Enhancements    

STEM EDUCATOR SERIES ON STUDENT INTERACTIONS (SESSI): A VISUAL TOOL TO COUNTER RACIAL MICROAGGRESSIONS AND PROMOTE INCLUSIVITY IN STEM ENVIRONMENTS

STEM EDUCATOR SERIES ON STUDENT INTERACTIONS (SESSI): A VISUAL TOOL TO COUNTER RACIAL MICROAGGRESSIONS AND PROMOTE INCLUSIVITY IN STEM ENVIRONMENTS
PI: Penelope Espinoza
Co-PI: Karina Canaba
Sponsor: NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
Educational Leadership and Foundations
Amount awarded: $623,267

This project aims to promote racial equity in STEM education by addressing racial microaggressions in STEM college settings. The objective of the proposed work is to engage in design-based research to develop a tool for countering racial microaggressions with inclusive behaviors in STEM settings. Through a rigorous iterative process, the project will generate a tool distinct from other anti-bias interventions, akin to public health messaging grounded in psychological theories on behavior change. The proposed STEM Educator Series on Student Interactions (SESSI) is a graphic series aimed at educators to model microaffirmations that substitute for microaggressions. A key feature of the proposed tool is its centering of students' authentic experiences. The SESSI is an innovative approach to reducing racial microaggressions in STEM by illustrating students' experiences and, importantly, alternative inclusive behaviors to be readily learned and applied by STEM educators. Quantitative and qualitative data from STEM students and faculty will be collected and applied across several phases of a theory-driven design process. The ultimate goals of the project are STEM educators' behavior change and more inclusive STEM environments that support aspiring Hispanic and Black scientists and engineers. Future research will test the SESSI prototype resulting from the proposed project in terms of its efficacy for reducing microaggressions and increasing inclusive behaviors. The team of Latina researchers, educators, and artists at The University of Texas at El Paso brings to the project years of experience advising, mentoring, and teaching underserved students in a border community.

Posting date: Mon, 08/12/2024

Award start date: Thu, 08/01/2024
Award end date: Sat, 07/31/2027