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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity,

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

Advancing Antiracism, Diversity,

Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM
Organizations
Beyond Broadening Participation

Gilda A. Barabino, Susan T. Fiske,

Layne A. Scherer, and Emily A. Vargas,
Editors

Committee on Advancing Antiracism,

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in
STEM Organizations

Board on Behavioral, Cognitive, and

Sensory Sciences

Division of Behavioral and Social

Sciences and Education

Consensus Study Report

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001

This activity was supported by contracts between the National Academy of

Sciences and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation (# G-2021-16755), Fred ­Kavli
Endowment Fund, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation (# 10483),
­Heising-Simons Foundation (# 2021-3112), National Institutes of Health
(# HHSN263201800029I/75N98021F00012), National Science Foundation
(# OIA-2050485), Ralph J. Cicerone and Carol M. Cicerone Endowment for
NAS Missions, Rita Allen Foundation (unnumbered), and The Shanahan Family
Charitable ­Foundation (W911NF-CODE). Any opinions, findings, conclusions,
or ­recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the
views of any organization or agency that provided support for the project.

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The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/26803.

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

COMMITTEE ON ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DIVERSITY,

EQUITY, AND INCLUSION IN STEM ORGANIZATIONS

GILDA A. BARABINO1,2 (Co-Chair), Olin College of Engineering

SUSAN T. FISKE3 (Co-Chair), Princeton University
DAVID J. ASAI, Howard Hughes Medical Institute
FAY COBB PAYTON, North Carolina State University
NILANJANA DASGUPTA, The University of Massachusetts at Amherst
MICA ESTRADA, University of California, San Francisco
MIRIAN M. GRADDICK-WEIR, AT&T Corporation, Bedminster, NJ
GIOVANNA GUERRERO-MEDINA, Ciencia Puerto Rico; Wu Tsai
Institute, Yale School of Medicine
CAMARA P. JONES, Morehouse School of Medicine
SAMUEL R. LUCAS, University of California, Berkeley
JULIE POSSELT, University of Southern California
VICTOR E. RAY, The University of Iowa
JOAN Y REEDE, Harvard Medical School
KARL W. REID, National Society of Black Engineers
CYNTHIA N. SPENCE, Spelman College
KECIA M. THOMAS, The University of Alabama at Birmingham
M. ROY WILSON, Wayne State University
SWEENEY WINDCHIEF, Montana State University

Study Staff
LAYNE SCHERER, Study Director
EMILY A. VARGAS, Program Officer
JACQUELINE L. COLE, Senior Program Assistant
KENNE A. DIBNER, Senior Program Officer
ANDRÉ PORTER, Senior Program Officer

Consultant
JOSEPH ALPER, Consultant

1 Member, National Academy of Medicine

2 Member, National Academy of Engineering
3 Member, National Academy of Science

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

BOARD ON BEHAVIORAL, COGNITIVE,

AND SENSORY SCIENCES

TERRIE E. MOFFITT,4 (Chair), Duke University

RICHARD N. ASLIN,5 Haskins Laboratories
JOHN BAUGH, Washington University, St. Louis
WILSON S. GEISLER, The University of Texas at Austin
MICHELE J. GELFAND, Stanford Graduate School of Business
ULRICH MAYR, University of Oregon
KATHERINE L. MILKMAN, The University of Pennsylvania
ELIZABETH A. PHELPS, Harvard University
DAVID E. POEPPEL, New York University
STACEY SINCLAIR, Princeton University
TIMOTHY J. STRAUMAN, Duke University

DANIEL J. WEISS, Director

4 Member, National Academy of Medicine

5 Member, National Academy of Science

vi

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

Reviewers

This Consensus Study Report was reviewed in draft form by indi-

viduals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise. The
purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical com-
ments that will assist the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering,
and Medicine in making each published report as sound as possible and
to ensure that it meets the institutional standards for quality, objectivity,
evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments
and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the
deliberative process.
We thank the following individuals for their review of this report:

APRILLE J. ERICSSON, Instrument Systems and Technology

Division, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
ELENA FUENTES-AFFLICK, Department of Pediatrics, University
of California, San Francisco
ELSA GONZALEZ, College of Education, University of Houston
CHAITAN KHOSLA, Departments of Chemistry and Chemical
Engineering, Stanford University
HARMIT S. MALIK, Division of Basic Sciences, Fred Hutchinson
Cancer Research Center
MARK L. MCKELVIN, School of Engineering, University of
Southern California
MARIA ONG, Project SEED, TERC Communications

vii

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

viii REVIEWERS

BILLY M. WILLIAMS, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, America

Geophysical Union
CYNTHIA WINSTON-PROCTOR, Department of Psychology,
Howard University

Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive com-

ments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or
recommendations of this report nor did they see the final draft before its
release. The review of this report was overseen by WESLEY L. HARRIS,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and ELLEN WRIGHT CLAYTON,
Vanderbilt University Medical Center. They were responsible for making
certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out
in accordance with the standards of the National Academies and that
all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the fi-
nal content rests entirely with the authoring committee and the National
Academies.

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

Acknowledgments

This report reflects contributions from a number of individuals and

groups. The committee takes this opportunity to recognize those who so
generously gave their time and expertise to inform its deliberations.
To begin, the committee would like to thank the Alfred P. Sloan Foun-
dation, Fred Kavli Endowment Fund, Gordon and Betty Moore Founda-
tion, Heising-Simons Foundation, National Institutes of Health, National
Science Foundation, Ralph J. Cicerone and Carol M. Cicerone Endowment
for NAS Missions, Rita Allen Foundation, and The Shanahan Family Chari-
table Foundation for their sponsorship, guidance, and support of this study.
The committee greatly benefited from the opportunity for discussion
with individuals who attended and presented at the open session meet-
ings. The committee thanks these individuals for their time and the candid
­perspectives they provided.
The committee could not have done its work without the support and
guidance provided by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering,
and Medicine project staff: Layne Scherer, study director; Emily A. Vargas,
program officer; Jacqueline L. Cole, senior program assistant; Kenne A.
Dibner, senior program officer; and André Porter, senior program officer.
We appreciate Patrick Burke for his financial assistance on this project and
gratefully acknowledge Daniel J. Weiss of the National Academies’ Board
on Behavioral, Cognitive, and Sensory Sciences for his guidance.
Many other staff within the National Academies provided support to
this project in various ways. The committee would like to thank Laura
Castillo-Page, Heidi Schweingruber, Vaughan Turekian, Michael Hout,
Margarita Alegria, Rebecca Morgan, Terrie Moffitt, Patty Morison, and

ix

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

x ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Bea Porter for their expertise and support throughout the life cycle of this
research study and report.
This committee is grateful to the research assistants and commissioned
paper authors that generously contributed to this body of work: O ­ gechi
Adele (Princeton University); Yolore Airewele (Princeton University);
­Jessica Brice (University of Washington); Alison Hall Birch (Univer­sity of
Texas-Arlington); Krystle P. Cobian (University of California, Los Angeles);
Jennifer S. Fang (University of California, Irvine); Dana Harris (Yale Uni-
versity); Leezet Matos (University of California, Los Angeles); OiYan Poon
(Colorado State University); Tiffany Smith (AISES); and Gloriana T ­ rujillo
(Stanford University).
In addition to the contributions above, a great number of stakehold-
ers offered resources, expertise, and insight to support the committee’s
work. These include the Roundtable on Black Men and Black Women in
Science, Engineering, and Medicine; Dawn Bennet-Alexander (Practical
Diversity); Charles Bridges (CorVista); Alex Cortez (Bellwether Education
Partners); James Jones (University of Delaware); Fidan Kurtulus (Univer-
sity of Massachusetts); Lisa Leslie (New York University); Roman Liera
(Montclair State University); Jennifer Martineau (Leap and Inspire Global);
Sanaz Mobasseri (Boston University); Lincoln Quillian (Northwestern Uni-
versity); Kenneth Ridgway (Purdue Univer­sity); Aaron Thomas (University
of Montana); and Alicia Nicki Washington (Duke University).

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

Contents

Preface xix

Acronyms xxiii

Summary 1

1 Introduction 17
STUDY ORIGIN AND STATEMENT OF TASK, 18
STUDY APPROACH AND SCOPE, 21
ORGANIZATION OF THE REPORT, 26
REFERENCES, 29

PART I

2 The Historical and Contemporary Context for Structural,

Systemic, and Institutional Racism in the United States 33
DEFINING STRUCTURAL, SYSTEMIC,
AND INSTITUTIONAL RACISM, 34
THE ORIGINS OF RACE AND RACISM IN THE
UNITED STATES, 35
THE CODIFICATION OF RACISM: AN EXAMINATION OF
MULTIPLE SECTORS IN U.S. SOCIETY, 37
UNEQUAL EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES, 40
HOUSING: THE LEGACY OF REDLINING, 43

xi

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xii CONTENTS

REDLINING AND UNEQUAL EDUCATIONAL

OPPORTUNITIES, 45
RACISM AND EMPLOYMENT, 47
MINORITY-SERVING INSTITUTIONS, 50
STEMM: A REFLECTION AND REPRODUCTION OF
BROADER BIASED STRUCTURES, 55
REFERENCES, 56

3 Population Data and Demographics in the United States 65

DEMOGRAPHIC DATA, RACIAL CATEGORIES, AND
LIMITATIONS, 66
U.S. DEMOGRAPHIC TRENDS, 74
REPRESENTATION BY RACE AND ETHNICITY IN U.S. STEMM
HIGHER EDUCATION, 78
THE U.S. STEMM WORKFORCE, 86
CONCLUSION, 93
REFERENCES, 93

PART II

4 Lived Experiences and Other Ways of Knowing in STEMM 99

INTERVIEWS: LIVED EXPERIENCES OF BLACK STEMM
PROFESSIONALS, 100
NATURE OF EVIDENCE: MULTIPLE METHODS OF
GATHERING KNOWLEDGE, 112
REFERENCES, 114

PART III

5 Minoritized Individuals in STEMM: Consequences and Responses

to Racial Bias and How STEMM Professionals Can Help 117
SOCIAL COGNITIVE PROCESSES AND CONSEQUENCES OF
RACIAL BIAS, 118
SOCIAL CATEGORIZATION AND SOCIAL IDENTITY, 119
PHYSICAL HEALTH IMPACTS OF BEING THE
TARGET OF RACISM, 125
RACE-BASED REJECTION SENSITIVITY, 126
STRATEGIES FOR EXITING: DISIDENTIFICATION AND
PASSING, 127
STRATEGIES FOR FITTING IN AND SURVIVING: GRIT,
RESILIENCE, AND CODESWITCHING, 130
COLLECTIVELY MOBILIZING TO TRANSFORM THE
DOMINANT STEMM CULTURE, 132

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CONTENTS xiii

HOW STEMM PROFESSIONALS CAN HELP, 135

SIGNAL INCLUSION THROUGH NUMERIC REPRESENTATION
AND SPATIAL DESIGN OF LOCAL ENVIRONMENTS, 135
BUILD PEER RELATIONSHIPS AND COMMUNITY FOR
MINORITIZED GROUPS, 138
CREATE ACCESS TO HIGH-STATUS RELATIONSHIPS, 143
ORGANIZATION OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS, 146
REFERENCES, 148

6 The Gatekeepers of STEMM: How Individual Bias and

Inequality Persist and How STEM Professionals Can Help 165
DEFINING AND EXAMINING GATEKEEPERS, 167
EXAMINING RACISM PERPETUATED BY GATEKEEPERS, 169
GATEKEEPERS’ SOCIAL MOTIVES TO PRESERVE THE
STATUS QUO, 181
THREATS TO GATEKEEPERS FROM DEMOGRAPHIC SHIFTS
IN THE UNITED STATES: THREAT, ANXIETY, AND
SYSTEM-REINFORCING BEHAVIORS, 187
CONCLUSIONS, 188
ORGANIZATION OF THE RECOMMENDATION, 189
REFERENCES, 190

7 Diverse Work Teams: Understanding the Challenges and

How STEMM Professionals Can Leverage Strengths 199
TEAMS WITHIN STEMM, 200
RACIAL AND ETHNIC DIVERSITY WITHIN TEAMS: IMPACT
ON TEAM PERFORMANCE, 201
THE CONTACT HYPOTHESIS: REDUCING PREJUDICE
THROUGH INTERRACIAL INTERGROUP CONTACTS, 204
INGROUP FAVORITISM AS A BARRIER TO THE
DIVERSIFICATION OF STEMM TEAMS, 209
MYTHS ABOUT RACIAL PROGRESS, 211
REFERENCES, 213

8 Understanding Organizations and the Role of Leadership in

Developing a Culture of Antiracism, Diversity, Equity,
and Inclusion 219
AN OVERVIEW OF ORGANIZATIONS, CULTURE,
AND CLIMATE, 221
THE RACIALIZATION OF ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURES, 224
CHANGING ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE AND CLIMATE
TO CENTER ANTIRACISM, DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND
INCLUSION, 241

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xiv CONTENTS

BARRIERS TO AND CHALLENGES OF CULTURE CHANGE, 244

INTERROGATING STEMM VALUES AND BARRIERS TO
CHANGE, 250
FRAMEWORKS FOR ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE, 252
REFERENCES, 257

9 Research Agenda 265

HISTORY AND CONTEMPORARY STRUCTURES, 267
ORGANIZATIONS, 269
TEAMS, 273
INTERPERSONAL AND INDIVIDUAL DYNAMICS, 274
RESEARCH PROCESS: ITEMS FOR ALL LEVELS, 277
CONCLUSION, 282
REFERENCES, 282

Appendixes
A INCREASING PARTICIPATION OF UNDERREPRESENTED
GROUPS IN STEM: THEMES FROM FOUR RECENT
NATIONAL ACADEMIES REPORTS 285
B COMPARISON TABLES OF SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING
DEGREES EARNED BY RACE AND ETHNICITY AND
GENDER IN 2011 AND 2019 291
C PROCESS FOR PANEL’S INTERVIEWS 295
D GLOSSARY 301
E COMMITTEE AND STAFF BIOSKETCHES 307

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

Boxes, Figures, and Tables

BOXES
1-1 Statement of Task: Committee on Advancing Diversity, Equity,
Inclusion, and Antiracism in 21st Century STEMM Organizations, 20
1-2 Race Categories from the U.S. Census Bureau, 24

3-1 What Is Race? What Is Ethnicity? 67

5-1 Finding Community on Social Media, 133

8-1 Key Terms and Definitions, 222

8-2 Black Women, Natural Hair, and Discrimination, 237

FIGURES
1-1 Diagram illustrating the nested relationship between history and
society, STEMM organizations, groups and teams, and individuals, 28

3-1 U.S. Census categories used over history, 70

3-2 U.S. population trends by race and ethnicity, 2010–2019, 75
3-3 U.S. annual population changes by race and ethnicity per year,
2010–2020, 76
3-4 Racial and ethnic compositions of U.S. population by age, 78
3-5 Total fall enrollment in degree-granting postsecondary institutions
by race/ethnicity, 79

xv

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xvi BOXES, FIGURES, AND TABLES

3-6 Representation of racial and ethnic groups in S&E degree

recipients, 2018, 80
3-7 Science and engineering associate’s degree attainment by race and
ethnicity from 2011 and 2019, 82
3-8 Proportion of U.S. population and S&E doctorates who identify
as Black or African American, American Indian or Alaska Native,
and Latine or Hispanic American, 83
3-9 Degree attainment by persons from underrepresented racial and
ethnic groups in different STEMM disciplines, 85
3-10 Individuals employed in S&E occupations in the United States,
1960–2019, 87
3-11 Employed adults, by workforce, educational attainment, and race
or ethnicity, 2019, 89
3-12 Health and social assistance workers by detailed industry, 2019, 90
3-13 Individuals employed in S&E occupations in the United States,
1960–2019, 90
3-14 Employed women with their highest degree in an S&E field by
race or ethnicity and broad occupation, 2019, 91
3-15 Salaries by gender, race, and ethnicity for workers in STEM
occupations, 92

5-1 Minoritized individuals’ responses to facing racial bias, 127

6-1 Trends in White’s attitudes about racial intermarriage, 172

6-2 Change and predicted change in implicit and explicit attitudes from
2007 to 2020: observed monthly weighted averages (2007–2016) of
implicit association test (IAT) D scores (implicit attitudes; top two
rows) and explicit-preference scores (explicit attitudes; bottom two
rows), as well as forecasts of the autoregressive-integrated-moving-
average (ARIMA) model (2017–2020), 178

8-1 Model of organizational culture, 223

9-1 A summarized model of the levels of the research agenda, 266

TABLES
S-1 Examples of Culture Change Frameworks for Organizations, 6

3-1 Persons Employed in Different Science and Engineering Professions

by Race and Ethnicity and Discipline, 88

8-1 Summaries of Culture Change Frameworks for Organizations, 253

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BOXES, FIGURES, AND TABLES xvii

B-1 Comparison of Science and Engineering Associate’s Degrees

Earned by Race and Ethnicity and Gender in 2011 and 2019, 291
B-2 Comparison of Science and Engineering Bachelor’s Degrees Earned
by Race and Ethnicity and Gender in 2011 and 2019, 292
B-3 Comparison of Science and Engineering Master’s Degrees Earned
by Race and Ethnicity and Gender in 2011 and 2019, 292
B-4 Comparison of Science and Engineering Doctoral Degrees Earned
by Race and Ethnicity and Gender in 2011 and 2019, 293

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

Preface

This report provides no simple answers to racial obstacles that date

back beyond the origins of American history. The authors—a consensus
committee of experts appointed by the National Academies of Sciences,
Engineering, and Medicine—were selected for their deep engagement on
issues of antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion in Science, Technology,
Engineering, Mathematics, and Medicine (STEMM); as such, we are well
aware of the challenge in using evidence-based action to remedy unfair
systems, structures, and institutions that advantage some and disadvantage
others on the basis of race and ethnicity. Undaunted, we tackled our charge
to identify racist and biased conditions that create systemic barriers and
impede the full talent pool of our nation from pursuing and advancing in
STEMM careers. This report recommends actionable strategies, based on
the scientific evidence reviewed herein and based on the lived experiences of
practicing STEMM scientists, engineers, and medical professionals.
Readers of this report may wonder why the National Academies was
asked to focus on structural racism, as opposed to racism at individual
and intrapersonal levels. As this report shows, based on decades of re-
search and analysis, racial disparities in STEMM careers do not rest on
individual deficiency in candidates or even primarily on the individual rac-
ism of institutional and organizational gatekeepers. Racism is embedded in
our society. For example, wealth disparities across generations contribute
to and result from segregated neighborhoods; segregated neighborhoods
contribute to unequal school quality, which deprives whole student cohorts
of the opportunity to consider, prepare, and enter a career in STEMM. Fur-
ther, racial wealth gaps affect families’ ability to pay for STEMM college

xix

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

xx PREFACE

(preparation, extracurricular experiences, tuition, and living expenses). Thus,

creating conducive contexts will require structural changes, as recommended
in this report.
Another example of structural racism addressed in this report rests in
organizations’ arrangements to monitor, incentivize, and value diversity,
equity, and inclusion. It is incumbent on organizations and institutions to
address racial biases that individual decisionmakers are unlikely to notice,
identify, or prioritize because, as the evidence shows, they may not recog-
nize how their own, perhaps inadvertent, individual decisions contribute to
overall patterns. The report reviews the diversity science that demonstrates
and the lived experiences that exemplify how structural racism requires ac-
tive antiracist change at a system level. This report’s formal conclusions and
recommendations are bold, actionable, and, we believe, necessary.
This report was many years in the making, with many voices demand-
ing its necessity. In July of 2015, members of the Board on Behavioral,
Cognitive, and Sensory Sciences (chaired by Susan Fiske) sought funding
to examine and understand police split-second choices to shoot unarmed
Black men. Unfortunately, these efforts did not raise sufficient interest.
However, in the summer of 2020, following the murder of George Floyd
and the Black Lives Matter protests, federal agencies and private founda-
tions prioritized sponsoring a National Academies report on antiracism and
diversity, equity, and inclusion, focused on STEMM. With Congresswoman
Eddie Bernice Johnson’s call for the National Academies to act on this
topic, it was an idea whose time had finally come.
Independently, the National Academies’ Roundtable on Black Men and
Black Women in Science, Engineering, and Medicine, founded and chaired
by Cato Laurencin (and on which Gilda Barabino serves as a member),
sponsored dozens of events on this and related topics. Among other pri-
orities, members of the Roundtable underscored the need to include lived
experience as well as social and behavioral science in an examination of
antiracism and diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEMM organizations.
As co-chairs, we bring different qualifications and experiences but a
shared drive to work together to guide the study process. We offer our
extended bios in Appendix E to illustrate with our respective lived experi-
ences the report’s major themes: how the history of race impinges on the
present-day disparities; the lived experience of race from both majority and
minoritized groups, starting with school and going through careers, with
increases in gatekeeping power; and discovering how systems affect indi-
viduals, small groups and teams, and organizations. The systems in place
disadvantage some, to the advantage of others. Thus, we both seek to make
the systems more equitable.
Each of the committee members has a distinctive biography and path
to this report (see Appendix E). Just as no single path leads to a STEMM

