Director of DEI, Christopher Arnette, and DEI Fellow, Rachel Gelfand (Pelton Group, University of Maryland, Baltimore County), attended the National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers (NOBCChE) conference in New Orleans, LA.
While there, they participated in various community building and informational sessions. They also participated in recruiting activities for IMOD’s REU program, providing information (e.g., flyers/handouts) and collecting the information of 31 interested leads.
The 2023 NOBCChE conference consisted of over 1200 high school students, undergraduates, graduate students, postdocs, faculty, staff, and program directors.
Engaging with and students, faculty, and postdocs from groups underrepresented in STEM in spaces that center their experiences is critical to improving the broadening participation goals of IMOD and of STEM in general. Over the course of four days, D-DEI promoted the overall mission of IMOD and spread awareness about the STC to the larger cohort of groups underrepresented in STEM. The D-DEI also worked to recruit students to apply to the 2024 IMOD Research Experience for Undergraduates, and to identify and foster relationships with minority serving institutions across the country. The conference helped to raise the profile of IMOD within these communities and, as the first-time having representation at this conference, provided valuable information on ways to continue to engage in the future.
