Development of the Broadening Equity in STEM Center (BE STEM Center)

Abstract

Pitt’s Broadening Equity in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math Center (BE STEM Center) is a newly created unit in the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences’ Office of Undergraduate Studies. Faculty and staff from several academic and administrative units comprise the center’s multidisciplinary collaborative team, leveraging academic and professional expertise centered around broadening equity work. The center’s mission is to increase diversity in Pitt’s STEM programs by serving as a hub interconnecting like-minded but siloed efforts and providing programs with relevant organizational support. This proposal focuses on developing the communication and dissemination infrastructure of this newly established center.

The BE STEM Center has been featured in the following news articles: 

$10M Pitt grant to address enrollment gap in STEM fields 
Pitt gets $10 million from NSF to address equity in STEM 
Pitt receives $10 million to boost racial and ethnic diversity in STEM 
University of Pittsburgh Receives $10 Million Grant For STEM Diversity Project 
10 most popular stories from Bite Sized in 2019
BE STEM Center gets federal grant to boost diversity in STEM higher education  
Dietrich School Faculty Member is CO-PI for $10 Million Federal Grant to Boost Racial and Ethnic Diversity in STEM Higher Education 
NSF INCLUDES Alliance: STEM PUSH (Pathways for Underrepresented Students to Higher Education) Network 

Project Lead

Alison Legg
Co-Project Lead
Biological Sciences

Alaine Allen
Co-Project Lead
Swanson School of Engineering

Lori Delale-O'Connor
Co-Project Lead
Center for Urban Education

Jennifer Iriti
Co-Project Lead
LRDC

David Boone 
Co-Project Lead
Biomedical Informatics, SOM

Becky Gonda
Co-Project Lead
Biological Sciences

Mackenzie Ball
Co-Project Lead
School of Computing and Information

Select Collaborators

Courtney Long
Team Member
LRDC