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PREFACE xxi

career, each committee member’s unique experiences, scholarship, leader-

ship, and service led them to this important work and added immeasurably
to the report. So, too, the talented and dedicated National Academies staff,
led by Layne Scherer and supported by Emily A. Vargas, kept us alert, or-
ganized, and on track for the high-speed journey from start to finish. We
are grateful for the opportunity to offer evidence-based and experience-
sensitive recommendations at this crucial juncture in our nation’s route to
antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEMM. On the way, we have
encountered some who wonder about our approach.
Our work began with a thorough review of the literature to illuminate
how historical policies, practices, and laws can have lasting effects. At the
direction of our Statement of Task, the committee included lived experiences
as an essential component of the evidence base. We reviewed the scientific
evidence of how the roles of managers, decisionmakers, and gatekeepers
contribute to and perpetuate patterns and practices that inhibit STEMM
diversity, with intent or unconsciously. Finally, we examined rigorous stud-
ies of racial discrimination and the diversity science literatures, including the
bases for inaccurate assumptions about interest in STEMM among margin-
alized racial and ethnic groups. Thus, the report shows that patterns exist in
the data and are not matters of opinion or moral judgements.
We recognize that term racism may challenge some readers. The com-
mittee uses this term because it is scientifically accurate (as demonstrated
in this report) and included in the committee’s charge, even if it makes
readers uncomfortable. Despite the discomfort that accompanies complex
and enduring social, cultural problems, we encourage readers to engage the
evidence in this report and view the committee’s evidence-based recommen-
dations to make STEMM settings more diverse, inclusive, and equitable—
and more antiracist.
This report is written for those who aim for STEMM but encounter
systemic obstacles—and for those in a position to remove the barriers and
pave the way forward.
Gilda A. Barabino, Co-Chair
Susan T. Fiske, Co-Chair
Committee on Advancing Antiracism,
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Stem Organizations

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Acronyms

AAMC American Association of Medical Colleges

AANAPISI Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving
Institutions
AAPI Asian American and Pacific Islander
ACE American Council on Education

HBCUs Historically Black Colleges and Universities

HBLGUs Historically Black Land-Grant Institutions
HSIs Hispanic Serving Institutions
HWLGUs Historically White Land-Grant Institutions

IRB Institutional Review Board

MSIs Minority Serving Institutions

NCES National Center for Education Statistics

NCSES National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics
NDB National Institutes of Health’s Data Book
NIH National Institutes of Health
NSF National Science Foundation

OMB Office of Management and Budget

PI Principal Investigator
PWI Predominantly White Institution

xxiii

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

xxiv ACRONYMS

SEM Science, Engineering, and Medicine

STEM Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
STEMM Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, and
Medicine

TCUs Tribal Colleges and Universities

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Summary

Science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medical (STEMM)1

organizations2 in the United States, like all organizations, operate within
the broader context of the nation’s history, policies, and contemporary
societal norms. While the connections between STEMM organizations
and the national context may not seem obvious in day-to-day activities,
they are foundational to the culture and climate of educational and pro-
fessional environments. Recently, the murders of George Floyd, Breonna
Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and Rayshard Brooks led to a critical reckoning
in the United States with its history and the impact of racialized policies.
In the wake of racial justice protests, there has been a groundswell of
pledges from individuals, organizations, and associations to dismantle sys-
temic racism. However, even as countless organizations have made public
statements in support of these efforts, U.S. society as a whole still lacks a
concerted approach to bring about needed sustainable, structural change.
To address the questions raised by STEMM organizations seeking such
change, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

1 The committee and the sponsors agreed to include medicine in the fields to be studied,

so STEM became STEMM. There are instances in this report for which there is only evidence
or data related to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, and in those instances
“STEM” is used.
2 For the purposes of this report, STEMM organizations include universities, nonprofit

organizations, hospitals, and private industry.

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2 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

appointed the Committee on Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and

Inclusion in STEM Organizations.3 The committee was asked to:

• review the research and evidence from lived experience on the ways
in which racism (at the individual and group levels, and through
conditions that create systemic barriers) impedes STEMM careers
for historically minoritized racial and ethnic groups;
• identify principles for sustainable change of organizational culture
to address racism and promote diversity, equity, and inclusion;
these might entail discussion of the role of training, ways to moti-
vate buy-in at all levels of the STEMM organization, and ways to
stay the course in adopting a strategy and goals aimed at address-
ing racism and its role as a barrier to a STEMM career;
• review and synthesize the existing research on methods to improve
the recruitment, retention, and advancement of members of his-
torically minoritized racial and ethnic groups pursuing STEMM
careers; and identify promising policies and practices for changing
existing systems and structures;
• identify examples of effective strategies to advance antiracism in
STEMM organizations, including roles for members within orga-
nizations; and
• define a research agenda to address gaps in knowledge in the evi-
dence base to advance antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion.

To address the statement of task, the National Academies appointed the

committee—including experts in the science of antiracism, diversity, equity,
and inclusion;4 social and cognitive psychology; industrial and organiza-
tional psychology; sociology; and individuals with experience implementing
programs in STEMM organizations.

COMMITTEE APPROACH
The challenges experienced by minoritized people in STEMM are deeply
rooted in history, law, cultural and institutional practices, and interpersonal
biases and assumptions—all factors that must be understood in depth
to discern ways forward. At the same time, it is important to recognize

3 The study was supported by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the Fred Kavli Endowment

Fund, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the Heising-Simons Foundation, National
Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, the Ralph J. Cicerone and Carol M.
Cicerone Endowment for NAS Missions, the Rita Allen Foundation, and the Shanahan Family
Charitable Foundation.
4 See pages 3 and 4 for definitions of antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion.

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SUMMARY 3

that while there may be some shared experiences, these sociocultural fac-
tors differ for different minoritized groups and individuals, precluding
a one-size-fits-all solution. Thus, the committee elected to focus on the
challenges facing Black Americans in STEMM to demonstrate the inquiry
that is required, noting the prominence of work on this topic both within
the Academies and in the broader research community. This focus is in no
way intended to diminish the importance of addressing challenges facing
other minoritized groups, but rather meant to provide guidance for future
work to address their concerns, including a call for additional research that
investigates the unique racialized issues facing these groups in the research
agenda. To the extent that information about Indigenous, Latine,5 Asian
American, and people from other minoritized groups exists in the scientific
literature, it is included as a part of the evidence-base of this report.
To address its charge to review evidence from lived experience on the
ways in which racism impedes STEMM careers for historically minoritized
racial and ethnic groups, the committee leveraged the expertise from the
National Academies’ Roundtable on Black Men and Black Women in SEM,
a panel of leaders focused on increasing the representation, retention, and in-
clusion of Black men and Black women in science, engineering, and medicine.
Structured interviews with members of the Roundtable and other members
of the National Academies who identify as Black or African American criti-
cally contribute to and complement the body of published and peer-reviewed
research evidence on antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEMM
facing Black Americans and are intended to provide important accounts that
illustrate not only the challenges these professionals faced, but also the sup-
port they found helpful in their education and career.
To carry out its work systematically, the committee agreed upon defi-
nitions that reflect the disciplinary research and committee deliberations:

• Antiracism is an active, intentional, and dynamic set of actions that

dismantle and disrupt racism, which is the combination of policies,
practices, attitudes, cultures, and systems that affect individuals,
institutions, and structures unequally and that confer power and
privilege to certain groups over others, defined according to the so-
cial constructions of race and ethnicity (see glossary in Appendix D
for additional definitions).

5In this report, the committee elected to use gender-neutral “Latine” rather than “Latino/s” or

“Latinx.” Latine is a term “created by gender non-binary and feminist communities in Spanish-
speaking countries. The objective of the term is also to remove gender from Spanish, by replacing
it with the gender-neutral Spanish letter E, which can already be found in words like estudiante”
(for more information, see https://elcentro.colostate.edu/about/why-latinx/#:~:text=Latine%20
is%20also%20a%20gender,found%20in%20words%20like%20estudiante).

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4 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

• Diversity is the fair representation of different aspects of human

characteristics, identities, and perspectives in the composition of a
group. Diversity is contextual and benefits from specific definitions
for the areas to which it applies. It can be a product of antiracist
actions as well as a measure against racism.
• Equity is an outcome from fair conditions (policies, practices,
structures, cultures, and norms) in which all individuals and groups
have the opportunities and resources they need for general well-
being or success in specific metrics (such as pay or advancement).
Equity is aligned with justice and may require the systemic redis-
tribution of power, access, and resources. Equity should not be
confused with equality, which is the treatment of all individuals in
the same manner regardless of their starting point.
• Inclusion is the feeling or sense of belonging in an environment,
where all individuals, regardless of and with respect to their back-
grounds, feel that they have a voice and the support for full par-
ticipation in that environment. An inclusive culture is reinforced
with equitable policies, practices, programs, and structures. In an
inclusive environment, leaders take an active role in reflecting,
learning, and listening to all members of the community to sustain
a culture of dignity, respect, and trust.

Although the committee used these definitions to conduct its work, it

recognizes that there are other ways to interpret and define these constructs
and concepts and that they are fluid and likely to change over time.

THE CONTEXT, CULTURE, AND CONSEQUENCES

Today, people from minoritized groups comprise a growing part of
the U.S. population, but that growth has not been reflected in increases
in STEMM education and careers. The evidence shows that minoritized
individuals face numerous systemic barriers, including macro-level policies
and practices that have negatively impacted their accessibility, representa-
tion, and ability to thrive in STEMM careers. Racial biases at the individual
and interpersonal levels also impede STEMM careers for people from
minoritized groups. These biases lead to minoritized people experiencing a
range of adverse consequences in STEMM environments, which generally
spur one of three responses: exiting the field, implementing strategies to
fit in, and/or collectively mobilizing to transform the STEMM environ-
ment. Further barriers can come in the form of gatekeepers—individuals
in institutions or organizations who are in a position to permit or prevent
access to resources—who play an important role in determining who is
and who is not included in STEMM by defining the skills, identities, and

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SUMMARY 5

values necessary for individuals to persevere in these fields (see Chapter 6).
Gatekeepers’ conscious and unconscious biases, cognitive mechanisms, and
social motives may act to keep the status quo intact and inhibit efforts to
promote antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion. While gatekeepers may
seem like unlikely change agents, the committee recognizes them as a key
part of a multi-tiered strategy for change. Finally, even when diversity is
increased in STEMM organizations, there can be challenges that hinder the
success of minoritized individuals. Scientific research increasingly relies on
individual scientists training or working together in small teams, sometimes
referred to as “team science.” As calls to increase team science continue,
many STEMM organizations and professionals may be motivated to pro-
vide support for diverse teams. In such circumstances, careful consideration
should be given to the evidence on the dynamics of diverse teams and com-
mon challenges that can arise.
Recent research on the ways that unexamined bias or racism affect
and operate in STEMM environments offers promising directions. As this
report describes, the evidence calls for leadership and decisionmakers to
interrogate the values that guide organizational operations and interrogate,
too, how these values manifest in norms, policies, and practices, and, con-
sequently, to make cultural and operational changes that reflect antiracist
values. Values take tangible form in the ways that leaders allocate resources,
such as funding, personnel, and professional development opportunities
across the organization. Interrogating the underlying values in candidate
selection criteria, for example, can identify where bias appears and provide
opportunities for leaders, human resource directors, and other decision-
makers to implement more equitable processes.
Finally, this report emphasizes that the concepts of antiracism, diver-
sity, equity, and inclusion are not goals for which a simple checklist will
indicate success. Rather, they are goals that reflect culture change, accom-
plished by the creation of environments that focus on inclusive excellence,
where all participants have access to educational and professional opportu-
nities, feel included, and have the resources to actualize their full potential.
In order to do this, STEMM organizations will require ongoing leadership,
resources, and commitment to ensure that these values become part of an
intentionally maintained organizational culture. Leadership and managers
of STEMM organizations should anticipate resistance to changes in the
allocations of resources, as shifts to behavioral norms and expectations on
campus and in the workplace can result in confusion and other emotional
reactions. Since there is no single way to approach culture change, this
report provides nine frameworks that outline different perspectives to the
process (see Table S-1).
To build and sustain antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion,
STEMM organizations need to review, evaluate, and revise their policies

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6 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

TABLE S-1 Examples of Culture Change Frameworks for Organizations

The Antiracist Organization: Dismantling Systemic Racisms in the Workplace
Daniels, S. (2022)

Four-Factor RACE Model:

1. Recognize the Problem: Do you understand the people most impacted by racism?
2. Analyze the Impact: Organizational analyses should include both quantitative and
qualitative data
3. Commit to Action: Address leaders who are resistant to change
4. Empower for Change: Assist people in feeling a part of the change

How to Promote Racial Equity in the Workplace

Livingston, R. (2020)

Five-Step Plan:
1. Problem Awareness: Do I understand what the problem is?
2. Root-Cause Analysis: Where does the problem come from?
3. Empathy: Do I care about the problem and the people who are impacted?
4. Strategy: Do I know how to correct the problem?
5. Sacrifice: Am I willing to do so?

Elevating Equity: The Real Story of Diversity and Inclusion

Bersin, J. (2020)

Five Essential Strategies for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Excellence:
1. Listen, hear, and act (listening to employees is a top driver of excellence)
2. Strengthen Human Resource capabilities in all roles (DEI must permeate the talent
supply chain from hiring, to promoting and helping people grow)
3. Engage senior leader commitment (diversity training has limited value, but leadership
commitment can make a big difference)
4. Set goals and measure success
5. Create accountability for results (drive DEI across the entire ecosystem)

Advancing Black Leaders

Roberts, L.M., et al. (2019)

1. Move away from the business case and toward a moral one
2. Encourage open conversations about race
3. Revamp DEI programs—promote sustained focus on racial equity
4. Manage career development across all life stages (from early in one’s career and
throughout)

Getting Serious About Diversity: Enough Already with the Business Case
Ely, R.J., and Thomas, D.A. (2020)

1. Promote the Learning and Effectiveness Paradigm

2. Build talent
3. Actively work against discrimination and subordination
4. Embrace a wide range of styles and voices
5. Make culture differences a resource for learning

continued

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SUMMARY 7

TABLE S-1 Continued

Organizational Transformation Is an Emotional Journey
White, A., Smets, M., and Canwell, A. (2022)

1. Address the unsustainable status quo

2. Detach from the status quo
3. Develop a purposeful vision
4. Lead emotional transformation
5. Include both the rational and emotional
6. Align key performance indicators, funding, resources, and people
7. Make transformation the new normal

AAC&U’s Committing to Equity and Inclusive Excellence: Campus Guide for Self-Study
and Planning
AAC&U (2015)

Action steps:
1. Know who your students are and will be
2. Commit to frank, hard dialogues about the climate for minoritized students on your
campus, with the goal of affecting a paradigm shift in language and actions
3. Invest in culturally responsive practices that lead to the success of minoritized
students
4. Set and monitor equity goals and devote aligned resources to achieve them
5. Develop and actively pursue a clear vision and goals for achieving high-quality
learning
6. Expect and prepare all students to produce culminating or signature work
7. Provide support to help students develop guided plans to achieve essential learning
outcomes, prepare for and complete signature work, and connect college with
careers
8. Identify high-impact practices best suited to your students and your institution’s
quality framework
9. Ensure that essential learning outcomes are addressed and high-impact practices are
incorporated across all programs
10. Make student achievement—specifically, minoritized student achievement—visible
and valued

From Equity Talk to Equity Walk: Expanding Practitioner Knowledge for Racial Justice in
Higher Education
McNair, T.B., et al. (2020)

1. Start asking about why these inequities exist

2. Start to question privilege and biases in the systems and structures that perpetuate
inequities, specifically racial inequities
3. Stop using language that masks who the students really are
4. Stop believing that the accepted norm should be from the dominant culture’s
viewpoint

continued

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8 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

TABLE S-1 Continued

Equity in Science: Representation, Culture, and the Dynamics of Change in Graduate
Education
Posselt, J.R. (2020)

Moving Scientific Institutions Toward Equity:

1. Acknowledge the racialized and gendered beliefs, standard practices, and power
dynamics that are root causes of inequities
2. Coordinate systemic actions in the multiple contexts and levels at which equity is
created or impeded
3. Leverage bottom-up, top-down, and inside-out forces for change
4. Equity-minded learning and retooling for individuals and organizations, facilitated by
cultural translators who span social, professional, and/or disciplinary boundaries
5. Cultivate, expect, and reward the use of knowledge, skills, and labor that support
equity as new generations are trained and enter the labor market

How Colleges Change: Understanding, Leading, and Enacting Change

Kezar, A. (2013)

Systemic institutional change is best achieved by converging bottom-up (“grass roots”

initiatives) and top-down (individuals in positions of power) efforts. Three phases of culture
change:
1. Mobilize: Develop initial awareness of the need for change (data); create vision;
galvanize support for change through discussion; mobilize leadership and collective
action
2. Implement: Choose strategies; pilot; change policies; select process and structures;
identify professional development; evaluate results and reorient; celebrate successes;
scale-up or down
3. Institutionalize: Disseminate results; review; commit; persist

and practices to create educational and working environments that increase

access for people from minoritized groups. While many interventions have
focused on “fixing the person,” the committee and this report encourage a
multi-tiered strategy that calls for change at the institutional and team lev-
els. The combination of removing barriers for entry and for participation,
while implementing practices that convey belonging, will allow a STEMM
organization to move from broadening participation by the numbers to
fostering a culture of inclusion, thriving, and success.

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

The committee’s conclusions and recommendations are presented in the
order that they appear in the report. Readers are encouraged to refer to the
individual chapters for additional context and supporting evidence. While
addressing each recommendation in isolation may produce some change,
the committee believes that the multi-tiered, multi-faceted approach to
implementing the recommendations concurrently, as discussed throughout
the report, will achieve the greatest possible impact.

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SUMMARY 9

Addressing Structural Racism and Institutional Racism in STEMM

CONCLUSION 2-1: The history of systemic racism in the United States,
including both written laws and policies and a culture of practices and
beliefs, has harmed Black, Indigenous, Latine, Asian American, and
other people from minoritized racial and ethnic groups that continue
to this day. This history provides critical context for understanding
the unequal representation of minoritized populations in science, tech-
nology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine higher education and
workplaces.

CONCLUSION 2-2: The policies, programs, and practices of Historically

Black Colleges and Universities and Tribal Colleges and Universities are
examples of providing intentional and culturally responsive student and
faculty support. Predominantly White institutions of higher education
and other science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine
organizations can look to these institutions as guides and adopt these
systems to increase support for people from minoritized racial and ethnic
groups.

