Seminar Series | The Time is Now: Increasing the Utilization of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) to Broaden Participation in STEM
All dates for this event occur in the past.
Registration: -
Abstract
In late 2020, Senator Kamala Harris became the first women to be elected as President-elect or Vice President-elect in U.S. history. Two additional, very important notes as highlighted in the media is that she identifies as a Black woman and is also a graduate of Howard University; a historically black college/university (HBCU). Prior to this historic moment, Vice President-elect Harris had consistently fought for HBCUs and other minority serving institutions (MSIs) because she, along with many of her other colleagues in the Senate, believed MSIs were the best institutions when it came to supporting students of varying ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds. This was particularly true when it came to supporting MSIs around research and advancements within STEM education. The potential for HBCUs to help improve broadening participation efforts by graduating more minority students with STEM degrees has been well understood and documented in the literature. However, this understanding has not been fully recognized, accepted or utilized according to the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM, 2019). Although HBCU student populations comprise a significant percentage of first-generation and low-income students (most in which are greater than the national average), they still award a disproportionately greater share of STEM degrees to minority students (Gasman, M. & Nguyen, T-H., 2016). When considering the extensive financial efforts of federal agencies to broaden participation in STEM, the time is now to review and implement the recommendations from the National Academies through the increased utilization of HBCUs to increase minorities in STEM.
Biography
Dr. Trina L. Fletcher is an Assistant Professor of Engineering and Computing Education and a Faculty Fellow for the Division of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) at Florida International University. Her research includes DEI within STEM education and the success of historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and the production of Blacks in STEM. Dr. Fletcher is currently a steering committee member for EngineerGirl, the leading initiative for the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) to increase the number of girls going into engineering and serves as an associate editor for the Journal for Women and Minorities in Science and Engineering (JWM). Prior to FIU, Dr. Fletcher worked for two Fortune 500 companies and served as the Director of Pre-college Programs for the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE). Within that role, Dr. Fletcher planned and managed a multi-million budget that provided free access to STEM education for thousands of minority students across the United States. Dr. Fletcher currently manages several grants awarded by the National Science Foundation to research the best practices in STEM at HBCUs and works as the lead faculty member for research for the Center for Diversity and Student Success in the College of Engineering and Computing (CD-SSEC) at FIU.
About the EED Seminar Series
Registration is required prior to each seminar. SP21 seminars will take place via remote video conferencing. A link and password to each seminar will be sent once you register. Each seminar will be held live and may be recorded for archival and marketing purposes. If you have questions regarding this seminar series, please contact Dr. David Delaine.