Hugo Rossi Speakers
Curie Club invites you to RSVP to hear the Hugo Rossi Speakers:
How well-meaning people of privilege maintain inequity in Physics and STEM
Inequity in physics and STEM remains a problem despite significant effort, care, and material resources dedicated to addressing it. The tendency to focus change efforts on the oppressed while leaving people and structures of power unexamined is likely related to the slow progress. In this talk, we present data from multiple studies considering how those who hold intersecting identities of privilege engage with equity efforts. Findings highlight how well-meaning people of privilege in physics and STEM frequently undermine equity by failing to acknowledge even obvious inequity, distancing themselves from both the causes and solutions of inequity, minimizing it when they can not deny or distance, and justifying their own inaction. I end by offering recommendations for both individuals of privilege as well as recommendations for policymakers.
But I don’t know what to do: How can well meaning people rethink change strategies to productively address inequity in higher education STEM departments?
In this workshop we will explore ways departments and individuals can better address inequity in higher education STEM. While there is a great deal of genuine concern and desire to address inequity, efforts to do so are typically without a strong grounding in a theory of change and done in ways that foreseeably are unlikely to be successful. In this workshop, we will introduce a framework to support those engaging in change efforts. This framework can be used to guide decision-making to better focus efforts in productive ways. We will use the framework to unpack multiple scenarios representing common obstacles faced by those historically excluded from STEM.
BIOs:
Dr. Dancy is a principal research associate in the evaluation center at Western Michigan University. She holds a PhD in physics and has been an active member of the physics education research community for more than 25 years. Throughout her career, she has always been drawn to research projects that focus on improving higher education STEM classrooms and working environments by improving teaching and/or addressing inequity. Dr. Dancy has over 70 peer-reviewed or invited publications related to educational transformation, faculty development, and equity. Dr. Dancy also frequently serves as an external evaluator on NSF-funded education related projects.
Charles Henderson is a Professor at Western Michigan University (WMU), with a joint appointment between the Physics Department and the WMU Mallinson Institute for Science Education. He is the Director of the Mallinson Institute and co-Founder and co-Director of the WMU Center for Research on Instructional Change in Postsecondary Education (CRICPE). His research program focuses on understanding and promoting instructional change in higher education, with an emphasis on improving undergraduate STEM instruction. Dr. Henderson’s work has been supported by over $10M in external grants and has resulted in many publications (see more here). He is a Fulbright Scholar and a Fellow of the American Physical Society. Dr. Henderson is the senior editor for the journal Physical Review Physics Education Research and has served on two National Academy of Sciences Committees: Undergraduate Physics Education Research and Implementation, and Developing Indicators for Undergraduate STEM Education.
Ramón S. Barthelemy, Ph.D. (He/Him) 🏳️🌈
Assistant Professor of Physics and Astronomy