Steps Toward Equity
Swenson College of Science & Engineering has undertaken many efforts to strive for greater diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility. It's only possible thanks to the faculty, staff, and students we have in our College who are committed to social justice and are willing to put in the work. In recognition of these efforts, Swenson College was recognized by the University of Minnesota with the 2022 Outstanding Unit Award for Equity and Diversity.
We'd like to highlight the following:
- Higholt professorships and chairs
- Swenson Gender Equity Team (SwenGET)
- Anonymized faculty searches
- Colloquia with focus on social justice
- Mentoring and onboarding programs
- Swenson Mobile Summer Institute for Scientific Teaching
- Unlearning Racism in the Geosciences (URGE): a group of chemists and earth & environmental scientists have developed practical approaches to effect change at UMD
- SCSE offered summer book clubs focused on equity in graduate education and gender equity in the academy
- Swenson College Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee
- Outreach focused on grades 6-12 in underserved populations
UMD's Anti-Racist Learning Community was spearheaded with leadership from our College thanks to Earth & Environmental Sciences Associate Professor Christina Gallup and Physics & Astronomy Instructor and Director of Indigenous Programming Jim Rock.
Our College also continually looks for ways to improve by being transparent with departmental policies and dashboards and reviewing and updating our policies through an equity lens.
SCSE Student Groups
These clubs provide a support network and new opportunities for students from traditionally underrepresented groups in STEM:
- National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE)
- Society of Women Engineers (SWE)
- American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES)
- Engineers Without Borders (EWB)