Impact: Redfining Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty (iREDEFINE ECE); March 2020, Orlando, FL

Electrical And Computer Engineering Department Heads Association, Chicago IL

Investigators

Abstract

Despite many efforts to increase diversity among electrical and computer engineering (ECE) faculty, the number of women and underrepresented minorities on ECE faculty remains alarmingly low. In ECE programs, women compose only 14.3% and 19.6% of tenured and tenure-track faculty positions, respectively, which is consistent with their low representation (17.4%) in all engineering tenured/tenure-track positions in the U.S. The percentage of Black or African American faculty in electrical and computer engineering is only 2.0% and 3.1%, respectively. Similarly, only 2.5% of electrical engineering faculty and 2.9% of computer engineering faculty are Hispanic. Research shows that an effective strategy to retain underrepresented groups in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) is to provide role models and mentors. Thus, the lack of faculty role models is a major contributing factor to the low representation of women and minority students in ECE programs, which further perpetuates the cycle of underrepresentation. “Impact: Redefining Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty” (iREDEFINE ECE) is the expansion of an initiative designed to increase the numbers of such role models for women and underrepresented minorities in ECE programs through in-person workshops and year-round online mentoring activities. Surveys of past iREDEFINE participants verify the efficacy of the workshop approach and support the need for expansion to include year-round activities. In addition to providing operational support for iREDEFINE activities, this grant makes the in-person workshops accessible to students from institutions that may not have the financial resources to support the travel of their PhD students. The goal of the iREDEFINE program is to motivate and prepare PhD women and underrepresented minority students to pursue ECE faculty positions in US universities. The initiative consists of: 1) a workshop for women and underrepresented minority graduate ECE students at an annual meeting of the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department Heads Association (ECEDHA); 2) mini workshops at regional ECEDHA meetings; 3) a year-round online mentoring program; and 4) a database of iREDEFINE participants managed by ECEDHA and open to department heads and chairs to facilitate faculty recruitment from underrepresented groups. Extending the workshop to two days, adding workshops at regional conferences, implementing four structured virtual mentoring meetings, and introducing online communities increases the range of opportunities for iREDEFINE Scholars to interact and build a stronger rapport with ECE department heads, industry leaders, and their peers, equipping them with a broad and diverse professional network. By directly impacting 32 women and underrepresented minority participants, this project will help to increase the number of diverse students applying for academic positions in ECE departments and prepare them for successful academic careers. Furthermore, by connecting the students with role models who are academic leaders, participating in iREDEFINE catalyzes an interest in academic administration among iREDEFINE Scholars who will then become role models for the next generation of women and underrepresented minority ECE students. Finally, in addition to supporting participating students in their pursuit of academic careers, these activities also advance the knowledge on successful strategies to broaden the participation of women and underrepresented minorities in the ECE professoriate. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.