Online Events: Understanding Diversity in STEM – WMPD Day

In 1980 the United States Congress ordered the National Science Foundation to report, every two years, on the status of minorities in the science and engineering fields. To meet this mandate, which has since grown to include updates on the status of women and people with disabilities, the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (part of the Social, Behavioral and Economic Directorate within NSF) conducts surveys to gather a large portion of the data used in this report.

The NSF is nearing publication of the latest iteration of this report, and on May 12 – Women, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities Day – a series of online events will mark the release, analyze the new data, and aim to provide an understanding of what to do next.

Science (including the social and behavioral sciences), Technology, Engineering and Math – or STEM – improves the quality of life for people around the world. As the organizers of the day have noted, the United States’ ability to build a better future for everyone depends on more people having opportunities to be a part of STEM. this obviously includes some traditionally underrepresented groups in the STEM fields, in particular women, minorities, and persons with disabilities (or WMPD).

Among the event planned so far for WMPD Day are the opening and closing presentations:

11 a.m. ET | A 30-minute program will use WMPD findings from the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics to recognize gains that have been made and gaps that remain. We share stories of how broadening participation in STEM has created opportunities for researchers and improved quality of life for communities across the globe.

3 p.m. ET | Sustaining STEM Students Across the Academic Pipeline: Academic pipeline programs have created safe spaces for women, minorities and persons with disabilities to receive training in STEM disciplines for decades. Panelists will discuss programs featured in Academic Pipeline Programs: Diversifying the Bachelors to the Professoriate.

4 p.m. ET | A panel of social and behavioral scientists will discuss how to build a more diverse and dynamic STEM workforce.

A full and updated list of events appears at wpmdday.com. that website also includes information of listing your own WMPD events of sponsoring the larger effort.

Sponsors for the events include SAGE Publishing (the parent of Social Science Space), the Consortium of Social Science Associations, and the Federation of Associations in the Behavioral and Brain Sciences.