RECOMMENDATION 2-1: Federal funding agencies, private philan-

thropies, and other grantmaking organizations should provide increased
opportunities for grants, awards, and other forms of support to increase
understanding of how the policies, programs, and practices of Histori-
cally Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Tribal Colleges and
Universities (TCUs) support students and faculty. Notably, one issue
for further investigation should be understanding the core principles of
historically-based minority serving institution (MSI)-based programs and
how to translate them to predominantly White institutions of higher edu-
cation and other science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medi-
cine organizations. In addition, predominately white institutions should
seek sustainable partnerships with all MSIs (HBCUs, TCUs, Hispanic
Serving Institutions, and Asian American, Native American, and Pacific
Islander Serving Institutions).

Improving Population and Demographic Data

CONCLUSION 3-1: Although the representation of minoritized persons
in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics higher education is
increasing, the collective attainment of science and engineering degrees for
Black people, Indigenous people, and Latine people does not reflect their
corresponding growth in the U.S. population.

CONCLUSION 3-2: Currently-available data on students who intend to

study science, technology, engineering, and mathematics in their under-
graduate degrees leave out important information on educational out-
comes including persistence, completion, and transfer to other degree
programs.

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10 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

RECOMMENDATION 3-1: To understand the relative persistence of

students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM)
higher education, data collection organizations, such as the National
Center for Science and Engineering Statistics and the National Center
for Education Statistics, should collect and share online with the public
information on the demographics of students entering college planning to
study STEM and their subsequent educational outcomes, disaggregated
by race and ethnicity, gender, and field of study, including:
• How many complete a STEM degree,
• How many switch to and complete a non-STEM degree, and
• How many leave college without a degree.

Understanding the Lived Experience and Other “Ways of Knowing”

CONCLUSION 4-1: Oral history and other means of exploring the lived
experiences of scholars from historically and systemically minoritized
groups in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine
offer valuable insights that supplement findings from other kinds of re-
search. These methods should be continued and expanded.

Leveraging STEMM Professionals and Organizations

CONCLUSION 5-1: There are a few noteworthy ways to describe how
people from historically and systemically minoritized groups respond to
racism in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine
(STEMM) educational and professional environments. These responses can
be loosely grouped as follows: exiting the field, implementing strategies to
fit in, and collectively mobilizing to transform the STEMM environment.

RECOMMENDATION 5-1: Leaders and gatekeepers of science, technol-

ogy, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) organizations,
higher education, and human resource offices can improve minoritized
people’s individual and interpersonal experiences in STEMM educational
and professional environments through the following practices:
1. 
Improve numerical diversity through the admission, hiring,
and inclusion of minoritized individuals at all levels of an
organization:
a. 
Establish information systems across institutions using com-
mon metrics for comparison purposes to collect data, track
success, and identify areas of numeric disparities. Results
should be transparent, up-to-date, and accurate.
b. 
Hire more minoritized individuals, especially in positions
where minoritized role models are often missing (e.g., leader-
ship, mentorship), with the aim of building a critical mass.

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SUMMARY 11

c. 
Determine if the institutional diversity statement reflects the
reality of the institutional environment, and directly address
discrepancies.
d. 
Adapt curriculum, physical environment, media stories, and
other content to incorporate more examples of minoritized
role models.

RECOMMENDATION 5-2: Leaders and gatekeepers of science, technol-

ogy, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) organizations,
higher education, and human resource offices can improve minoritized
people’s individual and interpersonal experiences in STEMM educational
and professional environments through the following practices:
1. 
Create and provide continued investment in evidence-based pro-
grams that connect minoritized individuals to ingroup peers,
institutional resources, and professional networks. These invest-
ments require significant expertise in their designs and execution,
and they may not yield immediate results; however, they can
increase a sense of welcome and belonging through the ability
to connect with individuals from similar racial and ethnic back-
grounds. Types of programs may include the following types of
resources:
a. Summer bridge programs.
b. Living-learning communities.
c. Peer and near-peer mentorship programs.
d. 
Active work to form relationships with national-level affinity
societies (e.g., Society for the Advancement of Chicanos
and Native Americans in STEM, National Society for Black
Engineers, American Indian Science and Engineering Society,
etc.), create local chapters, and provide opportunities for
minoritized individuals to connect with them.

RECOMMENDATION 5-3: Leaders and gatekeepers of science, technol-

ogy, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) organizations,
higher education, and human resource offices can improve minoritized
people’s individual and interpersonal experiences in STEMM educational
and professional environments through the following practices:
1. 
Create and provide continued investment in programs that facili-
tate working relationships between minoritized individuals and
high-status professionals:
a. 
Create and invest in mentorship programs, while hiring more
minoritized faculty.
b. 
Conduct additional research examining the roles of other
high-status individuals such as champions and sponsors on
fostering STEMM careers for minoritized individuals.

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12 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

RECOMMENDATION 5-4: Leaders and gatekeepers of science, technol-

ogy, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) organizations,
higher education, and human resource offices can improve minoritized
people’s individual and interpersonal experiences in STEMM educational
and professional environments through the following practices:
1. 
Develop interpersonal environments and institutional norms that
promote inclusion, dignity, belonging, and affirmations of kindness:
a. 
Actively recognize minoritized individuals’ contributions to
STEMM across multiple mediums such as portraits, media
stories, awards, etc.
b. 
De-center White professional norms in culture, dress, and
appearance.
c. 
Conduct additional research examining which features of the
physical environment are most likely to promote sustainable
antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEMM.
d. 
Emphasize and recognize the importance of communal val-
ues in STEMM work.
e. 
Redesign STEMM curriculum to incorporate Indigenous
ways of knowing, and actively involve Indigenous communi-
ties in the development of this process.
f. 
Create cultural norms that communicate the strengths and
struggles of minoritized groups.
g. 
Provide access to culturally responsive mental health provid-
ers or resources with experience in addressing racial stress,
trauma, and aggressions for minoritized individuals who have
experienced distress and would like to pursue these options.
h. 
Conduct biannual “cultural audits” to determine if the insti-
tution is fostering an environment of inclusion.

RECOMMENDATION 5-5: Leaders and gatekeepers of science, technol-

ogy, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) organizations,
higher education, and human resource offices can improve minoritized
people’s individual and interpersonal experiences in STEMM educational
and professional environments through the following practices:
a. 
Use evidence-based design and implementation practices to build
curriculum initiatives that increase access to discovery, including,
for example, course-based research experiences.

Addressing Individual Bias and Persistent Inequality

CONCLUSION 6-1: Like other people, gatekeepers often have attitudi-
nal biases, cognitive mechanisms, and social motives that keep the White
status quo intact. Racial bias is not only more automatic, but also more
ambivalent and ambiguous than most people think. That means that indi-
viduals, including gatekeepers, may not be able to monitor their own bias
impartially, and may unwittingly perpetuate it.

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SUMMARY 13

RECOMMENDATION 6-1: Leaders of science, technology, engineer-

ing, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) organizations and directors of
human resource offices can improve minoritized people’s individual and
interpersonal experiences in STEMM educational and professional envi-
ronments through the following practices:
Create organizational-level or unit-level information systems to
• 
collect data on the decisions of gatekeepers. Data collected may
include, but not be limited to hiring, admissions, promotion,
tenure, advancement, and awards. Data should be examined in
the aggregate to identify patterns of bias exhibited by gatekeepers
based on race and ethnicity.
• Include responsibilities related to advancing antiracism, diversity,
equity, and inclusion in leadership role descriptions and require-
ments for advancement into management.
• Develop systems with more widely shared, inclusive decisionmak-
ing processes and shared authority over the allocation of resources,
which should limit the negative consequences that occur when
gatekeeping is concentrated in a select few individuals.

CONCLUSION 6-2: Additional research is needed to examine the psy-

chological impacts of perpetuating racism from the perspective of the
gatekeeper in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine.

Understanding the Challenges and Leveraging

the Strengths of Diverse Work Teams
CONCLUSION 7-1: For teams in science, technology, engineering, math-
ematics, and medicine organizations, increased numeric representation of
minoritized individuals is critical; however, numeric diversity alone is an
insufficient condition to yield positive team performance. Conditions that
foster inclusion are also essential.

RECOMMENDATION 7-1: Gatekeepers who manage teams, including

but not limited to principal investigators and heads of laboratories and
research groups, should be intentional about creating the following con-
ditions. These can support positive team performance outcomes and help
reduce instances of interpersonal bias.
Increase the numeric representation of minoritized individu-
• 
als on teams, by working toward building a critical mass, a
necessary but not sufficient attribute of building an inclusive
environment.
Create team norms that centralize a positive climate, in which it is
• 
known that all team members, including minoritized individuals,
are supported, heard, and respected.
Develop interdependent teams in which everyone is cooperating
• 
and working toward an established common goal.

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14 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

Ensure that team members feel psychologically safe on the team,

• 
and if not, identify the specific factors that are preventing psy-
chological safety and work to address them.
Work to promote equal status among team members. Remove
• 
asymmetric power differentials among team members, especially
between White team members and minoritized team members.
Incorporate greater diversity in developing team roles, and make
• 
sure all team members have clear roles and expectations, in-
cluding access to professional development and pathways to
advancement.

Understanding Organizations and the Role of Leadership in

Developing a Culture of Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
CONCLUSION 8-1: Although standardized tests, such as the SAT, GRE,
and MCAT, may not be biased as instruments, they often replicate the edu-
cational inequities endured by students from historically minoritized racial
and ethnic groups, and they are not consistent predictors of academic and
professional success. Reliance on standardized test scores can exacerbate
racial inequities in admissions and financial aid decisions for undergradu-
ate, graduate, and medical programs.

CONCLUSION 8-2: Racial discrimination continues to be a significant

factor in hiring processes and wages. In terms of hiring, Black people are
less likely to receive callbacks than less-credentialed White people. In terms
of wages, across occupations Black people and Latine people have lower
median weekly earnings than their White and Asian counterparts. Analyses
of salary levels and start-up packages by race/ethnicity for science, technol-
ogy, engineering, mathematics, and medicine faculty are lacking but recent
data suggest that White men receive higher salaries and larger start-up
packages than scientists who are women or who are not White.

CONCLUSION 8-3: People from minoritized racial and ethnic groups

encounter significant race-related barriers in academia that affect their
career advancement and retention, including but not limited to bias in
tenure and promotion, challenges to align with the dominant culture, and
everyday discrimination from colleagues and students including microag-
gressions and tokenism.

CONCLUSION 8-4: Lack of diversity within organizations can limit

access to career resources for people from minoritized racial and ethnic
groups, such as mentorship, sponsorship, and professional networks, that
could support their development.

RECOMMENDATION 8-1: Organizational leaders should take action to

redress both individual bias and discrimination as well as organizational
processes that reproduce harm and negative outcomes for people from

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SUMMARY 15

minoritized racial and ethnic groups at critical points of access and ad-
vancement. This action should include a review of evaluation criteria and
decisionmaking practices (i.e., in admissions, hiring and wage-setting, and
promotion and advancement) to understand if and to what degree existing
standards perpetuate underlying racial and ethnic inequities.
Admissions offices at colleges and universities, as well as admis-
• 
sions decisionmakers in graduate programs, should assess the
alignment or divergence of their current admissions policies and
criteria with values of antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion,
and develop holistic admissions strategies that offer a systematic,
contextualized evaluation of applicants on multiple dimensions.
Hiring managers, directors of human resources, and supervisors
• 
should measure and review the application, offer, and acceptance
rates in their organization, as well as the salaries, resource pack-
ages, and academic tracks and titles of new hires, for instances of
racial and ethnic discrimination in the hiring process. As a result,
these leaders should, as appropriate, implement proactive out-
reach and recruitment to increase applications from people from
minoritized racial and ethnic groups, trainings and resources to
eliminate bias in the hiring process for managers, and updated
policies to reduce bias and discrimination in setting wages.
Directors of human resources and supervisors should measure,
• 
evaluate, and address the presence of bias and discrimination
in rewards, key assignments and promotion, the proportion of
people from historically minoritized backgrounds leaving their
positions and their reasons for doing so, and the access to cultur-
ally relevant mentorship for students and employees.

CONCLUSION 8-5: The process of cultural change toward antiracism,

diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEMM organizations can be complex,
multi-layered, and uneven in its progress due to the significant demands
from leadership and participants. Cultural change around antiracism,
diversity, equity, and inclusion, can involve personal reflection and chal-
lenges to individual beliefs, all of which cause discomfort.

RECOMMENDATION 8-2: Leaders, managers, and human resource de-

partments in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine
organizations should anticipate resistance to antiracism, diversity, equity,
and inclusion efforts and investigate with rigorous empirical tools, the
impacts of training on different types of antiracism, diversity, equity, and
inclusion outcomes (hiring, climate, promotion, retention, leadership roles,
resource allocation).

RECOMMENDATION 8-3: Presidents, chief executive officers, and lead-

ers of science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine or-
ganizations, including those in higher education and the private sector,

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16 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

should use a framework (such as those listed below) to evaluate the

institution’s values and norms and identify specific ways to address norms
that impede diversity and promote a culture that is genuinely accessible
and supportive to all. These top-level leaders should work with managers,
supervisors, and other mid-level leaders who influence the local culture
within organizations and can be a critical part of implementation. The
evaluation should include review of:
• Institutional policies and practices for instances of bias with
regard to race and ethnicity;
• Policies and practices for entrance into the organization (admissions,
hiring, or nomination), advancement (promotion and tenure), and
other rewards;
• Analysis of resource allocation by race and ethnicity such as wages
and bonuses, mentorship, professional development opportunities,
physical materials or assets, and other items or forms of support;
• Mentorship, training, and professional development opportunities
to build skills specific to supporting Black students, Indigenous
students, and students and trainees from historically minoritized
racial and ethnic groups;
• Culturally-aware mentorship and management training for super-
visors, administrators, and other leaders; and
• The results of regular climate surveys to evaluate the working
conditions and environment.

CONCLUSION
The release of this report coincides with a growing awareness of the persistent
challenges of racism, diversity, equity, and inclusion and with an increased interest
in addressing these issues in STEMM. The scientific evidence and lived experiences
presented in this report offer critical insights and provide the strong foundation for
the committee’s conclusions and recommendations. Taken together, this information
provides a clear pathway for STEMM organizations, institutions, and professionals
to engage in sustainable and structural changes required to advance ADEI.

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

Introduction

Every individual, regardless of race, ethnicity, or country of origin,

deserves the opportunity to pursue an education or career in science, tech-
nology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) in a welcoming,
supportive, and antiracist environment. Yet despite significant investments
by federal, state, and local governments, philanthropies, and the private
sector to address diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEMM organizations,
there are still substantial barriers that produce inequitable opportunities
and outcomes. As a result, Black people, Indigenous people, Latine1 people,
Asian American people, and people from other systematically minoritized
racial and ethnic groups face inequities in STEMM higher education and
the workforce. Black people, for example, account for 11 percent of all jobs
but only nine percent of STEMM jobs, while Latine and Hispanic individu-
als account for 17 percent of all jobs but only eight percent of STEMM
jobs (Fry, 2021). Of all medical residents, only 7.8 percent identified as
Hispanic, 5.8 percent identified as Black, and less than one percent identi-
fied as American Indian, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, or other Pacific
Islander (American Association of Medicial Colleges, 2021).
The economic prosperity of the United States and that of its residents
depends on the nation’s continued success in STEMM. The Bureau of Labor
Statistics project that by 2030 employment in science, technology, engineer-
ing, and mathematics (STEM)2 occupations will increase by 10.5 percent

1 This
term is used in the report to represent Latine and Hispanic people, except in instances
where the data and research use “Hispanic” specifically.

17

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18 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

and in medical occupations by 16 percent, compared to only 7.5 percent for

non-STEM occupation (BLS, 2022). STEM jobs3 have higher-than-average
wages than non-STEM jobs—$95,420 versus $40,120 in 2021 (BLS,
2022)—and employment rates that are more resistant to economic shocks;
unemployment in STEM jobs reached nine percent in 2020, for example,
versus 16 percent for non-STEM jobs (Board, 2021). This makes pursu-
ing careers in STEM fields highly attractive. However, the cumulative and
compounding effects of an array of racialized societal factors—including
the history, culture, ideology, and interactions of institutions and policies
that systematically disadvantage people from minoritized groups—create
substantial barriers that make it difficult for almost half of the nation’s
population to join and thrive in the STEM workforce.
Challenges, however, begin long before people from systematically
minoritized groups enter the workforce or higher education programs.
As early as fourth grade, reading and math scores for Black students, for
example, lag behind those of White and Asian students (National Center
for Education Statistics, 2022a,b). This gap is correlated, at least in part,
to a school’s racial composition, where the achievement of Black students
is lower in schools with a higher percentage of Black students compared
to those who attend schools with a lower percentage of Black students
(Bohrnstedt, 2015). A similar gap exists for Hispanic students (Hemphill
and Vanneman, 2011). By eighth grade, 85 percent of White students have
passed algebra one, a milestone in STEMM preparedness, compared to 65
percent of Black students and 72 percent of Latine students (Office for Civil
Rights, 2018). In postsecondary education, Black, Hispanic, and White stu-
dents declare STEM majors at roughly the same rate (Xie, 2015; Griffith,
2010), but while 58 percent of White students earn a STEM baccalaureate
degree, only 43 percent of Latine students and 34 percent of Black students
earn a STEM baccalaureate degree, with 40 percent of Black students and
37 percent of Latine students switching out of STEM majors before earning
their degree (Riegle-Crumb et al., 2019).

STUDY ORIGIN AND STATEMENT OF TASK

Over the last 20 years, based on the inequities described above, the
National Academies has convened numerous committees and workshops
and issued over 80 reports exploring various aspects of the need to make

2 While
the committee’s charge is to address antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion in
STEMM, this report also uses the term STEM when data or studies cited only refer to science,
technology, engineering, and mathematics and do not include medicine.
3 These data include employees of all races.

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INTRODUCTION 19

STEMM more equitable, diverse, and inclusive. (See Appendix A for a

summary of previous, related reports.) Common themes that have emerged
from this robust body of work include the need to:

• Develop and institute inclusive leadership practices in STEMM

institutions;
• Foster an environment that provides social and behavioral support
for underrepresented/under-resourced individuals across STEM
education and careers;
• Support and increase pathway programs that focus on underrepre-
sented/under-resourced individuals; and,
• Fortify data collection, evaluation, and accountability of diversity,
equity, and inclusion programs.4

More recently, the National Academies’ Committee on Advancing

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Antiracism in 21st Century STEMM
Organizations, under the auspices of the Board on Behavioral, Cognitive,
and Sensory Sciences and the Board on Higher Education and Workforce,
hosted a national summit that “highlighted how racism operates at dif-
ferent levels in STEMM settings; reviewed policies and practices for con-
fronting systemic racism; and explored ways to advance diversity, equity,
and inclusion in STEMM settings” (the National Academies of Sciences,
Engineering, and Medicine, 2021). The summit also explored “the empiri-
cal and experiential evidence related to the ways in which systemic racism
and other barriers impede STEMM careers for historically minoritized
racial/ethnic groups, and ways to address these barriers” (the National
Academies, 2021).
The summit represented the first step in responding to a letter sent
by Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX), chair of the House
Committee on Science, Space, and Technology. In this letter, Represen-
tative Johnson asked the National Academies to act on research and
policy issues related to “diversity, equity, inclusion, and the racial bi-
ases in the nation’s systems that disadvantage people from minoritized
backgrounds in pursuit of science, engineering, and medical studies and
careers” (the National Academies, 2021). To build on this important
work, the National Academies convened the Committee on Advancing
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Antiracism in 21st Century STEMM
Organizations to review the literature on bias and racism in science,
technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine workplaces; review

4 The National Academies’ collection of publications on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

is available at https://nap.nationalacademies.org/collection/97/diversity-equity-and-inclusion

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20 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

approaches to increase racial and ethnic diversity, equity, and inclusion

in STEMM organizations (e.g., universities, nonprofit organizations, and
industry); offer best policies and practices for diversity, equity, inclusion,
and antiracism initiatives; and outline goals for relevant, future research
and for organizational strategic planning. The Statement of Task for the
committee’s work is provided in Box 1-1.
To respond to its Statement of Task, the committee conducted an in-
tensive literature review, convened a series of evidence-gathering activities,
including public workshops with presentations on strategies for diversity
in STEMM organizations, system and culture change theories and prac-
tices, and operationalizing antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion in

BOX 1-1
Statement of Task: Committee on Advancing
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Antiracism
in 21st Century STEMM Organizations

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine will ap-

point an interdisciplinary committee to review the literature on bias and racism
in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, and medicine (STEMM)
workplaces; approaches to increase racial and ethnic diversity, equity, and
inclusion (DEI) in STEM organizations (e.g., universities, nonprofit organizations,
and industry); and offer best policies and practices for DEI and antiracism initia-
tives, as well as outline goals for relevant, future research and for organizational
strategic planning. The committee’s final consensus report will:
Review the research and evidence from lived experience on the ways in
which racism (at the individual and group level and conditions that create sys-
temic barriers) impedes STEMM careers for historically minoritized racial and
ethnic groups;
Identify principles for sustainable organizational culture change to address
racism and promote DEI; including discussion of the role of training, ways to
motivate buy-in at all levels of the STEMM organization, and stay the course in
adopting a strategy and goals aimed at addressing racism and its role as a bar-
rier to a STEMM career;
Review and synthesize the existing research on methods to improve the
recruitment, retention, and advancement of members of historically minoritized
racial and ethnic groups pursuing STEMM careers; and identify promising poli-
cies and practices for changing existing systems and structures;
Identify examples of effective strategies to advance antiracism in STEMM
organizations, including roles for members within organizations; and
Define a research agenda to address gaps in knowledge in the evidence
base to advance antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion.

