Contact:
Ashley Garcia
Marketing and Communications Manager, garcia@equityinstem.org
WASHINGTON DC, August 11, 2021 – The leading champion in North America to propel the inclusion of women in the field of engineering, the Women in Engineering ProActive Network (WEPAN) announces Dawn Culpepper, PhD; Rodica Lisnic, PhD; and Rachele Hendricks-Sturrup, DHSc as Virtual Visiting Scholars (VVS) for the ADVANCE Resource and Coordination (ARC) Network.
Funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) ADVANCE Program, Awards HRD-2121468 and HRD-1740860, the ARC Network seeks to achieve gender equity for faculty in higher education science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. As the STEM equity brain trust, the ARC Network recognizes the achievements made so far while producing new perspectives, methods and interventions with an intersectional, intentional and inclusive lens. WEPAN serves as the backbone organization of the ARC Network.
The Virtual Visiting Scholars program provides a unique opportunity for select scholars across disciplines to pursue research meta-analysis, synthesis, and big data curation on topics crucial to STEM faculty equity. VVS analyze existing research and data, synthesizing different, sometimes competing, perspectives, frameworks, metrics, and outcomes to offer new insights and applications to the broader community. VVS have explored various topics, including funding trends, mentoring, citation practices, and networking.
ARC Network Project Director Virginia Rhodes commented on the motivation and impact of the VVS. “Last year, the NSF celebrated its 70th anniversary and this year we celebrate the 20th anniversary of ADVANCE. More than ever, this is a time for reflection and a time for innovation. The ARC Network’s VVS Program enables gifted scholars across disciplines to do just that: synthesize past contributions to the advancement of STEM equity in academia and look towards what advances we have yet to make. Our fourth cohort of scholars are a great addition to the program, and we’re excited to see what they have in store.”
Dr. Dawn Kiyoe Culpepper is the Associate Director and an Assistant Research Professor at the University of Maryland’s ADVANCE Program for Inclusive Excellence. Dr. Culpepper’s research focuses on policies, practices, and resources that foster equity, disrupt bias, spur organizational effectiveness, and create conditions where women and BIPOC scholars can thrive, and she has held leadership roles on several NSF-funded projects. As a VVS, Dr. Culpepper will conduct a meta-synthesis to consider the potential limitations and possibilities of developing bystander intervention trainings with an intersectional lens.
Dr. Rodica Lisnic teaches at the Department of Sociology and Criminology at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville. Her research focuses on investigating gender and race inequality, institutional policies, and practices in the context of higher education institutions. As a VVS, Dr. Lisnic will conduct an explorative compilation of persistence strategies women of color in STEM use to navigate tenure and promotion processes.
Dr. Rachele Hendricks-Sturrup is a health scientist and journalist with a background in biology and health policy. Her work involves conducting implementation research on topics focused on the 21st Century Cures Act and engaging professionals from industry, academia, government, and civil society to develop ethical, legal, and social best practices to support health technology innovation. As a VVS, Dr. Hendricks-Sturrup will conduct a meta-synthesis of literature to describe evidence and evidence gaps on the role of gender and gender intersectionality within industry-academia partnerships in STEM.
To learn more about our past and current scholars and to read their work, visit: https://www.equityinstem.org/virtual-visiting-scholars
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About the ARC Network: Funded by the National Science Foundation ADVANCE program, Award HRD-1740860, the ARC Network seeks to achieve gender equity for faculty in higher education science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. As the STEM equity brain trust, the ARC Network recognizes the achievements made so far while producing new perspectives, methods and interventions with an intersectional, intentional and inclusive lens. Learn more about the ARC Network at www.equityinstem.org and on social media using #EquityInSTEM.
About ACCESS+: The Amplifying the Alliance to Catalyze Change for Equity in STEM Success (ACCESS+) Initiative, funded by National Science Foundation (NSF) ADVANCE Partnership grant #2017953, aspires to leverage STEM professional societies to accelerate systemic STEM culture-change to advance gender diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).
About WEPAN: WEPAN is a non-profit educational organization founded in 1990. Recognized as the leading champion in North America for leveraging research and best practices to propel the inclusion of women in the field of engineering, WEPAN advocates to fully embrace diversity, equity and inclusion to meet the demands of today’s innovation and performance-driven business culture. Dedicated to advancing cultures of inclusion and diversity in engineering higher education and workplaces, WEPAN connects people, research, and practice to increase participation, retention and success of women and other under-represented groups in engineering from college to executive leadership. To learn more, visit www.wepan.org.
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