The Miller Lab Pledge to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Ann Miller and the members of the Miller lab are committed to creating a positive lab environment that is inclusive, safe, and respectful of scientists of all races, genders, sexual orientations, nationalities, cultures, and religious beliefs. We believe that “science is for everyone”! We will work to recognize and address our own biases while celebrating our unique differences and perspectives. We aim to be proactive in our efforts to support equity in the lab, in the classroom, on campus, and in our communities. Building a lab culture that prioritizes diversity, equity, and inclusion is an ongoing and dynamic process, and we pledge to continue learning and growing as individuals and as a team.
Miller – Chapman – Vecchiarelli Tri-Lab Anti-Racist Action Plan
We have been discussing, reading, and listening about DEI issues as a tri-lab group. We as the PIs and lab members of the Miller, Chapman, and Vecchiarelli labs see the lack of representation of BIPOC scientists in the student, postdoc, and faculty ranks of the MCDB Department. We pledge to do what we can to fight racism and promote equity and inclusion. The actions of one person can make a difference, and together the actions of our Tri-Lab members can make impactful contributions to positive change in our department and beyond.
Below is a list of action items that we aim to do to promote an anti-racist agenda. We will meet several times a year to continue these discussions, report on actions we’ve taken, and set goals for future action:
1) Growing the pipeline, recruiting, training, advocating for BIPOC students in MCDB
- Encourage and recruit URMs in the undergraduate courses we teach to do research in our labs or help connect them with other labs.
- Institute inclusive teaching practices in our classrooms (e.g. “The Scientists Behind the Science” and sharing our own and learning about students’ path in science as advocated by HSTEM movement).
- Attend SACNAS and ABRCMS to encourage diverse applicants to our graduate programs.
- Be actively involvement in Preview Weekends that host diverse potential grad students.
- Visit Intro Bio classes at regional universities, PUIs, and community colleges to tell students about the importance of undergrad research opportunities, paid summer research opportunities, and grad programs (and that you get paid to go to grad school).
- Participate in the Developing Future Biologists Program as instructors, mentors, and organizers.
- Reduce or remove fees for underrepresented individuals to apply for grad school (and make this more obvious to applicants).
- Advocate for BIPOC students and holistic review of applications when we lead or serve on the graduate admissions committee.
- Host students from the Pathways MS program our labs, and promote the Pathways program to students who need additional research experience before grad school.
2) Maintaining the pipeline, recruiting, training, advocating for BIPOC postdocs in MCDB
- Seek out BIPOC grad students at meetings we attend and encourage them to apply for postdocs in our lab or help connect them with other labs.
- Promote and participate in postdoc fellowship programs that promote diversity – IRACDA, Michigan Life Science Fellows, President’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Program, etc.
- Work to get LSA postdocs access to more OGPS programming and $.
- Hold social gatherings for MCDB postdocs.
3) Growing the applicant pool, hiring, retaining, and promoting BIPOC faculty in MCDB
- Seek out BIPOC postdocs at meetings we attend and encourage them to apply for our faculty searches.
- Actively participate in NextProf Science, a future faculty workshop at UM for outstanding diverse postdocs and senior grad students. Cultivate relationships with attendees who we meet, and encourage them to apply for our faculty searches.
- Complete STRIDE training before serving on search committees, and speak up to advocate for diverse candidates.
- Consider changing how we do faculty searches – e.g. cluster hire mechanisms.
- Require and evaluate a diversity statement for applicants.
- Provide strong mentoring throughout assistant faculty years for BIPOC faculty to promote their inclusion and success.
- Invite diverse speakers for seminars and for speakers at meetings we organize – keep ears open for possible mid-career hiring opportunities.
- Actively seek out mid-career “targets of opportunity” who would bring diversity and leadership to our department.
- Require reporting on DEI activities for all faculty members in the departmental annual review, and use this information when deciding on annual raises.
- Require a statement on diversity, equity, and inclusion as part of promotion packages and consider it along with research, teaching, and service.
