Our Mission

The college is dedicated to attracting, supporting, and retaining diversity in its student body, staff, and faculty. We strive to provide equitable and just academic and professional experiences for all members of our community, and to connect our community members with on- and off-campus resources to ensure their academic and professional success. 

Partner and Report

Partner with the Dean and Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion to steward and create resources in support of DEI best practices throughout the CBS community, and report on committee activities and findings.

  • Support college and campus efforts to conduct DEI climate surveys to determine areas of strength/weakness, better understand DEI attitudes and experiences, and inform yearly policy and funding
  • Identify and collaborate with DEI groups in CBS to facilitate crosstalk, synergize efforts, consolidate resources, and increase communication on available resources
  • Participate in campus ODEI meetings and engage in campus-level activities in DEI
  • Document and report to ODEI on strategic investments, ongoing recommendations from campus stakeholders, and CBS progress on DEI goals

Educate and Inform

Curate new and existing resources and CBS-sponsored activities to promote a culture of learning and growth. Provide guidance on DEI best-practices for faculty, staff, postdocs and students.

  • Invite DEI thought-leaders to the CBS community to speak on DEI-related topics and incentivize CBS community participation in events
  • Partner with appropriate stakeholders to create DEI toolkits for new and current faculty, graduate students and postdocs for mentoring undergraduate researchers and promoting inclusion (e.g., “out of the box” office hours, campus resources, training opportunities, DEI-focused classes or seminars for students, counseling resources, etc.)
  • Create a template for mentoring agreements and/or individual development plans, to be shared with new trainees when joining a faculty research group
  • Organize quarterly DEI reading groups
  • Create introductory course slides with DEI information to share for initial lectures and syllabi
  • Provide language to graduate groups to add to websites to encourage applicants from diverse communities, including specific instructions on preparing an application
  • Recommend to the Dean additional opportunities for paid undergraduate research and training
  • Promote and encourage opportunities for DEI-related trainings for faculty, especially those trainings and information sessions organized by ODEI
  • Promote and advise relevant stakeholders regarding best practices for the recruitment and retention of faculty, students, and staff from diverse backgrounds

Communicate and Support

Ensure the college’s DEI webpages are up to date with DEI-related resources, information, opportunities and committee membership information, and recommend to the Dean financial support for DEI-related activities.

  • Lead periodic updates and audits of the CBS DEI site to ensure content is updated with information about DEI-related events and activities in CBS and across campus
  • Offer assistance to faculty to add PI mentorship philosophies to their CBS website profiles
  • Use the CBS DEI webpages to highlight on-campus opportunities for faculty to fund undergraduate research and research programs that prepare students for graduate study (e.g. HBCU Graduate Admissions Pathway, BioGAP, PREP, EEOP)
  • Promote programs that provide small grants to support engagement with and participation in DEI-related activities within the college (e.g., DEIJ Fellowship/Grant)
  • Ensure public spaces in CBS (e.g. building hallways and lobbies) show representation of diversity of the college, propose modifications to building spaces