minority students and deaf and hard-of-hearing students participating in Chemistry research. The Chemistry department is also an ACS Bridge Partner Site; the ACS Bridge Program aims to increase the number of URM students pursuing PhDs in the chemical sciences. Members of our community, including staff, students, and professors, have attended and recruited at conferences with a specific focus on underrepresented groups in science. Such conferences include NDEW, SACNAS, ABRCMS, and NOBCChE. Faculty have been research advisors to students and postdoctoral scholars in Center for Inclusive Education (CIE) led programs, such as IRACDA and the Dr. W. Burghardt Turner Fellowship. Several of our professors have also reviewed applications for these programs as well as IMSD-MERGE. These efforts have materialized through the presence of a more diverse student body, and a number of fellowships granted to Chemistry graduate students who are also part of the CIE community. Additional work is being done by research groups within the Chemistry department to explore alternative learning environments, an effort to make sure that no undergraduate students get left behind regardless of their previous educational preparation. The department has also created Bridging Science and Diversity: An Anti-Discrimination Action Committee (BSD), a permanent committee comprised of graduate students, faculty, and staff. BSD’s mission statement and work-to-date can be found here (link).

Our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion reflects the university’s own mission to celebrate diversity while also providing education of the highest quality and carrying out research of the highest international standards. Our success as a department is not only visible in the high-caliber research that we conduct, but in the diverse, inclusive, and respectful environment that we create for all our undergraduate students, graduate students, staff, lecturers, post doctorates, professors, and other members of our community.

Diversity Action Plan

Action Plan for increasing equity, diversity and inclusion.

Improving diversity within the faculty. Faculty diversity is a major focus within the department. Recently, we have applied to the NIH Faculty Institutional Recruitment for Sustainable Transformation (FIRST) Program (https://www.commonfund.nih.gov/first), which will provide direct funding to enhance diversity within the biomedical sciences. This effort is complemented by the Stony Brook University IDEAS Fellowship, which is focused on recruiting talented URM postdoctoral fellows and empowering them to transition to faculty positions within the University. In addition, all Chemistry Department faculty hiring will require a diversity statement, which will enable us to identify high quality candidates that will build departmental diversity.

Enhance the quality of our graduate program by increasing student diversity. Our department has a number of training programs that include components focused on increasing the diversity and excellence of our graduate students (Chemical Biology Training Program, REU, NSF Quantitative Materials NRT Training Program). We are also an ACS Bridge Program Partner site, which aims to increase the number of URM students pursuing PhDs in the chemical sciences. We will continue to work closely with the Center for Inclusive Education to recruit talented URM students. This includes supporting on-campus events, travel to URM focused conferences (ABRCMS, OXIDE, SACNAS, NOBCChE) and URM focused events at ACS conferences.

Improve quality of education for underrepresented minority students. In a recent study, the nature of STEM courses can have a “knock-on effect” particularly for first generation students. First generation students experience imposter syndrome 2-3 times more than continuing generations. By encouraging participation in mentorship programs, such as the Community of Student Mentors (CSM) offered by the CIE, the WiSE mentorship program, and our own professional mentorship program, we can provide an outlet for URM students to discuss their concerns and have resources that will help reduce barriers for students. To inspire and affirm our graduate students’ experiences, we have also invited a diverse roster of seminar speakers who participate in an informal discussion with students about the speaker’s career path, challenges, and triumphs. In addition, we host Coffee Break with a Scientist, where students can talk to diverse scientists in an informal setting.

Working closely with the Equal Opportunity Program (EOP), we also encourage incoming undergraduate students to participate in science-related courses and give them the tools necessary to thrive in STEM fields. Our undergraduate chemistry program focuses on student learning outcomes through the POGIL program in General Chemistry. Research is being conducted in the department to determine ways to improve performance and outcomes for at-risk students. Our department strongly encourages undergraduate research both during the semester and through internship programs, such as NSF REUs.

Supporting future leaders in STEM. The Chemistry department recognizes that postdoctoral scholars represent the next generation of scientists and academics, thus we commit to training and supporting our scholars for their future careers. We continue to work with the Center for Inclusive Education to support career development for diverse applicants through programs such as the NIH funded Institutional Research and Academic Career Development Awards (IRACDA)-NY Consortium for the Advancement of Postdoctoral Scholars (CAPS). We commit to promoting career development opportunities for our postdoctoral scholars provided on campus, through professional organizations, and through faculty connections.

Facilitate transition of underrepresented minority women (URMW) to the scientific workplace. There are several ways that the chemistry department facilitates transition to postgraduate opportunities. In the past none of those mechanisms focused specifically on URMW, which is a significant problem. In 2007, URMW earned 8% of PhD in STEM fields but only comprised ~ 2% of Faculty. Recently our department obtained funding from the university to support URMW transitioning to their post-graduate careers. The funding will enable the creation of a professional mentorship program featuring a series of workshops and community building exercises designed to promote persistence, familiarize participants with the various STEM career paths, and prepare participants to successfully enter careers in STEM fields.

If you are interested in getting involved with our department's continual efforts in Diverstiy and Inclusion, please contact our Graduate Program Director, Dr. Isaac Carrico.