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INTRODUCTION 21

STEMM organizations. The committee also commissioned four papers on

the f­ollowing topics:

• Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM: A Focus

on Research on Indigenous People
• Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM: A Focus
on Research on Latine and Hispanic People
• Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM: A Focus
on Research on Asian American People
• Challenges and Counter-Arguments to Antiracism, Diversity, Equity,
and Inclusion in STEMM

The committee cites data from the first three papers focused on In-
digenous, Latine and Hispanic, and Asian American people in this report,
while the fourth report on challenges and counter-arguments served to
deepen the committee’s understanding of key issues. All four papers can be
found in the report’s public access file on the National Academies website.5
The committee also jointly sponsored a workshop with the National
Academies Roundtable on Black Men and Women in SEM6 during which
presenters shared their lived experiences and expertise in leading antiracist
programs. In addition to being responsive to its charge, the committee
recognized that understanding lived experiences is important and would
complement the scientific literature on diversity, equity, and inclusion.

STUDY APPROACH AND SCOPE

Beginning in fall 2021, the National Academies conducted an exten-
sive nomination and appointment process to assemble the Committee on
Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Orga-
nizations. This included a public call for nominations for experts in diver-
sity science, social and cognitive psychology, industrial and organizational
psychology, sociology, human resources, and higher education, as well
as experienced practitioners who have led diversity, equity, and inclusion
programs. In accordance with the National Academies’ policies, careful
consideration was given to the balance and composition of the committee’s

5 The public access file for this report can be found at https://www8.nationalacademies.org/

pa/ManageRequest.aspx?key=48997
6 The National Academies Roundtable on Black Men and Black Women in SEM is a panel

of leaders focused on increasing the representation, retention, and inclusiveness of Black men
and Black women in science, engineering, and medicine: https://www.nationalacademies.org/
our-work/roundtable-on-black-men-and-black-women-in-science-engineering-and-medicine

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22 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

expertise and experience and a thorough examination of potential conflicts

of interest was conducted to ensure the transparency and integrity of the
study process. Through this process, the committee identified areas where
additional expertise would be needed, and invited additional experts to
present data and research and commission literature reviews to complement
the committee’s expertise.
In its approach to the Statement of Task, the committee carefully
considered the scope and presentation of the complex issues of antiracism,
diversity, equity, and inclusion. The challenges experienced by minoritized
people in STEMM are deeply rooted in history, law, cultural and institu-
tional practices, and interpersonal biases and assumptions—factors that
must be understood in depth to discern ways forward. At the same time,
while there may some shared experiences, these sociocultural factors differ
for different minoritized groups and individuals, precluding a one-size-fits-
all solution. Thus, the committee elected to focus on the challenges facing
Black Americans in STEMM to demonstrate the inquiry that is required,
noting prominence of work on this topic both within the Academies and
in the research community. This focus is in no way intended to diminish
the importance of addressing challenges facing other minoritized groups
but rather to provide guidance for future work to address their concerns,
including a call for additional research that investigates the unique racial-
ized issues facing these groups in the research agenda. When the committee
turned to the National Academies for precedent, it found that the commit-
tee tasked with creating the report Measuring Racial Discrimination (2004)
fulfilled its charge in a similar manner.
With this focus, the committee leveraged the expertise and experience
of the National Academies Roundtable on Black Men and Black Women
in SEM to respond to its charge on reviewing evidence on the “lived ex-
perience,” recognizing that the existing literature may not fully capture
these perspectives. Thus, the committee conducted a series of structured
interviews with Roundtable members to provide illustrative, humanizing
examples to supplement the scientific literature (see Chapter 4). The nar-
ratives provide a window into the impacts of racism, providing a deeper
understanding of the harms that minoritized people experience, as well as
the ways that people find mentorship, support, and other guidance on their
paths from a STEMM education to a career in STEMM.

Definitions and Terminology

To guide its work, the committee identified key concepts and terms
in the Statement of Task that it needed to define, such as STEMM, race,
antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion. Further, the committee sought
to determine which organizations to include in its review.

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INTRODUCTION 23

STEMM and STEMM Organizations

To determine how broadly to define STEMM, the committee referred
to the National Science Foundation’s definition, which includes chemistry,
computer and information science and engineering, engineering, geosci-
ences, life sciences, materials research, mathematical sciences, physics and
astronomy, psychology, social sciences, and STEM education and learning
research (National Science Foundation, n.d.). In addition, the committee
considered fields that rely on middle-skill occupations, which are those that
require significant STEM expertise but do not require a bachelor’s degree
(the National Academies, 2017). Included in this expansive definition of
STEM are skilled technical occupations such as aircraft mechanics and ser-
vice technicians, first-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction
workers, and heavy vehicle and mobile equipment service technicians and
mechanics. To address the second “M” in STEMM, the committee included
fields that employ individuals in the broad range of health care occupations
as defined by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which include health care prac-
titioners, technical occupations, and health care support occupations, such
as medical equipment preparers and pharmacy aids (BLS, 2021).
Next, the committee determined the range of STEMM organizations on
which it would focus, which included universities, STEMM-focused non-
profit organizations, industry, professional societies, hospitals, and medical
centers; however, when the committee conducted its review of the literature,
it did not limit itself to publications focused exclusively on STEMM. The
intent was to capture findings from a broader range of research and think-
ing on antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion. Thus, the committee
hopes that its recommendations and supporting evidence, which are di-
rected at STEMM organizations, will also be relevant and implementable
beyond STEMM organizations.

Race and Ethnicity

Critically, the committee deliberated about how to define and use the
term race, recognizing the complexity and inherent biases associated with
this construct. Ultimately, the committee adopted a definition of race as de-
veloped by researchers and recognized by the Smithsonian (2022), described
in Chapter 3 of the present report:

There exist many different ways to describe race. Many researchers choose
to recognize race as a social construction, “based on observed pheno-
typic manifestations of presumed, underlying genetic differences” (Brown
et al., 1999). The committee, in their deliberations, also referenced the
Smithsonian Institution definition of race: “a human-invented, shorthand
term used to describe and categorize people into various social groups

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24 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

based on characteristics like skin color, physical features, and genetic he-
redity. Race, while not a valid biological concept, is a real social construc-
tion that gives or denies benefits and privileges” (Smithsonian).

The committee also took care to acknowledge the ways in which race,
as well as ethnicity, exist as fluid categories. As social constructs, these
concepts have changed over time, as the Census Bureau notes:

Race and ethnicity categories generally reflect social definitions in the

United States and are not an attempt to define race and ethnicity bio-
logically, anthropologically, or genetically. We recognize that the race and
ethnicity categories include racial, ethnic, and national origins and socio-
cultural groups (BLS, August 2021).

The committee notes that the nature of race in the United States has
evolved since the first census of 1790, as further discussed in Chapter 3;
furthermore, the committee acknowledges that the concept of race will con-
tinue to evolve beyond this report. As such, the committee has agreed upon
set definitions for the purpose of this report. The definitions employed here
are largely based on the 1997 Office of Management and Budget’s defini-
tions for race and ethnicity, used in U.S. Censuses (see Box 1-2). Chapter 3
provides more in-depth explanations of each racial category.

BOX 1-2
Race and Ethnic Categories from the U.S. Census Bureau

• American Indian or Alaska Native: A person having origins in any of the origi-
nal peoples of North and South America (including Central America) and who
maintains tribal affiliation or community attachment.
• Asian: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East,
Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent; for example, Cambodia, China,
India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand, and
Vietnam.
• Black or African American: A person having origins in any of the Black racial
groups of Africa.
• Hispanic or Latino [Latine]: A person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South
or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin, regardless of race.
• Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander: A person having origins in any of
the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific islands.
• White: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the
Middle East, or North Africa

SOURCE: U.S. Census Bureau (2022), https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-

census/decade/2020/planning-management/release/faqs-race-ethnicity.html

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INTRODUCTION 25

The committee also faced the decision about whether to capitalize the
letter “w” in White. Consistent with the National Academies’ practice of
capitalizing the first letter of racial and ethnic designations, the committee
decided to capitalize the “w” in White. While the committee acknowledges
that this may be controversial, it felt that the alternative lowercase “w”
could implicitly affirm that Whiteness is the standard and racial norm,
thus ignoring the way Whiteness functions in institutions and communities.
The committee also carefully considered whether to include other iden-
tities and other dimensions of diversity, such as gender, age, and disability,
as they related to the Statement of Task. The committee came to the con-
sensus that race and ethnicity would be the primary factors and primary
lens of analysis for its work. Despite this specific focus, the committee
acknowledges and recognizes that, consistent with intersectionality theory
(Crenshaw, 1989), individuals belong to multiple identity groups, each as-
sociated with varying structures of privilege, power, and oppression, and
these factors subsequently shape unique experiences, Thus, the report pres-
ents examples in which other identities are included to elucidate findings.
Finally, the committee deliberated extensively on the terms it would
use to discuss people from minoritized groups and those in power within
STEMM contexts. The committee took numerous factors into consider-
ation, including the importance of contemporary context, the acknowl-
edgement of history, terms favored by individual racial and ethnic groups,
the dynamic aspect of language, experiences of mistreatment and racism,
numeric underrepresentation, existing structures and systems of oppression,
the role of power in STEMM, the use of active versus passive language,
the use of nouns versus verbs, the consideration of who is centered (and
who is not), and how to name those in power (i.e., gatekeepers). This care-
ful deliberation yielded consensus on the terminology used in this report:
people from groups who have been systemically minoritized based on their
race or ethnicity, minoritized people, and people from minoritized racial
and ethnic groups.
In certain instances, the committee includes “Black people, Indigenous
people, and Latine people” in advance of these terms to emphasize the spe-
cific and pronounced ways people from these groups have been impacted
by racism. Although the committee acknowledges limitations to the agreed
upon terms, they represent an honest effort to best represent the literature
and the lives of the people represented.

Systemic and Structural Factors

Despite substantial investments in programs aimed at helping people
from systematically minoritized groups enter, persist, succeed, and thrive in
STEMM, significant gaps persist. As this report will show, the root cause of

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26 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

these gaps does not reflect the abilities or interests of individuals. Rather,
they are the result of systemic and structural issues arising from the legacies
of policies and practices designed to disadvantage people from historically
minoritized groups along with institutional cultures that, intentionally or
otherwise, create exclusionary and discriminatory environments based on
biased notions of success and prestige. Indeed, students from systemati-
cally minoritized groups may feel compelled to persist and meet standards
that are inherently biased against them, rather than feel at ease, welcomed,
valued, and respected for who they are.
Past efforts to increase participation from systematically minoritized
groups in STEMM have fallen short. Many such efforts do not acknowl-
edge the historical context of discrimination that minoritized individuals
experience or they do not adequately focus on the policies, processes, and
power structures that create racial and ethnic bias in STEMM. In this re-
port, statistics describing the discrepancies in wages, hiring, degree comple-
tion, and other dimensions illustrate these points, and the report provides
specific descriptions of the populations and characteristics for each statistic.
This report explores the factors that produced system and structural barri-
ers for minoritized groups, such as the historic redlining of predominantly
Black neighborhoods, disproportionate funding of White-majority versus
minority serving land grant institutions, and discouraging Black veterans
from attending college. It examines how systemic and structural issues op-
erate at the organizational, group, individual, and interpersonal levels and
discusses theories of organizational change and practices that have been
successful in changing organizational culture to create diverse, equitable,
and inclusive environments in which everyone can thrive.
However, simply creating diverse, equitable, and inclusive environ-
ments is not sufficient to ensure that historically minoritized groups have
frictionless access to STEMM education and professional pathways. Rather,
organizations and the individuals within them need to be antiracist—to
engage in an active, intentional, and dynamic set of actions that dismantle
and disrupt the policies, practices, attitudes, cultures, and systems that con-
fer power and privilege to White people over others (see Glossary for the
fullest version of the committee’s definition of antiracism). Being antiracist
requires understanding and acknowledging the history of racial disparities
in America, and it requires a daily commitment to fighting racism that each
individual and each institution carries out with intention.

ORGANIZATION OF THE REPORT

This report aims to synthesize the existing body of research on an-
tiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEMM organizations; given
increasing interest in these issues and the growing evidence base, it is

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INTRODUCTION 27

unlikely it will be the last. The report organizes this synthesis into three
distinct parts: establishing the broader context of the issues in the United
States; describing the challenges for STEMM organizations; and proposing
recommendations for change. Throughout, the committee does not present
antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion as a single set of goals that orga-
nizations can work toward, achieve, and then declare the job done. Instead,
the committee takes the view that these efforts demand sustained attention,
leadership, and resources to flourish. The recommendations outlined in this
report provide guidance to actors and stakeholders across the STEMM
enterprise to build this type of effort into existing systems.

Part I: Broader Context of Antiracism, Diversity,

Equity and Inclusion in the United States
Part I establishes the historical and contemporary context for the issues
of antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEMM organizations. The
committee describes how actions taken against certain racial and ethnic groups
in U.S. history have had persistent, negative effects. The report draws connec-
tions between historic events, and similarly racialized policies, and the issues
that confront people in STEMM organizations today. The committee contends
that understanding the history of the United States is critical not only to un-
derstand how present-day racial and ethnic bias and discrimination operate,
but also to imagine how to dismantle the systems of oppression that presently
impact systematically minoritized groups based on their race and ethnicity.
Figure 1-1 illustrates the ways that the different levels of analysis in
this report interact in a nested fashion, as the historical and societal con-
text provide context for STEMM organizations, which in turn influence
the professional and educational environments in which groups and teams
operate, all of which impact the microclimates in which individual people
learn and work.
Chapters 2 and 3 provide the context and background related to the
issues outlined in the Statement of Task. Chapter 2 begins with a review
of U.S. history and how critical policies and practices are foundational to
racism in present day America. Chapter 3 includes the history of data col-
lection by race and ethnicity in the United States, as well as information
about the dynamic nature and limitations of racial and ethnic categories.
The chapter also includes data on racial and ethnic representation at differ-
ent education and career levels in STEMM. Finally, Chapter 4 highlights the
lived experience of Black people involved in STEMM through structured
interviews with members of the National Academies Roundtable on Black
Men and Black Women in SEM. This chapter, which also includes informa-
tion about the nature of evidence and ways of knowing, uses excerpts from
these interviews as illustrations of issues seen in the data.

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28 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

Historical and
Society Context

STEMM
Organizations

Teams

Individuals

FIGURE 1-1 Diagram illustrating the nested relationship between history and
­society, STEMM organizations, groups and teams, and individuals.

Part II: Describing the Challenges for STEMM Organizations

Part II of the report, comprising Chapters 5, 6, 7, and 8, explores how
antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion are manifest in modern day
STEMM contexts. Part II reviews the layers within STEMM organizations
and how the larger culture and climate of an organization can influence the
working environments of specific groups or teams, which may have their
own microcultures and microclimates that directly impact the individuals
in that unit, as Figure 1-1 illustrates.
Within this general context, Part II examines how individuals, groups
and teams, and organizations operate, particularly in relation to antiracism,
diversity, equity, and inclusion. The chapters also explore how policies,
practices, and programs can shift norms, values, and behaviors at each
level. The emphasis on changes further upstream, within organizations or
groups and teams, does not preclude the work or responsibility of individu-
als, particularly those in leadership, gatekeeping, and decisionmaking roles;
owever, the report focuses on changes to structures, systems, and institu-
tions as a way to guide and shape individual behavior.

Part III: Recommendations

Finally, Part III of the report offers a vision for future directions in
STEMM antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion research. Chapter 9
outlines a research agenda, a detailed set of issues that the committee
recommends for future investment, prioritization, and investigation. The
research agenda provides a roadmap for future work to address existing

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INTRODUCTION 29

gaps in data collection and research. Pursuing this research will contribute
to a greater understanding of the landscape and the changing culture and
climate. It will also inform evidence-based strategies for structural, sys-
temic, and institutional changes centered on antiracism, diversity, equity,
and inclusion.
In addition to the core content, there are three appendices that supple-
ment this report. Appendix A summarizes four previous, related National
Academies reports. Appendix B contains summary tables for completion
rates by degree type, by race and ethnicity, and by gender. Appendix C pro-
vides an overview of the process for the structured interviews that ­appear in
Chapter 4. Appendix D includes the biographies of the committee members.

REFERENCES
American Association of Medicial Colleges. (2021). Report on residents. https://www.aamc.
org/media/57601/download?attachment
Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). (2022). Employment in STEM occupations. https://www.bls.
gov/emp/tables/stem-employment.htm
________. (2021a). Data for occupations not covered in detail. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/
about/data-for-occupations-not-covered-in-detail.htm#Healthcare%20practitioners%20
and%20technical%20occupations
________. (2021b). 2020 Census frequently asked questions about race and ethnicity. General
information. https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/decade/2020/
planning-management/release/faqs-race-ethnicity.html
Board, N.S. (2021). STEM and non-STEM unemployment in the time of COVID-19. National
Science Foundation. https://ncses.nsf.gov/pubs/nsb20212/stem-labor-market-conditions-
and-the-economy#stem-and-non-stem-unemployment-in-the-time-of-covid-19
Bohrnstedt, G., Kitmitto, S., Ogut, B., Sherman, D., and Chan, D. (2015). School composi-
tion and the black-white achievement gap. National Assessment of Educational Progress.
https://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/subject/studies/pdf/school_composition_and_the_
bw_achievement_gap_2015.pdf
Crenshaw, K. (1998). Demarginalizing the intersection of race and sex: a black feminist cri-
tique of antidiscrimination doctrine, feminist theory and antiracist politics. University
of Chicago Legal Forum, 1989(1), Article 8. http://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/uclf/
vol1989/iss1/8
Fry, R., Kennedy, B., and Funk, C. (2021). STEM jobs see uneven progress in increas-
ing gender, racial and ethnic diversity. pew research center. https://www.pewresearch.
org/science/2021/04/01/stem-jobs-see-uneven-progress-in-increasing-gender-racial-and-
ethnic-diversity/
Griffith, A.L. (2010). Persistence of women and minorities in STEM field majors: Is it the
school that matters? Economics of Education Review, 29(6), 911–922.
Hemphill, F.C., and Vanneman, A. (2011). Achievement gaps: How Hispanic and White stu-
dents in public schools perform in mathematics and reading on the national assessment
of educational progress. https://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/pdf/studies/2011459.pdf
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. (2021). Addressing diversity,
equity, inclusion, and anti-racism in 21st century STEMM organizations: Proceedings of
a workshop–in brief. The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/doi:10.17226/26294
________. (2017). Building America’s skilled technical workforce. The National Academies
Press. https://doi.org/doi:10.17226/23472

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30 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

National Center for Education Statistics. (2022a). 2022 NAEP mathematics assessment: High-
lighted results at grades 4 and 8 for the nation, states, and districts. https://nces.ed.gov/
pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2022124NCES
________. (2022b). 2022 NAEP reading assessment: Highlighted results at grades 4 and 8 for the
nation, states, and districts. https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2022126
National Science Foundation. (n.d.) Research areas. https://www.nsf.gov/about/research_areas.jsp
Office for Civil Rights. (2018). STEM course taking. https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/
ocr/docs/stem-course-taking.pdf
Riegle-Crumb, C., King, B., and Irizarry, Y. (2019). Does STEM stand out? Examining racial/
ethnic gaps in persistence across postsecondary fields. Educational Researcher, 48(3),
133–144. https://doi.org/10.3102/0013189x19831006
Smithsonian Institution. (2022). Historical foundations of race. https://nmaahc.si.edu/learn/
talking-about-race/topics/historical-foundations-race
U.S. Census. (2022). 2020 Census frequently asked questions about race and ethnicity. https://
www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/decade/2020/planning-management/
release/faqs-race-ethnicity.html
Xie, Y., Fang, M., and Shauman, K. (2015). STEM education. Annual Review of Sociology,
41, 331–357.

