ADVANCE Catalyst: Truman College ADVANCE Catalyst Participatory Action Research- Building a sense of "voice" among STEM faculty

City Colleges Of Chicago Harry S Truman College, Chicago IL

Investigators

Abstract

This project will focus on faculty in STEM departments compared to non-STEM departments and uncover any persistent negative perceptions of historically marginalized groups, especially in the STEM departments. The project will examine which female-identifying STEM faculty feel they have a voice in their departments and research the significance of those perceptions in the context of protected classes (e.g., race, religion) and positions in the institution. The project seeks to answer who feels unheard, why that might be the case, and how intersectional identities impact those experiences. This work is important to Harry S Truman College because the college has been deeply engaged in equity work since 2017, but the focus has always been on the student experience. This has left little room for curiosity about faculty experience. And while Harry S. Truman College offers the perspective of an already ethnically diverse college, it nevertheless struggles with persistent and systematic inequity. Additionally, the project will consider which interventions are most likely to increase a sense of belonging or voice and pilot interventions as part of a 5-year STEM Faculty Equity Plan. Using a combination of focus groups, individual interviews, and a survey, the project will answer three questions: 1) who are the faculty that report feeling unheard, and why is this the case; 2) how do intersectional identities impact their experiences on campus; and 3) what immediate interventions could be piloted to increase sense of voice and belonging? The project will use a mixed methods research approach to prepare a foundational and intersectional report on faculty sense of belonging and voice. The findings will propel future investigation into faculty inequities, known barriers, and promising interventions. Harry S. Truman College wants to uncover any significant disruption between the sense of belonging and voice of faculty in traditionally privileged identities (i.e., white, male) and female-identifying faculty intersected with additional underrepresented identities (e.g., race, national origin, tenure status, etc.). The high-level objectives for this project are to uncover critical inequities and address them with an intersectional lens. The project will create artifacts for easy sharing of information within the higher education community and the ADVANCE network, including a diversity of identities among faculty. The project will privilege experiences in STEM teaching that have traditionally been excluded and build power on the margins by inviting these individuals to lead research and pilot interventions. The NSF ADVANCE program is designed to foster gender equity through a focus on the identification and elimination of organizational barriers that impede the full participation and advancement of diverse faculty in academic institutions. Organizational barriers that inhibit equity may exist in policies, processes, practices, and the organizational culture and climate. ADVANCE "Catalyst" awards provide 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.