This study was conducted the summer of 2021
Rutgers University–Camden has been selected as a finalist institution by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Driving Change (HHMI-DC) Initiative. Finalists are awarded $50,000 to partake in a self-study assessment of their diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) status within STEM. The results of the assessment form a major component of the institution’s final proposal towards a $2.5m award.
Summary
Seminars and speaker series are important departmental activities that bring students and faculty together as a learning community. They provide a forum to network with and learn from researchers from outside of the institution. External speakers also serve as examples of academic success and as such are role models to students. The Rutgers University–Camden Driving Change (RUC–DC) working group surveyed the departments of math, computer science, biology, chemistry, physics, and the Center for Computational and Integrative Biology (CCIB) to gather demographic data on the invited speakers in each seminar series. In some departments, seminars are long-standing programs with regular meetings. In other departments, seminars are a function of faculty searches and are more sporadic. The goal was to examine the diversity of speakers brought to campus and presented to our students.
Summary statistics*
| Total # of Speakers: 208 | ||||
| male | 150 | 72% | ||
| female | 59 | 28% | ||
| Black | 3 | 1% | ||
| LatinX | 3 | 1% | ||
| Hispanic | 3 | 1% | ||
| White | 135 | 65% | ||
| Asian | 49 | 24% | ||
| Unknown | 17 | 8% | ||
* CCIB has 10 yrs of speakers (n=125); most departments have 2-3 yrs of speaker data
Departmental Breakdown**
|
Dept |
Total |
Male |
Female |
Black |
LatinX |
Hispanic |
White |
Asian |
Unknown |
|
Bio (2018-21) |
39 |
64% |
38% |
3% |
5% |
0% |
79% |
10% |
5% |
|
CCIB (2012-21) |
125 |
74% |
26% |
0% |
0% |
1% |
64% |
25% |
10% |
|
Chem (2020-21) |
10 |
60% |
40% |
20% |
0% |
10% |
60% |
10% |
10% |
|
ComSci (2018-20) |
7 |
100% |
0% |
0% |
0% |
0% |
29% |
71% |
0% |
|
Math (2017-19) |
20 |
70% |
30% |
0% |
0% |
5% |
65% |
25% |
5% |
|
Phys (2017-21) |
7 |
71% |
29% |
0% |
14% |
0% |
43% |
43% |
0% |
**These identities were assessed visually from faculty pages and thus may not be accurate. Additionally, it was not possible to assess those from low SES, LGBTQ+, or other underrepresented backgrounds.
Results
The findings of this survey demonstrate that seminar speakers are overwhelmingly white and male. It is also noteworthy that departments are inconsistent in their level of effort to bring in external speakers. In three years, the Biology department brought in 39 speakers, while the Math department brought in almost half that (n=20).
Recommendations
The RUC-DC working group recommends that departments dedicate a concerted effort to increase the diversity of invited speakers and perhaps work together to ensure regular opportunities for students to experience and participate in speaker series by both inviting more researchers and by incorporating seminar attendance into course assignments.
Departments interested in diversifying their invited speakers but who require assistance are encouraged to reach out to the RUC-DC working group for advice and suggestions. Some sources of speakers include:
- Black in Neuro – https://www.blackinneuro.com/
- Black in Cardio – https://blackincardio.com/
- STEM Noir – https://www.stemnoire.org/
- Association of Women in Science – https://www.awis.org/
- 500 women scientists – https://500womenscientists.org/
- Nat’l Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists & Chemical Engineers – https://www.nobcche.org/home
The RUC-DC will continue to collect data on invited speakers to observe whether and how departments improve speaker diversity.