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PART I

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

The Historical and Contemporary

Context for Structural, Systemic, and
Institutional Racism in the United States

To best understand “the conditions that create systemic barriers,” as

described in the Statement of Task, the committee examined evidence on
the historical context of the United States. The current chapter begins with
definitions of structural, systemic, and institutional bias, and describes how
they collectively function at a macro level to perpetuate widespread dispari-
ties on the basis of race. The chapter then examines how the origins of race
and racism came to be established at the inception of the United States.
These racist belief systems created a false racial hierarchy under which
non-Hispanic White people are believed to be superior, and Black people,
Indigenous people, and systematically minoritized racial and ethnic people
are considered inferior.
This chapter then reviews the evidence on the codification of rac-
ism through national laws, policies, and numerous other mechanisms.
Further, the codification of racism is examined across multiple sectors
in society, including education, housing, employment, criminal justice,
and health, all of which, as the chapter demonstrates, underlie entry into
science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM).1

1 This chapter will use both STEM (to refer to science, technology, engineering, and mathe-

matics) and STEMM (to refer to science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine).
In many references to undergraduate education, STEM will be used rather than STEMM, to
indicate the lack of professional medical degrees in the data sets most often provided by the
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics. Many references used in this chapter
refer to STEM or medicine, and the separation of STEM vs. STEMM should be seen as inten-
tional to reflect the studies that researchers have conducted.

33

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34 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

For instance, the committee finds these laws, policies, and practices have
created unfair barriers to home ownership, lost opportunities for building
generational wealth, and lost educational opportunities for minoritized
people. These data together point to a major key finding: the codification
of racism strengthened and continually reinforced the false racial hierarchy
by systematically advantaging non-Hispanic White people and system-
atically disadvantaging Black, Indigenous, and other minoritized people.
This review of structural, systemic, and institutional racism will serve as a
frame for understanding how history has shaped STEMM institutions in
the United States.
The chapter also reviews the literature on how minority serving institu-
tions (MSIs) emerged as a critical higher educational resource when higher
educational opportunities were severely limited for minoritized people.
The committee found that even though MSIs on average have continually
faced significant underfunding, they have advanced representation by help-
ing many minoritized students obtain STEMM degrees. This chapter ends
by setting the stage for the remainder of this report. It discusses how the
structural, systemic, and institutional racism in the broader United States
is reflected in STEMM, but also reproduced in STEMM. The chapter ends
with conclusions focused on dismantling the false racial hierarchy, and
implementing the strengths of MSIs.

DEFINING STRUCTURAL, SYSTEMIC,

AND INSTITUTIONAL RACISM
First, some definitions that will be particularly pertinent for subsequent
chapters in this report. Systemic and structural racism are forms of racism
that are pervasively and deeply embedded in and throughout systems, laws,
written or unwritten policies, entrenched practices, and established beliefs
and attitudes that produce, condone, and perpetuate widespread unfair
treatment of minoritized people (Bonilla-Silva, 1997). Though they are
often used interchangeably along with institutional racism, they each refer
to distinct concepts. Systemic racism is perpetuated discrimination within
a system that has been based on racist principles, practices, and focuses on
the involvement of whole systems (Feagin, 2013; Fitzgerald, 2021), and it
focuses on the involvement of whole systems, and often all systems—for
example, political, legal, economic, health care, school, and criminal legal
systems—including the structures that uphold those systems (Feagin and
Ducey, 2018).
Structural racism describes “cultural values in a society that are so
ingrained in daily life that they are seen simply as the way things are”
(Fitzgerald, 2021; Lucas, 2008), and it refers to wider political and social
disadvantages within society, such as higher rates of poverty for Black and

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HISTORICAL AND CONTEMPORARY CONTEXT 35

Indigenous communities or high rates of death from COVID-19 among

minoritized people (Bailey et al., 2021; Bleich and Ard, 2021). Structural
racism shows up as inherited disadvantage and its reciprocal inherited
advantage, and is evident in the differential distribution of both mate-
rial conditions and access to power by “race” (Jones, 2000). Institutional
racism denotes policies and practices within and across institutions that,
intentionally or not, produce outcomes that chronically favor White people
and put individuals from other racial and ethnic groups at a disadvantage
(Roundtable on Community Change, 2017).
The current chapter focuses on each of these macro-level forms of rac-
ism together and how they impede STEMM careers for minoritized racial
and ethnic people. First, the committee reviews the origins of race and rac-
ism in the United States.

THE ORIGINS OF RACE AND RACISM IN THE UNITED STATES

The written concept of race as it is commonly used today did not exist
until the 17th century, when it was used to codify slavery (Rugemer, 2013).
Leading philosophers and scientists of the time argued that race was a
biological construct and wrongly claimed that there are genetically distinct
human races; they further argued that White people were the biologically
superior race who had the right to enslave biologically inferior non-White
people. This biological construct of race provided the scientific rationale for
racial hierarchies of humans in terms of intelligence, industriousness, inge-
nuity, sexuality, and criminal behavior. Scientific proof of such hierarchies
was based on various “scientific” studies, such as measuring pain tolerance,
pseudoscientific intelligence testing, or measuring brain sizes—measure-
ments that were later shown to be fraudulent (e.g., Gould, 1978). It was
not until the mid-20th century that polygenesis and biology-based racism
were widely disproven and race became a subject for anthropologists and
sociologists (Gannon, 2016; Yudell et al., 2016).
It is important to recognize that racial categories are often huge group-
ings based on the social interpretation of how one looks in a race-conscious
society such as the United States. They are the substrate on which racism
has operated historically and continues to operate day to day. However,
every racial category comprises people with different ethnicities, countries
of origin, histories, languages, and cultures (Smedley and Smedley, 2005).
In addition to the history covered in this section, there are substantial lit-
eratures and research on the meaning of race in the United States. Social
scientists and novelists such as E. Franklin Frazier, W.E.B. Du Bois, Toni
Morrison, and James Jackson have contributed to the psychological and
social understanding of race. These ideas and debates can deepen and
broaden the understanding and related conclusions among social scientists.

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36 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

While this report does not include a specific analysis of this body of work,
the committee respects how this research has shaped the meaning of race
in the United States over time.
Slavery was not the only overt expression of the racism that was foun-
dational in the history of what would become the United States (Banaji
et al., 2021; Harvey, 2016). The colonization of the Western Hemisphere
saw extreme expressions of racism in the way European settlers stole the
land of, pushed aside, marginalized, mistreated, and committed genocide
against the Indigenous peoples of North America. As with slavery, coloniz-
ers justified their theft of land, natural resources, culture, and identity with
the view that White people were superior to all other peoples (Harvey,
2016). It was not until 1924 that the U.S. government recognized Indige-
nous Americans born in the United States as citizens. The right to vote took
more time. In fact, there were some states that prevented Native Americans
from voting up until 1957 (Library of Congress, n.d).
Racism directed at minoritized people, including Latine individuals, also
dates back to the founding of the United States (Carrigan and Webb, 2003;
Jung et al., 2011). Lynchings and mob brutality against Mexican Americans
were common in the 19th century and into the early 20th century (Carrigan
and Webb, 2013). People of Latine heritage were also pushed into segregated
communities, forbidden from serving on juries, and made to attend desig-
nated “Mexican” schools throughout the Southwest (Antman and Cortes,
2013; Denis, 2015; Donato and Hanson, 2019; Powers, 2008; Villalobos,
1972; Wollenberg, 1976). In the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico, the federal
government was responsible for violence against Puerto Ricans as well as
birth control experimentation and sterilization promotion (Gibson-Rosado,
1993; Junod and Marks, 2002).
Racism toward Asian Americans became prominent in the 19th century
when many Asian individuals, in particular Chinese individuals, served as
indentured laborers in major national projects and events, including dur-
ing the California gold rush and the construction of the transcontinental
railroad (Gandhi, 2013; Kanazawa, 2005; Ngai, 2021). In the 19th and
20th centuries, “yellow peril” scares led to anti-Asian immigration and
naturalization laws (Congress of the United States, 1882). The 20th century
saw a major violation of American civil rights with the forced removal of
approximately over 100,000 Americans of Japanese ancestry from their
homes, including those whom were U.S. citizens by birth, and their incar-
ceration in internment camps (National Archives, n.d.; Shoag and Carollo,
2016). Laws restricting immigration and naturalization of Asian individuals
persisted until the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 (U.S. House
of Representatives, 1965).
Taken together, the original definitions of race and racism, as estab-
lished at the inception of the United States, created a false racial hierarchy

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HISTORICAL AND CONTEMPORARY CONTEXT 37

under which non-Hispanic White people are believed to be superior and

Black people, Indigenous people, and systematically minoritized racial and
ethnic people are believed to be inferior.

THE CODIFICATION OF RACISM: AN EXAMINATION

OF MULTIPLE SECTORS IN U.S. SOCIETY
The present section examines what happened after this false racial
hierarchy was conceptualized in the United States, namely the codifica-
tion of racism in national laws, policies, practices, formal and informal
rules and regulations, in addition to other mechanisms. This section
begins by examining some of the earliest examples occurring at the in-
ception of the country, and moves through U.S. history. In addition to
spanning time, this section examines multiple sectors of society in which
racism was codified, including education, housing, employment, crimi-
nal justice, and health. Across these sectors, the committee finds that the
codification of racism restricted how Black people, Indigenous people,
and other minoritized people were allowed to live, whether and where
they were allowed to go to school, other educational opportunities they
had access to, the careers they could pursue, the wealth they could ac-
cumulate and pass on to their children, and other aspects of everyday
life that underlie entry and accessibility into STEMM educational and
professional spaces.
Therefore, this section demonstrates the codification of racism strength-
ened and continually reinforced the false racial hierarchy through the
systematic advantage of non-Hispanic White people and the systematic
disadvantage of Black people, Indigenous people, and other minoritized
people. Though the majority of formal practices and policies have long
since been revoked, the history demonstrates that this legacy has had a last-
ing effect on the ability of minoritized people to have a career in STEMM
(Clotfelter et al., 2015).

Separate and Unequal

In response to the ratification of the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amend-
ments to the Constitution, southern state legislatures passed what were
known as “Black Codes” that limited the rights of formerly enslaved
people, exploited them as a labor source, and took advantage of the crime
exception in the 13th Amendment to criminalize activities and force newly
freed enslaved people into servitude again (Hinton and Cook, 2021).
These laws also denied Black Americans the opportunity to rent or buy
land, forced them to sign annual employment contracts that paid the low-
est wages possible, prohibited them from voting, included measures to

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38 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

prevent prospective employers from paying Black workers higher wages,

and often excluded Black children from attending newly created free
public schools.2
In the 1870s, many southern states and localities also adopted laws
that codified the social interaction between Black and White individuals.
These so-called “Jim Crow” laws varied across jurisdictions, but overall,
they enforced segregation of Black individuals in the realms of schooling,
transportation, public accommodations, and in access to public facilities
such as pools and drinking fountains. Over time, many states and localities
beyond the South also adopted Jim Crow-inspired restrictions on the social
interaction of Black and White individuals.
Jim Crow laws seemingly violated the Civil Rights Act of 1875, but in
1896, in Plessy vs. Ferguson, the Supreme Court ruled they did not (Plessy
v. Ferguson, 163 U.S. 537 [1896]). Instead, the majority opinion articulated
a doctrine of “separate but equal” that justified segregation, and thus Jim
Crow relations, while formally requiring that facilities for Black and White
individuals be equal. Between the inception of Jim Crow laws, through the
waning of Jim Crow in the 1960s, and even after, researchers painstakingly
documented inequality in the facilities for Black and White individuals. In
education, they found racial inequality in the number of school days (for
example, Norton, 1926), teacher qualifications (Norton, 1926), per-pupil
expenditure (Phillips, 1932), teacher-student ratio (Moses, 1941), facili-
ties (Moses, 1941; Strayer, 1949), and curriculum (Strayer, 1949; Wallace,
1951). In the context of health, they found Black individuals had less access
to hospital beds and being accepted into a hospital in general (Beardsley,
1986; Cornely, 1946), less access to beds for treatment of specific illnesses
such as tuberculosis (Cornely, 1946), and less access to treatment for
­disabilities (Cornely, 1946).
Jim Crow laws reinforced enslavement-era norms with the backing of
the State, potentially endowing any violation with criminal implications.
Moreover, beyond legal ramifications, the Jim Crow era was replete with
extralegal enforcement. The Tuskegee University Archive documents that
between 1882 and 1968 a total of 3,446 African Americans were lynched
in the United States. In addition, some 1,297 Whites were also lynched,
often for violating Jim Crow social barriers (Tuskegee University Archives
Repository, 2010). Many victims were falsely accused of rape, murder,
robbery, or other serious crimes, while others were lynched for perceived
disrespect of White individuals.

2 For more on Black Codes and Jim Crow laws, refer to Du Bois (1935), Black Reconstruc-

tion in America: Toward a History of the Part Which Black Folk Played in the Attempt to
Reconstruct Democracy in America, 1860–1880; Foner (1988), Reconstruction: America’s
Unfinished Revolution, 1863–1877; or Oshinsky (1996), Worse than Slavery.

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HISTORICAL AND CONTEMPORARY CONTEXT 39

While lynchings were focused on one to three targets owing to some

episodic perceived violation, oftentimes Black progress in general was the
reason for a false accusation that was used to justify more widespread
destruction within a community. For example, in many locales, when
Black individuals started to gain ownership of small businesses and be-
gan to accrue wealth, White individuals would often respond by form-
ing mobs, burning down the business district, raping and/or murdering
Black people, and running all surviving Black individuals out of town.
Bustling Black communities in Tulsa, Oklahoma (1921; Parrish, 1922),
Rosewood, Florida (1923; Dye, 1996), and Wilmington, North Carolina
(1898; Tyson, 1998) fell victim to such violence, as did other commu-
nities. While these attacks are rarely called lynchings, they share with
lynchings the defining features of extralegal pursuit and violent brutality
toward Black individuals.
Because lynching and other extralegal violence was woven deeply into
the experience and psyche of White and Black America, it is impossible to
convey the historic and present implications of the Jim Crow era without
also conveying the reality of lynching and violence targeted against Black
individuals and Black communities. Jim Crow, and its violent enforcement,
were designed and deployed to enforce Black subservience and White su-
premacy. The visibility and brutality of the violence served as a warning
to any who might dare challenge Jim Crow relations specifically or White
supremacy in general.
Jim Crow laws lasted well into the 1960s and were only dismantled
as a result of the civil rights movement. But the effort to dismantle Jim
Crow was widely resisted, and the legacy of that resistance remains
impactful even now. For example, pools were often segregated in the
Jim Crow era, both in the South and elsewhere. In the wake of Brown
v. Board of Education, which effectively ruled separate but equal un-
constitutional, many communities closed and even filled-in their public
pools when pressed to desegregate them (e.g., Smith, 2012, p. 40). Now,
decades later, many U.S. communities still lack public pools, a linger-
ing and consequential legacy of the resistance to treating everyone with
fairness and equality (Gershon, 2019). Additional evidence emerged
demonstrating that many Black families in the rural South were denied
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) loans when a natural
disaster damaged their homes because they did not have a deed to their
home, which was required to obtain a FEMA loan. Black persons during
the Jim Crow era were excluded from the legal system, and as a result,
as many as one-third of Black-owned land in the South was passed from
generation to generation as “heir’s property” without a deed (Dreier and
Ba Tran, 2021). It was only in 2021 that FEMA announced that it would
no longer require people living on inherited land to prove they own their

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40 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

home in order to be eligible for disaster relief (Dreier, 2021). Therefore,

Jim Crow was a social arrangement that attended to matters great (e.g.,
housing, schooling) and small (e.g., swimming). It was ensconced in law
and backed-up by legal and extralegal violence. The Jim Crow era was
finally ended through civil rights struggle, but many of its damaging
consequences remain.

UNEQUAL EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES

Jim Crow laws also created segregated education and educational op-
portunities on the basis of race. The Supreme Court may have decided
that “separate but equal” was the law of the land in its Plessy v. Ferguson
decision, but “equal” was not put into practice when it came to education
(Anderson, 1988; Walker and Archung, 2003). School segregation persisted
into the 1960s, not only for Black children, but also Latine students and
Indigenous students (Darling-Hammond, 1998; Orfield et al., 1997), and it
was not limited to primary and secondary education. It also had profound
effects on postsecondary education.
Though there were exceptions, Black students did not begin to enter
predominantly White colleges and universities until the 1960s. In fact, be-
fore the end of the Civil War, only 40 Black students had graduated from
colleges and universities, all in Northern states (Titcomb, 2022). Even the
first university dedicated to the education of Black Americans, Cheyney
University in Pennsylvania, founded in 1837, focused its curriculum on
trades and agriculture (Allen, 1988; Cheyney University, n.d.).
In the decades after the Civil War, Black students were prohibited from
attending Southern colleges because of Jim Crow laws and legal segrega-
tion, and they had limited access to Northern schools because of quota sys-
tems. In response, religious denominations began establishing institutions
of higher education specifically to educate the children of formerly enslaved
people and to train them to teach other Black Americans (Haynes, 2006).
By 1880, there were over 40 Black colleges and universities in the United
States, and from the late 19th century to the late 20th century, Historically
Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) provided undergraduate training
for many Black Americans across various sectors (Jackson and Nunn, 2003)
including U.S. armed forces, and 80 percent of all Black federal judges
(Thurgood Marshall College Fund, n.d.). (See section below for a greater
discussion on MSIs.)
In 1890, Congress passed the Second Morrill Act that required states
to establish land-grant institutions for Black students, or the states would
have to demonstrate that admission to the 1862 land grant institution
was not restricted on the basis of racial identity. This has resulted in the
creation of 19 historically Black land-grant institutions, also known as

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HISTORICAL AND CONTEMPORARY CONTEXT 41

the 1890 land-grant universities (Lawrence, 2022).3 While the Second

Morrill Act was intended to create an educational system that provided
opportunity for all Americans, a study by the Association of Public and
Land-Grant Universities found that these 1890 land-grant institutions were
being short-changed by their home states, which were supposed to match
federal funding to all land-grant universities established by the First and
Second Morrill Acts on a one-to-one basis. Even today, while all states are
meeting the one-to-one matching requirement for their original Morrill
Act institutions, 61 percent of 1890 land-grant institutions did not receive
100 percent of the one-to-one matching funds from their respective states
between 2010–2012 for extension or research funding, depriving those
institutions of $57 million (Lee and Keys, 2013).
In the decades before the civil rights era, constrained educational op-
portunities were not limited solely by Jim Crow laws to Southern schools
and were not imposed only on Black students. Northern colleges and uni-
versities, for example, had quotas limiting the number of Black individu-
als, as well as non-Protestant Christians and Jews, among other groups. It
was not until the 1970s that institutions of higher education throughout
the United States abolished segregation for non-White students and quotas
for non-Christian students (Byrd-Chichester, 2000; Halperin, 2019). How-
ever, even today, many institutions of higher education continue to reflect
anti-Asian biases, in part by excluding Asian and Asian American students
from programs designed to help students from historically racialized and
marginalized populations on the premise that they are “model minori-
ties.” This view overlooks the fact that Asian and Asian American people
are a highly diverse group in terms of ethnic background, socioeconomic
status, and cultural practices (Gutierrez et al., 2021). While it is true that
Asian American and Pacific Islander students as a group account for ap-
proximately 18 percent of the students admitted at 91 of the nation’s most
selective colleges and universities (Carnevale and Quinn, 2021)—triple their
representation in the college-going population—Asian Americans from
specific nations or cultures are underrepresented among those attending
colleges (e.g., Her, 2019).
Racially-based educational policies were not restricted to colleges and
universities or to Black students. Indigenous children were forced to at-
tend segregated boarding schools, where they were punished for speak-
ing their tribal languages in an effort to force assimilation into White
culture (Loring, 2009). The well-known phrase “kill the Indian in him
and save the man” captured the assimilation era sentiment. In the 1800s,

3 Title III of the Higher Education Act of 1965 defined an HBCU as a school of higher

learning that was accredited and established before 1964, and whose principal mission was
the education of African Americans.

