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Looking Back at 2021: A Year of Expanding and Deepening the NSF INCLUDES National Network

  

By: NSF INCLUDES Coordination Hub

A message from the NSF INCLUDES Coordination Hub

Throughout a busy and challenging year, the NSF INCLUDES National Network has flourished and our community of support for broadening participation in STEM education and careers has expanded and deepened. The NSF INCLUDES Coordination Hub is proud to support the 3000+ member strong NSF INCLUDES National Network community, which brings together the power of many to strengthen STEM equity, connecting individuals, alliances, pilot programs, federal agencies, educational institutions, and other entities across the nation working to shift inequitable systems and broaden participation in STEM education and careers.

While we continue the journey in 2022, let’s pause to look back at what’s been accomplished in 2021.

The 2021 National Network Convening Showcased Broadening Participation Work from Across the Network and the Nation

The 2021 NSF INCLUDES National Network Virtual Convening, Mobilizing to Transform Systems brought together than 350 members committed to broadening participation in STEM. It featured inspiring keynotes as well as interactive peer learning and breakout sessions. Explore the discussion post recaps using #NSFINCLUDESNetworkConvening and review the materials in the library here. (Please note that you will need to be logged in to access links shared in this blog)


The Network’s Online Community Increased Engagement through Discussions and Resource Sharing

Over 500 online discussions were held across the Network: members shared project resources and reports and reached out to their peers and colleagues for input and feedback. A few examples include:


      Shared Measures Platform Launched


      The NSF INCLUDES new Shared Measures platform presents data documenting the national effort to broaden participation in STEM education and careers. The initial data set has been provided by the eight original NSF INCLUDES Alliances. As more information is collected and shared from an expanding network of projects, the Shared Measures platform will serve as a resource for tracking indicators of long-term institutional transformation and systems change, as well as a dynamic repository of data on national broadening participation efforts and associated outcomes. It will inform the work of the NSF INCLUDES Network community through shared data on the practices, partners, resources, and tools of other initiatives, and provide useful insights for NSF and federal agencies, Congress, policymakers, and the public. Read more about and see some key findings from the initial data set here.    


      The Work of Network Members and Opportunities for STEM Internships Featured in Blogs, Twitter Chats and Virtual Events

      • Opportunities for the National Network:  

      In Collaboration with the Network, the Coordination Hub Produced Research Briefs, a Rapid Community Report, a New Podcast Series, and a Refreshed Website to Showcase Members’ Work

      The Coordination Hub’s research team worked with Network members to produce multiple Research Briefs: Centering Inclusivity and Equity Within Family Engagement in STEM, Evidence-Based Strategies for Attracting and Retaining Girls and Women in STEM and Wealth, Equity, and STEM: Increasing STEM Access and Participation of Students from Economically Disadvantaged Backgrounds. Another brief was on Successful Factors of Virtual Collaborations and Applied Frameworks.

      The Rapid Community Report-Process Reflection featured the NSF INCLUDES ASPIRE Alliance on Networking Networks: Leveraging STEM Professional Society “Boundary Spanners” to Advance Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

      Includesnetwork.org, the NSF INCLUDES National Network website, was refreshed with a new look and new features. Learn more about it in this blog and check out: 


      The new podcast series, Collaborative Strategies for Inclusive Change features interviews by former NSF INCLUDES Coordination Hub PI Dr. Ivory Toldson with Network members, NSF leaders, and others doing exciting work to change systems and accelerate institutional transformation to broaden participation in STEM. Since launching in July 2021, the podcast episodes have been downloaded more than 400 times.
      The NSF INCLUDES Coordination Hub Welcomed New Leadership

      Andrea Venezia is the new Director of the NSF INCLUDES Coordination Hub. In 2021 she joined SRI International as the senior principal research scientist and director of college and career pathways research. Andrea is passionate about dismantling systemic barriers within education systems to support equitable and inclusive opportunities and outcomes within and across education systems and into the workforce.

      Dr. Erin Lynch joined QEM as its new President and is the Co-Principal Investigator on NSF INCLUDES. She brings a wealth of academic knowledge and experience in both the STEM and minority equity arenas to her new role as President of QEM.

      Seth Klukoff, who has served as the organizational lead for Equal Measure’s role with the Hub since 2018, has been named Co-Principal Investigator on NSF INCLUDES in recognition of his work and expertise. Seth is VP of Thought Leadership at Equal Measure, leading all aspects of the organization’s thought leadership—with an emphasis on strategic communications, social sector trend-sensing, strategy, and business development.


      As we start this new year we encourage the Network to       share your innovations, adaptations, and successes in your efforts to broaden participation in STEM in 2021 through the discussion post. 


      We look forward to your continued participation in 2022.


      Are you following us on Twitter? Join our over 1400 followers at @NSFINCLUDESHub  

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