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42 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

California schools routinely denied access to Chinese American students

based on their ancestry, and even after the California Supreme Court ruled
this practice unlawful, the California state legislature passed a law allowing
school districts to establish segregated schools under the separate but equal
doctrine (Equal Justice Initiative, n.d; Urban and Jorae, 2011; Wollenberg,
1976). During the 1920s, the segregation of Mexican American children
became widespread in California and Texas. Latine students routinely at-
tended segregated schools until 1931, when a judge in San Diego prohibited
a school board from turning away Mexican American students—a ruling
based on the judge’s opinion that Mexican American children were White
(Carter, 1970; Noltemeyer et al., 2012). With the landmark 1954 case
Brown v. Board of Education, the U.S. Supreme Court finally outlawed
all state laws establishing racial segregation in schools, but the California
Supreme Court’s Roberto Alvarez v. The Lemon Grove School Board ruling
in 1931 was the first successful local school desegregation court decision
(Alvarez, 1986; Hudson and Holmes, 1994).
Even legislation that its sponsors intended to be race-neutral, such as
the 1944 Servicemen’s Readjustment Act, otherwise known as the GI Bill,
was turned into a mechanism for discriminating against Black Americans.
Of the approximately 16 million World War II veterans eligible for the GI
Bill, approximately 1.2 million were Black veterans. While President Franklin
Roosevelt intentionally created the GI Bill to avoid discrimination on the basis
of race, Veterans Administration counselors, particularly those in Southern
states, pushed Black veterans into vocational and trade schools rather than
academic institutions (Turner and Bound, 2002). Researchers estimate that
the segregated system of higher education turned away 55 percent of Black
veterans seeking the educational benefits of the GI Bill (Perea, 2015).
The impact of these racist tactics was compounded by the fact that
serious underfunding of HBCUs limited opportunities for the large number
of Black veterans who did want to pursue higher education (Turner and
Bound, 2002). With limited government investment in their infrastructure,
HBCUs could not accommodate the influx of so many students, compared
to well-funded White institutions. A survey of historically Black colleges in
1945 found that 45 percent of institutions enrolled fewer than 250 students,
and 92 percent of the institutions had enrollment of less than 1,000 students
(Jenkins, 1946). Moreover, of the approximately 100 public and private
institutions of higher education listed as “Colleges for Negroes” by the
Office of Education, 28 were classified as sub-baccalaureate teachers’ col-
leges or junior colleges (Office of Education and U.S. Department of Health,
Education, and Welfare, 1960), and none of the HBCUs offered accredited
engineering or doctoral programs (Geiger, 2021; Turner and Bound, 2002).
The lack of formal secondary education for many Black soldiers prior
to their wartime service also impeded their access to higher education

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HISTORICAL AND CONTEMPORARY CONTEXT 43

(Turner and Bound, 2002). The end result of lack of preparation and overt
discrimination was that 28 percent of White veterans went to college on
the GI Bill while only 12 percent of Black veterans did (Turner and Bound,
2002). In addition, 86 percent of the skilled, professional, and semiskilled
jobs went to White veterans, while 92 percent of the nonskilled and service
positions went to Black veterans with the same training (Humes, 2006).
Progress has been uneven. A 2018 study found that the college enroll-
ment gap between Black and Hispanic students and White students nar-
rowed between 1986 and 2014, in large part a result of increasing high
school graduation rates of Black and Hispanic students (Baker et al., 2018).
Black and Hispanic students, however, are more likely than White students
to enroll at colleges and universities that are less selective, categorized by
admissions competitiveness as defined by the Barron’s Profile of American
Colleges, and these institutions may have less money to spend on the enrich-
ment programs that are a crucial part of STEMM education in particular
(Barron’s College Division Staff, 2019). Research has shown that students
who attend a more selective college receive larger tuition subsidies, more
generous college resources, and more attention from faculty (Hoxby, 2009;
Hoxby and Avery, 2012). In addition, graduating from a selective college
leads to higher average earnings, which is particularly true for minoritized
students (Dale and Krueger, 2011).
Finally, while getting into college is an important milestone, graduating
with a degree is the real goal. Studies have shown that Black students and
Latine students are less likely to graduate from college than White students
(Shapiro et al., 2017). One analysis found that Black students graduate
from four-year institutions at a 40 percent completion rate, as compared
to White students (65%; NCES, 2019).

HOUSING: THE LEGACY OF REDLINING

Where people live can have an effect on where they go to school, the
colleges they attend, and ultimately, the careers they pursue (Emery, 2016).
Indeed, housing segregation determines access to quality health, education,
housing, food, and other factors which subsequently contribute to successful
outcomes (Quick and Kalhenberg, 2019; Rothstein, 2018). The racist prac-
tice of redlining, a legacy of policies enacted during the Great Depression
and in the aftermath of World War II, codified racial and ethnic segregation
in ways that that still affect racially and ethnically minoritized communities
today. The term redlining refers to the red marks that were made on maps
to indicate neighborhoods that were comprised of predominately or a signifi-
cant proportion of African American individuals. This demarcation resulted
in discriminatory practices in which housing resources would be restricted
to African American neighborhoods (Swope et al., 2022).

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44 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

In the winter of 1916, a small group of Black families left the repres-
sive conditions in Selma, Alabama, for what they hoped would be a bet-
ter life in Chicago. Historians consider this the start of what is known
as the Great Migration—one of the largest movements of people in U.S.
history (­Tolnay, 2003). Over the next six decades, some six million Black
Americans left the repressive conditions in the South for employment op-
portunities in northern and western cities. By the time the Great Migration
ended in the 1970s, millions of Black Americans lived outside of the South
(Tolnay, 2003; W ­ ilkerson, 2020), and of those living outside of the South,
90 percent lived in urban areas (Farley and Allen, 1987).
The influx of Black laborers and sharecroppers into urban centers led
to a variety of formal and informal rules and regulations that confined
Black residents to specific neighborhoods. Though the Supreme Court
struck down these ordinances in 1917, Black migrants continued to live
primarily in these crowded, disadvantaged neighborhoods. Racial segrega-
tion was exacerbated by policies enacted during the Great Depression to
help homeowners who were in danger of defaulting on their mortgages
(Banaji et al., 2021) or those looking to purchase a home (Jackson, 2012).
Under the terms of the Home Owners Loan Corporation (HOLC), lend-
ers had to consider the riskiness of the neighborhoods in which proper-
ties were located based on color-coded “Residential Security Maps” that
HOLC officials and local Realtors created. With few exceptions, Black
neighborhoods, along with adjacent neighborhoods that were candidates
for settlement by Black families, were colored red, designating that they
were excessively risky and therefore ineligible for HOLC-backed loans
(Rothstein, 2018).
Black families were disadvantaged further by the provisions of the
newly created Federal Housing Authority (FHA) loan program, which
relied on the color-coded Residential Security Maps, encouraged the use
of racial covenants to protect FHA-insured homes, and included other
provisions, such as guides for appraisers and loan officers, that favored
home buyers purchasing single-family homes in nascent suburban areas
and disincentivized investment in Black neighborhoods. The Veterans Ad-
ministration adopted the same racialized practices when the GI Bill created
a similar loan program (Katznelson, 2006). These two programs formally
institutionalized redlining in real estate and banking, which had the effect
of relegating Black Americans, as well as other systematically minoritized
racial and ethnic people, to disadvantaged neighborhoods, which had the
further effect of preventing them from owning homes and building genera-
tional wealth (Rothstein, 2018). As a result, by 1940, nearly 90 percent
of Black Americans lived in redlined neighborhoods (Krimmel, 2018), and
of the $120 billion in FHA loans issued between 1934 and 1962, only
two percent went to non-White families (Solomon et al., 2019). By 1970,

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HISTORICAL AND CONTEMPORARY CONTEXT 45

61 percent of Black Americans living in U.S. metropolitan areas resided in

hyper-segregated neighborhoods (Massey and Tannen, 2018).

REDLINING AND UNEQUAL EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES

The negative effects of redlining went beyond denying minoritized fam-
ilies the opportunity to live in neighborhoods that were not overcrowded
and beset with poverty. One of most significant adverse consequence of
redlining was on the education that students living in redlined neighbor-
hoods received and continue to receive today. Though Brown v. Board of
Education outlawed racial segregation of public schools, it did not redress
the underinvestment that had the de facto effect of creating a separate but
unequal educational system, given that schools in neighborhoods with a
predominantly non-White population still had fewer resources, fewer coun-
selors, few experienced educators, and fewer educational opportunities than
those found in predominantly White neighborhoods.
The main reason for this disparity was a lower level of funding for
schools in non-White neighborhoods resulting from the fact that public
school funding relied heavily—and still relies heavily—on local property
taxes that are based largely on property values. As a result of these dis-
parities, only 7.7 percent of Black students graduated from high school
in 1940 compared to 26.1 percent of White students. Twenty years later,
the percentage of Black students graduating from high school had reached
21.7 percent, while the percentage of White students graduating from high
school has increased to 43.2 percent (NCES, 2020).
With parents who themselves had restricted educational opportunities
and who might have had literacy challenges, disadvantaged students were
likely read to less frequently and be exposed to less complex language at
home (Ayoub et al., 2009; Brooks-Gunn, 2005; Hart and Risley, 2005).
The effects of the laws creating and perpetuating residential segregation by
race were to facilitate the active disinvestment of minoritized communities.
Today, more than 50 years after passage of the Fair Housing Act, neigh-
borhood segregation persists for Black people, Indigenous people, Latine
people, and Asian American people and imposes unfair burdens on people
from those communities even when they have the same income or education
levels as people from predominantly White neighborhoods (Frey, 2021).
Even now, housing and schooling continue to be linked intrinsically in
the United States, both in terms of educational opportunity and property
values. A 2021 study from the Annenberg Institute at Brown University
found that districts and schools currently located in formerly redlined
neighborhoods, regardless of where they are located in the nation, receive
almost $2,500 less per pupil in combined federal, state, and local fund-
ing, and report lower average math and reading test scores compared

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46 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

with districts and schools located in neighborhoods that were not redlined
(Lukes and Cleveland, 2021). Further, there is some evidence demonstrating
that there are fewer courses related to STEM offered in schools with higher
minoritized student enrollment (Office for Civil Rights, 2018). In addition,
studies have found that schools with high percentages of Black students
and Latine students are more likely than their peers to have teachers with
one year or less experience, uncertified teachers, or higher annual teacher
turnover, with the disparities largest for schools with high percentages of
Black students (Mehrotra et al., 2021; Williams et al., 2021). Several studies
have shown that high teacher turnover harms student achievement in both
English language arts and math and makes it hard to establish coherent
instruction and implement new initiatives (Balu et al., 2009; Ronfeldt et
al., 2013).
The authors of the Annenberg report noted that while they docu-
mented positive trends for finance and diversity outcomes for both red-
lined and non-redlined neighborhoods, there were persistent and widening
gaps between schools in historically redlined neighborhoods and those in
non-redlined neighborhoods. At the same time, they found no statistically
significant differences for average student learning and average student test
score changes between redlined and non-redlined neighborhoods. “These
results,” the authors concluded, “tell us that while learning rates and
changes in educational opportunity are on average the same [between red-
lined and non-redlined neighborhoods], educational opportunity is not”
(Lukes and Cleveland, 2021).
The inequities in educational opportunities resulting from redlining
do not end when students graduate from high school. One housing-related
reason for those inequities is the limited ability of those who live in histori-
cally redlined areas to accrue generational wealth because of lower prop-
erty values and lower levels of homeownership. This racial wealth gap is
reflected in the substantial disparity in net worth between White households
and those of systematically minoritized racial and ethnic groups (Bhutta
et al., 2020), which affects the ability of families to fund their students’
postsecondary education. According to a 2019 study, Black families rely
more heavily on student debt, and on riskier forms of student debt, than
do White families to gain postsecondary education (Kahn et al., 2019;
Lucas, 2013). As the authors of this study conclude, “With lower family
wealth and racial discrimination in the job market, Black students are far
more likely than White students to experience negative financial events af-
ter graduating—including loan default, higher interest rate payments, and
higher graduate school debt balances.”
According to an analysis by the Education Data Initiative, Black col-
lege graduates owe an average of $25,000 more in student load debt than
White college graduates (Hanson, 2022). Moreover, 48 percent of Black

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HISTORICAL AND CONTEMPORARY CONTEXT 47

students owe an average of 12.5 percent more than they borrowed four
years after graduation, while White students owe 12 percent less than they
borrowed (Hanson, 2022). In addition, 29 percent of Black student bor-
rowers make monthly payments of $350 or more, and over 50 percent of
Black borrowers report that their net worth is less than they owe in student
loan debt. The same analysis found that American Indian and Alaska Na-
tive student borrowers have the highest monthly payments after graduation
(Hanson, 2022).
A 2013 analysis conducted by the Center for STEM Education and In-
novation found that White, Asian, and multi-racial graduate students had
less debt than Hispanic graduate students, who in turn had less debt than
Black students (Zeiser et al., 2013). In fact, 73 percent of White, Asian,
and multi-racial STEM Ph.D. recipients reported having no graduate school
debt at all, compared to 51 percent of Black and Latine students. Among
STEM Ph.D. recipients, Black graduates were more than twice as likely as
White, Asian, and multi-racial graduates to have debt exceeding $30,000
(Zeiser et al., 2013).

RACISM AND EMPLOYMENT

As a 2019 report from the Center for American Progress noted,
“Occupational segregation and the persistent devaluation of workers
of color are a direct result of intentional government policy” (Solomon
et al., 2019). The policies enacted as part of the New Deal, for example,
reserved most of these benefits for White workers while restricting and ex-
cluding minoritized people by exempting many domestic, agricultural, and
service occupations from the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, actions
that helped institutionalize and validate racial disparities in economic
wellbeing (The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, 2011; Linder, 1986).
The Taft-Hartley Act of 1947 gave states permission to enact so-called
right-to-work laws that have the effect of hampering the ability of unions
to help employees bargain with their employers (National Labor Relations
Board, n.d.). Today, eight of the 10 states with the highest percentage of
Black residents have right-to-work laws, and not coincidentally, workers
in right-to-work states earn 3.2 percent less on average and are less likely
to have employer-sponsored health insurance and pension coverage than
workers in non-right-to-work states (Gould and Kimball, 2015; Gould
and Shierholz, 2011).
Even now, minoritized people remain overrepresented in the lowest-paid
agricultural, domestic, and service vocations. Black or African American
individuals, Asian individuals, and Latine individuals account for approxi-
mately 36 percent of the overall U.S. workforce. When examining repre-
sentation by occupation, these groups of individuals are highly represented

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48 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

within these lower-paid positions. For instance, collectively Latine individu-

als represent approximately 48 percent of maids and housekeeping clean-
ers; 20 percent of bellhops, concierges, and baggage porters; and about 46
percent of miscellaneous agricultural workers (USBLS, 2022a). Though
Congress has modified the Fair Labor Standards Act to include some of
these occupations, agricultural and domestic workers, many of whom are
Latine or Asian American, remain some of the least protected employees in
the nation (Lin, 2013). Live-in domestic service workers, babysitters, and
companions for older persons—all occupations in which minoritized people
are disproportionately represented—also remain excluded from many Fair
Labor Standards Act protections (U.S. Department of Labor, 2022). Given
that more Black and Latine women work in service industries than White
women (Tucker and Lowell, 2016), this might be one reason why Black and
Latine women earn less than both White women and Black men and Latine
men (BLS, 2022b).

Employment and Systemic Racism in the Criminal Legal System

Approximately 77 million Americans have a criminal record, making
it difficult, or even impossible, for an individual to work in a given field,
particularly the one in four jobs that require a government-issued occupa-
tional license (CSG Justice Center, 2022; National Inventory of Collateral
Consequences of Conviction, 2022). Research by the Department of Justice
shows that minoritized individuals may face higher rates of incarceration
(Carson, 2021). For instance, statistics from the U.S. Department of Justice
found that as compared to White men, Black men were 5.7 times as likely
to be imprisoned in 2020. When examining men within the ages of 18–19,
Black men were 12.5 times as likely to be imprisoned, as compared to
White men (Carson, 2021). While more than 25 percent of people arrested
for drug law violations—the most frequent reason for incarceration—were
Black people, drug use rates to not differ substantially by race and ethnicity
(Edwards et al., 2020).
Criminal histories may disadvantage individuals when seeking future
employment. Research has shown that job candidates with a criminal
record are at best half as likely to get a call back than applicants who do
not have one, with even fairly minor felony records having a largely nega-
tive effect on employer callbacks (Agan and Starr, 2017). One study of the
intersectionality between race and gender, former incarceration, and un-
employment found that the unemployment rates for formerly incarcerated
Black men and Black women were 35 percent and 43 percent, respectively,
compared to 18 percent and 23 percent for White men and White women,
respectively (U.S. Council of Economic Advisors, 2008).

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HISTORICAL AND CONTEMPORARY CONTEXT 49

Employment and Health Disparities

The relationship between health and work is bidirectional. Health is
a critical labor market determinant, given that healthy people are more
likely to be employed, while people experiencing health issues are more
likely to see their employment opportunities limited (Dooley et al., 1996;
Olesen et al., 2013; van Rijn et al., 2014). Work, however, can also affect
health. Unemployment or a bad job can harm one’s health (Hergenrather
et al., 2015), while moving from unemployment to a good job may improve
health (Antonisse and Garfield, 2018).
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have determined
that an abundance of literature demonstrates a clear pattern of racial dis-
parities in health outcomes. Namely, individuals from racial and ethnic
minoritized groups, as compared to White individuals, are significantly
more likely to face higher rates of illness, and death related to a number
of chronic health conditions, such as obesity, asthma, and hypertension
(CDC, n.d.a). Research has shown that the social determinants of health
play a major role in explaining health disparities. Social determinants
of health are the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work,
and age, and they include a range of factors. These may include socio-
economic status, education, neighborhood and physical environment,
employment, and social support networks, as well as access to health
care (CDC, n.d.b).
As with the inequities in education discussed above, this too can be
seen as a consequence of historic redlining, with those living in majority
White neighborhoods experiencing fewer of these factors. Historically
redlined neighborhoods, for example, generally have poorer air quality
than White neighborhoods (Woo et al., 2019). A study by the Kaiser Family
Foundation found that minoritized people generally fare worse compared
to White people across most examined measures of social determinants of
health (Jack et al., 2012). In fact, residential racial segregation is a potent
predictor of Black people’s experience of health disparities, including in-
creased rates of preterm and low-birth-rate births, asthma, cancer, tubercu-
losis, and material depression and other mental health issues (Bailey et al.,
2017; Williams and Collins, 2001; Williams et al., 2019).

CONCLUSION 2-1: The history of systemic racism in the United States,

including both written laws and policies and a culture of practices and be-
liefs, has harmed Black people, Indigenous people, Latine, Asian American,
and other people from minoritized racial and ethnic groups that continue
to this day. This history provides critical context for understanding the
unequal representation of minoritized populations in science, technology,
engineering, mathematics, and medicine higher education and workplaces.

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50 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

MINORITY SERVING INSTITUTIONS

As mentioned above, in response to laws and practices that limited
the opportunities for Black students to attend college, Black ministers
and White philanthropists established institutions that came to be known
as HBCUs. Over the years, institutions of higher education designed to
honor and reflect Native Americans and Latine culture have also been
established. The sections below find that even in the face of historical and
current underfunding, these MSIs today are important venues for students
from marginalized ethnic and racial communities to not only pursue a
postsecondary education in a culturally supportive environment but go on
to graduate school in STEMM fields.
The committee notes that a 2019 report from the National Acade-
mies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, Minority Serving Institutions:
America’s Underutilized Resource for Strengthening the STEM Workforce,
presents a far more detailed examination of MSIs and the important role
they play in bolstering the STEM workforce, as MSIs were central to the
report’s statement of task (the National Academies, 2019). The 2019 report
presents findings, conclusions, and recommendations that “aim to support
the expansion of effective practices, and the study of promising ones, such
that both can be scaled and thus reach more institutions and their students.”
It also concludes that there is “very limited, rigorous research available on
MSIs generally, but especially knowledge that sheds light on how these insti-
tutions organize, deliver, and support learning opportunities for students of
color in STEM” (see Appendix A for further discussion of Minority Serving
Institutions and other earlier related reports). Given some areas of content
overlap in regard to MSIs, the committee of the current report decided to
underscore the existence of the 2019 recommendations, as these are expan-
sive and valuable extant resources. When forming recommendations, the
committee was mindful to not recreate the same set of recommendations,
but rather develop novel recommendations pertaining to MSIs.

Historically Black Colleges and Universities

The statistics reviewed in the upcoming section draw heavily from data
within the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). These data
show that in the year 2020, there were a total of 101 HBCUs, located in
19 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, representing
2.5 percent of all public, private nonprofit, and for-profit colleges (NCES,
n.d.a,b) Most of these institutions (59%) only offer undergraduate degrees,
while 41 percent offer graduate degrees, including 28 percent that award
doctoral degrees (NCES, 2022). Between the years 1976 and 2010, the
number of students attending HBCUs increased 47 percent from 223,000

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HISTORICAL AND CONTEMPORARY CONTEXT 51

to 327,000 students, and decreased by 15 percent to 279,000 between

2010 and 2020 (Thurgood Marshall College Fund, n.d.). Between the years
1976 and 2010, the number of students in all degree-granting institutions
increased 91 percent (from 11 to 21 million), and then between the years
2010 to 2020, it decreased 10 percent (NCES, 2021). Scholars note that
HBCUs represent a small percentage (approximately 3%) of all four-year
colleges. Even though they represent a small numeric minority, data have
demonstrated that they are outperforming in regard to conferring bachelor’s
degrees (approximately 18%). Further, among African American individu-
als that earn STEM degrees, 25 percent received their degrees from HBCUs
(Williams et al., 2019b).
As noted above, HBCUs have been chronically underfunded by both
federal and state governments, despite the pivotal role they play in ad-
vancing representation of historically racialized and minoritized people in
STEMM. A 2019 report from the American Council on Education (ACE)
found the following. Private HBCUs usually depend more on tuition than
their non-HBCU counterparts. Compared to their non-HBCU counter-
parts, public HBCUs rely on sources of local, state, and federal funding
more heavily. In addition, the ACE report notes specifically that between
the years 2003–2015, both public and private HBCUs experienced the
steepest declines in federal funding per full-time student. Private HBCUs
in particular experienced a 42 percent reduction. At the same time, grants,
contracts, and private gifts represent a smaller percentage of overall revenue
for private HBCUs relative to non-HBCUs (American Council on Educa-
tion, 2019).
There are also disparities between historically White land-grant institu-
tions (HWLGUs) and historically Black land-grant institutions (HBLGUs)
in endowments and campus resources (Allen and Esters, 2018). As of
2013, per full time student equivalent, public HBCUs had approximately
20 percent of the endowment funds as other public institutions (Lee and
Keys, 2013). These disparities are a legacy of the two Morrill Acts of 1862
and 1890 that created HWLGUs and HBLGUs; such disparities dispel the
notion that the 1890 Morrill Act created equal opportunities in higher edu-
cation for Black Americans (Allen and Esters, 2018; Lee and Keys, 2013).
The authors of the 2019 ACE report noted that the huge gap in endow-
ments jeopardizes an HBCU’s ability to buffer ongoing decreases in state
and federal funding and to continue offering high-quality education for
a predominantly non-White student body. They also stated that “despite
efforts to counter a historical legacy of inequitable funding and notable in-
vestments by the federal government and many state governments, resource
inequities continue to plague HBCUs” (American Council on Education,
2019). In fact, federal funding per full-time student at non-HBCUs is
greater than at HBCUs, particularly for private HBCUs compared to private

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52 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

non-HBCUs; in this area, the gap has grown from less than $400 per full-
time student in 2003 to $1,600 in 2015. Given the general divestment in
higher education by the states over the past four decades, HBCUs are par-
ticularly vulnerable to underfunding. The authors of this study concluded
that “because HBCUs are mission-driven to broaden college opportunities
for Black students, many of whom have limited financial resources, these
colleges and universities cannot increase costs to offset public divestments
in higher education. Furthermore, they cannot grow their endowments
overnight. As a result, federal, state, and local funding continue to play a
critical role for HBCUs in their mission to support students that the country
needs to earn college degrees” (American Council on Education, 2019).
In spite of these challenges, HBCUs continue to prepare high percent-
ages of their graduates who go on to attain advanced degrees in STEMM.
Approximately 20 percent of Black college graduates with a STEM degree
earned it at an HBCU, as did one-third of the Black individuals with a
STEM Ph.D. (Gewin and Payne, 2021). Given the projected shortfall of
STEMM jobs that will need people to fill them, and increased interests in
promoting diversity in STEMM, investing in HBCUs would be an impor-
tant means of closing that gap while diversifying the STEMM workforce
(Duker, 2021; Shuler et al., 2022).

Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs)

Currently, there are 32 Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs), each
established and chartered by its own tribal government or the federal gov-
ernment, and they aim to “maintain, preserve, and restore Native languages
and cultural traditions; offer high-quality college equation; provide career
and technical education, job training, and other career building programs;
and often serve as anchors in some of the country’s poorest and most remote
areas” (U.S. Department of Education, n.d.a). As of 2010, 8.7 percent of
American Indian and Alaska Native students were enrolled at a TCU. Cur-
rently, TCUs serve approximately 30,000 students, including full- and part-
time students. In addition, 23 TCUs offer several types of degrees, including
associate’s, bachelor’s, and graduate degrees (U.S. Department of Education,
n.d.a). Nelson and Frye noted that “despite the need and growing popula-
tion, American Indians and Alaska Natives do not access higher education
at the same rate as their non-Native peers” (Nelson and Frye, 2016).
The 2016 ACE report found that federal funding accounts for 71–74
percent of TCU revenues, compared to less than 25 percent for public non-
TCUs. In contrast, state and local funding of public non-TCUs is higher than
for TCUs, with state and local funding accounting for approximately 40
percent of public non-TCU revenues compared to approximately seven to 10
percent of TCU revenues. Similarly, tuition and fees account for between 27

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HISTORICAL AND CONTEMPORARY CONTEXT 53

and 38 percent of public non-TCU revenues compared to approximately nine

percent for TCUs. The authors note that “the majority of states do not pro-
vide any financial support to TCUs, even as these institutions enroll significant
numbers of non-Native state residents.”
The largest source of STEM-related funding for TCUs comes from the
National Science Foundation (NSF), and specifically NSF’s Tribal Colleges
and Universities Program (TCUP). TCUP was created after President Bill
Clinton signed an executive order in 1996 directing all federal agencies to
increase support to the tribal colleges. The NSF states TCUP “supports
tribal colleges and universities, Alaska Native-serving institutions, and Na-
tive Hawaiian-serving institutions to promote STEM research and educa-
tion to increase the number of Native Americans in STEM careers” (NSF,
n.d.a). According to the Native Science Report, TCUP has “fundamentally
transformed STEM education within [TCUs]” and enabled many TCUs
to establish STEM programs and facilities comparable to public two- and
four-year colleges (Native Science Report, 2022).

Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs)

The federal definition of a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) is a
nonprofit, degree-granting institution with a full-time equivalent under-
graduate Hispanic student enrollment of at least 25 percent (U.S. Depart-
ment of Education, n.d.b). As of 2021, there were 559 HSIs in 29 states, the
District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico achieving this designation (HACU,
2022b). In addition, there were 393 emerging HSIs. Emerging HSIs are de-
fined as “non-profit, degree-granting institutions with a full-time equivalent
undergraduate Hispanic student enrollment of at least 15 percent, but less
than 25%” (HACU, 2022b). In 2020, over two million Hispanic students
were enrolled at HSIs out of a total of 4.2 million students enrolled at HSIs
(U.S. Department of Education, 2022). According to the Hispanic Associa-
tion of Colleges and Universities, “HSIs comprise 17 percent of colleges and
universities nationally yet educate more than two-thirds of the estimated
3.8 million Hispanic college students and 33 percent of all Pell recipients in
the country. HSIs also enroll 41.3 percent of Asian, 35.6 percent of Native
Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 26.2 percent of multi-racial, 24.2 percent of
Black, and 15 percent of White students” (HACU, 2022a).
Two federal programs provide the bulk of support for STEM pro-
grams at HSIs. The Department of Education’s Hispanic-Serving Institu-
tions STEM and Articulation Program (HSI STEM) aims to increase the
number of Hispanic students who graduate with STEM degrees and to
develop model articulation agreements that would enable students to more
easily transfer from a two-year college to a four-year college or university
(U.S. Department of Education, n.d.c). This program provided an estimated

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54 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

$94.1 million to support STEM programs at HSIs in fiscal year 2021

(U.S. Department of Education, 2021). The NSF’s Improving Undergradu-
ate STEM Education: Hispanic-Serving Institutions Program awarded 48
grants to HSIs in fiscal year 2022 totaling approximately $27 million (NSF,
n.d.b). The goals of this program are to “enhance the quality of undergrad-
uate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education
and to increase the recruitment, retention and graduation rates of students
pursuing an associate’s or baccalaureate degrees in STEM” (NSF, n.d.b).

Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions

Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institu-
tions (AANAPISI) are defined under the Higher Education Opportunity Act
of 2008 as colleges or universities with an undergraduate enrollment that
is at least 10 percent Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander
and with at least 50 percent of the institution’s degree-seeking students
receiving federal financial aid (U.S. Department of Education, 2020a). The
number of institutions eligible to receive AANAPISI grants has increased
significantly between 2018–2022 from 110 to 199. Behind HSIs, they are
the second largest number of MSIs in the United States (Herder, 2022). The
committee identified that funding opportunities for AANAPISI programs
exist to help improve and expand institutions of higher education’s ability
to serve students (U.S. Department of Education, 2020b).

CONCLUSION 2-2: The policies, programs, and practices of historically

Black colleges and universities and TCUs are examples of providing inten-
tional and culturally responsive student and faculty support. Predominantly
White institutions of higher education and other science, technology, engi-
neering, mathematics, and medicine organizations can look to these institu-
tions as guides and adopt these systems to increase support for people from
minoritized racial and ethnic groups.

RECOMMENDATION 2-1: Federal funding agencies, private philan-

thropies, and other grantmaking organizations should provide increased
opportunities for grants, awards, and other forms of support to increase
understanding of how the policies, programs, and practices of historically
Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and Tribal colleges and universi-
ties (TCUs) support students and faculty. Notably, one issue for further
investigation is understanding the core principles of historically-based mi-
nority serving institution (MSI)-based programs and how to translate them
to predominantly White institutions of higher education and other science,
technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine organizations. In ad-
dition, predominately White institutions should seek sustainable partner-
ships with all MSIs (HBCUs, TCUs, Hispanic serving institutions, and
Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions).

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HISTORICAL AND CONTEMPORARY CONTEXT 55

STEMM: A REFLECTION AND REPRODUCTION

OF BROADER BIASED STRUCTURES
The current chapter has reviewed the evidence demonstrating that
structural, institutional, and systemic racism exists and has existed across
multiple sectors of society, including education opportunities and hous-
ing, and that it continually reinforces a false hierarchy on the basis of race
and ethnicity. Minoritized people face numerous systematic disadvantages
across these sectors, with these disadvantages each acting as a barrier to
entry and accessibility into the STEMM educational and workforce settings.
STEMM organizations, and the educational and professional environments
they provide, cannot be divorced from the larger history and contemporary
sociopolitical contexts of the country.
The impacts of these disadvantages and barriers are wide-reaching,
and the remainder of the report will articulate evidence demonstrating that
these broader biased structures occurring in U.S. society can inform racial
bias occurring within STEMM contexts. For instance, as a result of the
educational disparities discussed above, people from marginalized racial
and ethnic groups have had limited access to STEMM education, training,
and career opportunities (see Chapter 3 for demographic disparities). With
fewer Black people, Indigenous people, and other systematically minoritized
racial and ethnic people able to enter STEMM in years past, there are fewer
role models and smaller communities of support for entrants (see Chapters
4 and 5 for more about the experiences of minoritized people). Further, as
the remainder of the report will demonstrate, racism is reproduced within
STEMM settings. In fact, while traditionally marketed as a competitive and
meritocratic field, research has shown that there is more bias in STEMM
professions than their non-STEM counterparts (Borum and Walker, 2012;
Leath and Chavous, 2018).
In general, while there are no legal or policy barriers explicitly pre-
venting people from marginalized racial and ethnic groups from pursuing
degrees and careers in STEMM today, the committee notes that there are
parallels in STEMM to the ways that Black people, Indigenous people,
and other systematically minoritized racial and ethnic people have faced
discrimination in a broader national setting. For instance, gatekeepers of
STEMM, who are often non-Hispanic White males, define the skills, iden-
tities, and values necessary for minoritized people to persist in STEMM
(see Chapter 6 for further discussion of gatekeepers). They often exhibit
bias on the basis of race and ethnicity, and cannot monitor their own bias
and so, unwittingly perpetuate it. Individual and interpersonal racism as
experienced by minoritized people yield adverse health outcomes, and
racism informs working conditions in many STEMM contexts (see Chap-
ter 7 on STEMM teams), all of which inform STEMM career outcomes.
Across many STEMM disciplines, there is often a notion of the “survival of

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56 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

the fittest” culture; this culture implies that student’s success arises exclu-
sively from an individual’s intelligence, and also takes some of the emphasis
off the role of structural racism and the importance of student’s multiple
identities (McGee, 2020). White-centered culture in STEMM prizes meri-
tocracy and establishes the criteria that perpetuate success based on similar-
ity or likeness to the ingroup (see Chapter 8).

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HISTORICAL AND CONTEMPORARY CONTEXT 59

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HISTORICAL AND CONTEMPORARY CONTEXT 63

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64 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

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Population Data and Demographics

in the United States

The racial and ethnic composition of the U.S. population is changing rap-
idly. Today, minoritized individuals account for 50 percent of the population
of those 18 years and younger, and if current trends continue, minoritized in-
dividuals will account for a majority of the U.S. population between 2042 and
2045 (Craig and Richeson, 2014; Frey, 2021). These demographic trends rep-
resent both an opportunity and a critical challenge to U.S. science, technology,
engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM): the opportunity to draw
talent from groups that are currently minoritized in STEMM and the challenge
for STEMM educators to attract and retain minoritized students and STEMM
employers to attract and retain STEMM graduates in sufficient numbers to
reflect the diversity in the population. Meeting this charge is critical to realize
the full potential of talent in the United States as well as ensure equal education
and professional opportunities for all. Although the representation of minori-
tized individuals in STEM undergraduate education and STEMM graduate
education is increasing, the collective attainment of science and engineering
degrees for Black, Indigenous, and Latine Americans lags behind that of the
U.S. population as a whole, and these historically minoritized racial and ethnic
groups remain minoritized in U.S. STEM and STEMM (Fry et al., 2021).1

1 This chapter will use both STEM (to refer to science, technology, engineering, and mathe-

matics) and STEMM (to refer to science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine).
In many references to undergraduate education, STEM will be used rather than STEMM, to
indicate the lack of professional medical degrees in the data sets most often provided by the
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics. Many references used in this chapter
refer to STEM (also referenced as S&E) or medicine, and the separation of STEM vs. STEMM
should be seen as intentional to reflect the data.

65

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66 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

Building on the previous chapter’s examination of how racism works

at the systemic level to create obstacles for individuals from historically
minoritized racial and ethnic groups to join the STEMM workforce,
the current chapter focuses on the end result of those obstacles—the
national-level demographic and population data demonstrating the de-
gree to which individuals from systematically minoritized racial and eth-
nic groups are minoritized in STEMM disciplines in the United States.
This chapter focuses on two broad factors: (1) understanding racial and
ethnic representation and trends over time in the United States; and (2)
understanding who earns STEMM degrees and who enters the STEMM
workforce. These factors go hand in hand, as demographic trends sig-
nal who is represented (or not) in STEMM broadly and within specific
disciplines.
This chapter begins by demonstrating the ways in which race and eth-
nicity categories have changed over time in U.S history. Such a history is
meant to underscore that race and ethnicity are socially constructed catego-
ries that are dynamic and changing constantly as a result of sociopolitical
forces (See Box 3-1). To this day, capturing racial and demographic data
remains a complex issue. After covering the history of racial categories, the
chapter addresses demographic trends that are occurring within the United
States. This trend has implications for the future STEMM workforce, given
that the present STEMM workforce does not currently feature representa-
tional diversity in terms of race and ethnicity.
Furthermore, the chapter examines data reflecting current trends within
the STEMM educational spaces and the STEMM workforce. Though there
have been increases in the numeric representation of individuals from
systematically minoritized racial and ethnic groups, there are specific ar-
eas in the STEMM educational space and the STEMM workforce where
significant disparities continue to exist today. This chapter also discusses
other disparities, including pay inequities. The committee found that there
are many important missing pieces in the data that would provide a bet-
ter understanding of how certain racial and ethnic groups are minoritized
in STEM and STEMM spaces. The chapter also provides conclusions that
outline specific data to collect and areas to cover.

DEMOGRAPHIC DATA, RACIAL CATEGORIES, AND LIMITATIONS

One key way to understand the changing understanding of race in
the United States is to review the ways that demographic information
has been collected in the census. The practice of collecting demographic
data through the U.S. Census Bureau goes back centuries. Understand-
ing which groups exist and in what proportions in a population can

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POPULATION DATA AND DEMOGRAPHICS IN THE UNITED STATES 67

help governments make important policy decisions. For modern U.S.

demographics, a main source of data is the decennial census conducted
by the Census Bureau. In the 2020 census, the Census Bureau collected
race and ethnicity data in accordance with the U.S. Office of Management
and Budget (OMB) 1997 Standards for Maintaining, Collecting, and Pre-
senting Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity (Office of Management and
Budget, 1997). The OMB standards require two separate race and ethnic-
ity questions for self-response. These standards require collecting answers
to the ethnicity question before asking the race question, with the stan-
dards requiring two minimum categories for data on ethnicity—Hispanic
or Latine and Not Hispanic or Latine—and five minimum categories
for data on race—American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Black or
African American, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, and White
(U.S. Census Bureau, 2021a). According to the Census Bureau, “race
and ethnicity categories generally reflect social definitions in the United
States and are not an attempt to define race and ethnicity biologically,

BOX 3-1
What Is Race? What Is Ethnicity?

A variety of ways exist to describe race. Many researchers choose to

recognize race as a social construction, “based on observed phenotypic mani-
festations of presumed, underlying genetic differences” (Brown et al., 1999).
The committee, in its deliberations, also referenced the Smithsonian Institution
definition of race: “a human-invented, shorthand term used to describe and
categorize people into various social groups based on characteristics like skin
color, physical features, and genetic heredity. Race, while not a valid biological
concept, is a real social construction that gives or denies benefits and privileges”
(Smithsonian, n.d.).
In contrast, ethnicity has a stronger relationship to place: “a grouping of
persons according to a shared geographic, national, or cultural heritage” (Brown
et al., 1999). The Smithsonian describes ethnicity as another human-invented
term used to describe people from a similar national or regional background who
share common cultural, historical, and social experiences. An ethnic group likely
contains a subgroup of people who share distinct beliefs, values, and behaviors.
Race, even though as mentioned above is not a valid biological construct, does
contain reference to biological features, while ethnicity addresses social, cultural,
and historical commonalities (Smithsonian, n.d.).

SOURCES: Brown et al., 1999; Smithsonian, n.d.

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68 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

anthropologically, or genetically. We recognize that the race and ethnicity

categories include racial, ethnic, and national origins and sociocultural
groups” (U.S. Census Bureau, 2021a).
For demographic information related to STEMM, this report relies on
several sources for data on race and ethnicity, including the National Center
for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES), the National Center for
Education Statistics (NCES), National Institutes of Health’s (NIH’s) Data-
book (NDB), and the American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC).
NCSES, a federal statistical agency located within the National Science
Foundation (NSF), is responsible for data on research and development;
the science and engineering workforce; United States’ competitiveness in
science, engineering, technology, and research and development; and the
condition and progress of STEM education in the United States (National
Center for Education Statistics, n.d.). NCES, located within the U.S. De-
partment of Education, is “the primary federal entity for collecting and ana-
lyzing data related to education” (National Center for Education Statistics,
n.d.). NDB “provides basic summary statistics on extramural grants and
contract awards, grant applications, the organizations that NIH supports,
the trainees and fellows supported through NIH programs, and the national
biomedical workforce” (National Institutes of Health, n.d.). Finally, AAMC
is a nonprofit, membership organization of over 170 academic medical
institutions that makes select data on its institutions available to the public
(AAMC, n.d.a).
The following NCSES definitions for race and ethnicity are according
to OMB’s 1997 standards:

• American Indian or Alaska Native: A person having origins in any

of the original peoples of North and South America (including Cen-
tral America) and who maintains tribal affiliation or community
attachment.
• Asian [or Asian American]: A person having origins in any of the
original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian
subcontinent; for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea,
Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand, and Vietnam.
• Black or African American: A person having origins in any of the
Black racial groups of Africa.
• Hispanic or Latine: A person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican,
South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin,
regardless of race.
• Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander: A person having origins
in any of the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other
Pacific islands.

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POPULATION DATA AND DEMOGRAPHICS IN THE UNITED STATES 69

• White: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of

Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa.
• More than one race: Respondents who selected one or more racial
designations (NCSES, 2021a,b).

These categories, while descriptive of major racial and ethnic groups

and aligned generally with other data sources, have considerations attached
to them. NCSES describes the challenges of reporting race and ethnicity
data as follows:

The collection and reporting of race and ethnicity data pose several prob-
lems. First, both the naming of population subgroups and their defini-
tions have changed over time. Second, many of the groups of particular
interest are quite small, so it is difficult to measure them accurately
without larger samples or surveys of the entire population of interest.
In some instances, sample surveys may not have had sufficient sample
size to permit the calculation of reliable racial or ethnic population esti-
mates for all groups; consequently, data are not shown for some groups.
The Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey, for example, does not
provide data on unemployment among American Indians. Third, data
on race and ethnicity are often based on self-identification. Fourth, it is
easy to overlook or minimize heterogeneity within racial or ethnic sub-
groups when only a single statistic is estimated for their entire population
(NCSES, 2021b).

Pertaining to this last point about heterogeneity within racial and

ethnic subgroups, one limitation of the NCSES categories is that they do
not adequately capture the diversity of individuals included in a particular
group. Every data set and accompanying definitions present advantages
and disadvantages in terms of use, and while some methods are better than
others, there is no ideal way to capture the full richness of racial and ethnic
diversity to describe a population.

The Changing Nature of Racial Categories

in the U.S. Census and Beyond
Since the first census in 1790, the U.S. government has included ra-
cial categories; however, the ways in which the government has measured
race and ethnicity have changed from census to census as the politics and
definitions of these categories have evolved (Parker et al., 2015). The his-
tory of racial and ethnic categories in the U.S. Census and the ways in
which they have changed over time reflects the evolving nature of race in
this country and the fact that race and ethnicity are socially constructed

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70 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

categories (Figure 3-1). Along with the categories themselves, the data
collection process has also changed. Prior to the 1960 Census, which
introduced by-mail response, the majority of individuals self-identify
race or ethnicity on their survey (U.S. Census Bureau, n.d.). Instead,
federal census takers or enumerators—and not individual citizens being
counted—determined a person’s race based on their direct observations.
Limitations imposed on racial identity by the basic structure of the
U.S. Census Bureau go beyond self-identification. Prior to the 2000 Cen-
sus, individuals could only choose one race to describe themselves (Brown,
2020). This is changing, however. In 2000, people who identify with more
than one race were allowed to choose multiple races when responding to

FIGURE 3-1 U.S. Census categories used throughout history.

SOURCE: U.S. Census Bureau, 2021b.

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POPULATION DATA AND DEMOGRAPHICS IN THE UNITED STATES 71

the race question (U.S. Census, 2021a,b). The 2020 Census offered a field
to further describe national heritage for individuals who listed themselves
as either White or Black, such as German, Lebanese, African American, or
Somali (Brown, 2020). In addition, in 2020, people who identify with more
than one race were allowed to choose multiple races when responding to
the race question (U.S. Census Bureau, 2021a,b).

Categorizing Race and Ethnicity

The first census, in 1790, had only three racial categories: free Whites,
all other free persons, and slaves. At that point, Indigenous people and Na-
tive Americans were not counted in the census. The 1860 census included
American Indians living in the general population, and in 1900, for the
first time, the census included American Indians on reservations and in the
general population. The Census Bureau has acknowledged that American
Indian and Alaska Native populations were significantly undercounted in
censuses as recently as 2010 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2012, 2022a).
One challenge regarding STEMM-related data is that the popula-
tion of individuals identifying as American Indian or Alaska Native
in STEMM fields is small and often omitted from studies because the
numbers are considered statistically insignificant (Shotton, 2013). As
one group of scholars noted, this has led to a phenomenon referred to as
the “American Indian research asterisk” that fails to include American
Indian and Native Alaskan populations in research (Garland, 2007).
In some of the tables in this chapter, data are shown separately for (i)
American Indian or Alaska Native and (ii) Native Hawaiian or Other
Pacific Islander (discussed below). In some of the graphs in this chapter,
“Indigenous” is used to represent the sum contribution of these racial
and ethnic groups.
Historically, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders were lumped to-
gether with Asian American in an umbrella racial category (Asian Pacific
Institute on Gender Based Violence, n.d.). Only in 2000 did the U.S. Census
make the Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander a racial category distinct
from the Asian American category (Access, Equity and Belonging Commit-
tee, n.d.). However, even the category Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific
Islander is broad and does not necessarily reflect the full diversity and
cultures of these peoples. As with American Indian and Alaska Natives,
Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders have been undercounted for decades
(Georgetown Law, 2017).
Regarding Asian Americans, the census first included data in 1860 for
individuals identified as Chinese, with Japanese added as a category in 1870,
and Filipino, Hindu, and Korean added in 1910 (Holland and Palaniappan,
2012). Although the Census Bureau has collected demographic information

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72 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

on Asian American subgroups for quite some time, the census reports
typically have not provided disaggregated data and, instead, refer to Asian
Americans as a seemingly monolithic group. Furthermore, and as noted
above, the census lumped Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific
Islanders into one category prior to 2000. It is likely that some of the more
than 50 Asian American ethnicities (Chau and Chan, 2021) are underrep-
resented in STEMM, although the aggregated Asian American population
is not (Iporac, 2020).
Even the category definition of White has changed over time. Initially,
“white” referred only to Anglo-Saxon people. For example, Italians arriving
in the United States in the decades of mass emigration from Europe between
the late 1870s and the early 1920s were not regarded as fully “white” but
were considered “our temporary negroes” or “not-yet-white ethnics” (Yang
and Koshy, 2016). As the Pew Research Center noted in 2015, “In a society
where whites had more legal rights and privileges than people of other races,
detailed rules limited who was entitled to be called ‘white’ in the census. Until
the middle of the 20th century, the general rule was that if someone was both
white and any other non-white race (or ‘color,’ as it was called in some early
censuses), that person could not be classified as white” (Parker et al., 2015).
In 2020, many media outlets and style guides shifted to the capital-
ization of the “b” in Black when referring to Black or African American
people, prompting a conversation on whether the “w” in “White” when
it refers to race should also be capitalized (Daniszewski, 2020; Darling-
Hammond, 1998) This is a contentious issue, with some arguing that
capitalizing the term “White” risks legitimizing White supremacy (Nguyê˜n
and Pendleton, 2020). The committee has taken the position to capitalize
White as a matter of consistency and that not capitalizing White when it
refers to race could imply that White is the default race. The decision to
capitalize “White” has been adopted by the National Academies Press (see
Chapter 1 for more information).

Hispanic or Latine
Hispanic and Latine are both ethnicities. Hispanic refers to people from
Spain or from Spanish-speaking countries in Latin America who can be of
any race; it does not include individuals with Brazilian heritage. Latine refers
to people from Latin America regardless of language (Lopez et al., 2022).
The inclusion of Hispanic or Latine in the U.S. Census only dates to the
1980 Census (Parker et al., 2015). Since then, OMB developed standards for
collecting data on Hispanic individuals in 1997 and revised them in 2016.
Given that Hispanic is an ethnicity and can be combined with any
race, it has posed challenges as a data category, and the Census Bureau has
acknowledged confusion on the part of many Hispanics over the way race

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POPULATION DATA AND DEMOGRAPHICS IN THE UNITED STATES 73

is categorized and how the census form asks about it (U.S. Census Bureau,
2021a,b). Civil rights advocates have expressed concern that an all-in-one
race and Hispanic question could lead to a “possible loss of race data
through a combined race and Hispanic origin question, the diminished ac-
curacy of detailed Hispanic subgroup data, and the ability to compare data
over time to monitor trends” (Parker et al., 2015).

Intersectionality and the Consideration of Other Demographic Groups

In addition to having data limited by an inadequate number of catego-
ries, another challenge in reviewing data by race and ethnicity alone is that
it fails to capture trends or insights at the intersection of race, ethnicity,
and other demographic characteristics such as sex, gender identity, age, re-
ligion, disability, economic status, education, and others. There are several
important impacts to consider with intersectionality, particularly at the
intersection between race, ethnicity, and gender, as two separate consensus
study reports from the National Academies note:

Many employers, including those at educational institutions have adopted

programs and the policies aimed at improving equity and diversity in
STEMM without considering the complex, cumulative ways in which
multiple intersecting identities influence outcomes of the interventions.
For women of color in particular, multiple forms of discrimination, such
as racism and sexism, intersect to shape their experiences (the National
Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2020).

For example, it is generally understood that women of color experience

unique forms of gender and racial discrimination, but what is often lost in
translation is the fact that women of color are not a monolithic group. . . . As
a whole, women of color require distinct and unique supports, relative to
the inequitable power and social systems they experiences; however these
supports must be informed by the varying experiences and challenges face
by different women of color (the National Academies, 2022).

Whenever possible, the committee looked to disaggregate data and re-

view trends with an intersectional lens; however, given the presentation and
limitations of publicly available data, this level of analysis was not always
possible. In such instances, given the charge to focus on race and ethnicity,
the committee prioritized understanding numerical representation primarily
through that lens.
The changing nature of how race and ethnicity categories have been
defined and assessed underscores the fact that race and ethnicity are socially
constructed categories that are dynamic and changing constantly because
of sociopolitical forces. The relevance of these category fluctuations to this

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74 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

report is that they have created persistent knowledge gaps and challenges
for how race and ethnicity data are monitored over time, as well as implica-
tions for understanding nuance within race and ethnicity groups. Given that
there is no perfect way to capture the full richness of diversity in the U.S.
population, collecting racial and demographic data in the United States is
likely to remain a complex issue.
The following section presents data that articulates the demographic
trends and shifts that have occurred in the United States. As the remainder
of the chapter and report will demonstrate, understanding the demographic
data and shifts that have occurred in the United States is critical for under-
standing who is (and who is not) earning STEMM degrees, and who is (and
who is not) numerically represented in the STEMM workforce.

U.S. DEMOGRAPHIC TRENDS

For general demographic information regarding the U.S. population,
the committee relied on data from the 2020 Census as reported by the
Census Bureau. According to census data, nearly all racial and ethnic
groups have seen population gains since 2010. Only the White popula-
tion experienced both an absolute decline and a decline relative to other
groups, falling 8.6 percent since 2010 as a percentage of the U.S. popu-
lation. R
­ elevant highlights from the 2020 Census (Figures 3-2 and 3-3)
show:

• White remained the largest racial or ethnic group in the United

States, with 204.3 million people identifying as White alone, and
235.4 million people identifying as White alone or in combination
with another group. However, the proportion of White people
alone has fallen by 8.6 percent since 2010 and continues to be in
decline in comparison to all other groups. The decline in the num-
ber of White persons in the United States between 2010 and 2020
is unprecedented (Frey, 2020).
• The self-defined multiracial population grew substantially since
2010, increasing from nine million people in 2010 to 33.8 million
people in 2020, a 276 percent increase; the “in combination” mul-
tiracial populations for all race groups accounted for most of the
overall changes in each racial category.2
• The Black population grew 8.5 percent between 2010 and 2020,
adding 1.7 million individuals to the nation’s total population; this

2 As mentioned previously, before 2020, individuals could only select one race. The increase

in multiracial may related to the ability to select two races, allowing individuals to select one
race in addition to the U.S. census category “Two or More Races.”

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75

FIGURE 3-2 U.S. population trends by race and ethnicity, 2010–2019.

SOURCE: U.S. Census Bureau, 2021d.

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 76

FIGURE 3-3 U.S. annual population changes by race and ethnicity per year, 2010–2019.3
SOURCE: U.S. Census Bureau, 2021d, adapted from Frey, 2021.

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3 For categories other than Hispanic of Latine, these figures reflect the non-Hispanic population figures.
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POPULATION DATA AND DEMOGRAPHICS IN THE UNITED STATES 77

was the smallest growth in percentage and number among all races
and ethnicities (Frey, 2020).
• The Hispanic or Latine population, which includes people of
any race, grew by 23 percent between 2010 and 2020, totaling
62.1 million people in 2020. In comparison, the population that
was not of Hispanic or Latine origin grew 4.3 percent since 2010
(Jones et al., 2021).
• The Asian racial or ethnic group alone grew 35.5 percent between
2010 and 2020 and totaled 19.9 million people, while Asian
in combination with another race grew by 55.5 percent over
the same period (Monte and Shin, 2022; U.S. Census Bureau,
2021c).
• The American Indian and Alaska Native alone population grew
by 27.1 percent between 2010 and 2020 and totaled 3.7 million
people. The American Indian and Alaska Native and another race
population totaled 5.9 million individuals, an increase of 160 per-
cent since 2010 (U.S. Census 2022b, 2021c).
• The Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander population grew
by 27.8 percent between 2010 and 2020 and totaled just un-
der 690,000 individuals. The Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific
Islander in combination population grew by 30.8 percent and
included just over 890,000 people (Monte and Shin, 2022; U.S.
Census, 2021c).

The Census Bureau urges users of census data to exercise caution

when making data comparisons between the 2010 and 2020 census
figures to account for changes the Census Bureau made to the Hispanic
origin and race questions and the ways it codes how people self-report
their race and ethnicity (Jones et al., 2021). The Census Bureau notes
that people may change how they self-identify regarding their race given
that racial categories are social constructs that have been fluid over time
(Brown, 2020). The Census Bureau plans to continue to refine its de-
mographic categories to reduce these ambiguities (U.S. Census Bureau,
2021a).
The proportion of the U.S. population that is non-White steadily in-
creases with decreasing age groups; for instance, the group of persons 18
and younger is 50 percent non-White (NCSES, 2021a). Assuming these
demographic trends continue, the NCSES estimated that the total popula-
tion of individuals from historically minoritized racial and ethnic groups
will comprise a numeric majority, accounting for more than 50 percent of
the total U.S. population, before the year 2050 (Figure 3-4).

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78 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

FIGURE 3-4 Racial and ethnic compositions of U.S. population by age.

SOURCE: NCSES, 2021a.

REPRESENTATION BY RACE AND ETHNICITY

IN U.S. STEMM HIGHER EDUCATION
When it comes to demographic data and trends on enrollment and
degree attainment, the focus of observations and research has been on
the individuals who stay in the system, with less data available about the
individuals who leave STEMM and higher education altogether. With that
caveat, U.S. postsecondary education enrollment of individuals who iden-
tify as Asian American, Black, Latine, Pacific Islander, or as Two or More
Races (in the official parlance of the Census Bureau) has increased in the
1980–2019 period according to NCES (Figure 3-5). The most significant
increase occurred in the Latine population, growing from four percent in
1980 to 20.3 percent in 2019. Black enrollment peaked in 2010 at 15 per-
cent before declining to 13.3 percent in 2019 (National Center for Educa-
tion Statistics Institute of Education Sciences, 2021).
AAMC data for medical school attendees covering the years 2017–
2022 (AAMC, 2022) show that total enrollment at U.S. medical schools
increased by 20.8 percent, from 51,680 to 62,443 (AAMC, 2022). Enroll-
ment of students who identify as Asian American, Black, Latine, or Native
Hawaiian or Pacific Islander increased by 32.9 percent and accounted
for 48.7 percent of medical school students in 2022, up from 44.3 per-
cent of medical school students in 2017 (AAMC, 2022). Black student
enrollment grew the most over that period, increasing by 47.6 percent,
followed by Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, which increased

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POPULATION DATA AND DEMOGRAPHICS IN THE UNITED STATES 79

FIGURE 3-5 Total fall enrollment in degree-granting postsecondary institutions by

race/ethnicity.
SOURCE: National Center for Education Statistics Institute of Education Sciences,
2021.

by 39.1 percent, American Indian or Alaska Native by 35.0 percent,

Hispanic or Latine by 31.1 percent, Asian by 29.1 percent, and White by
7.2 percent (AAMC, 2022).
In terms of medical school, the AAMC data for medical school at-
tendees, and the data covering the years 2018–2019 to 2022–2023 show
that total enrollment at U.S. medical schools increased by 5.8 percent, from
91,225 to 96,520 (AAMC, 2022). Enrollment of students who identify as
Black, Latine, American Indian or Alaska Native, or Native Hawaiian or
Pacific Islander increased by 22.3 percent from 12,113 in the 2018–2019
academic year to 14,818 in 2022–2023 (AAMC, 2022). Most racial and
ethnic groups showed growth in enrollment: Black student enrollment
increased by 26.0 percent; Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander by
47.0 percent; American Indian or Alaska Native by 8.9 percent; Hispanic
or Latine by 18.3 percent; and Asian by 13.6 percent. In that time period,
White enrollment decreased by 6.4 percent (AAMC, 2022).

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80 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

Representation by Race/Ethnicity Among S&E Degree Recipients

Data from NCSES for S&E degree recipients in 2018 reveal the fol-
lowing (Figure 3-6):

• White students earned an increasing share of total degrees in the

progression from associate degrees to doctoral degrees, with the
total combined percentage of students from all other racial and
ethnic groups declining.
• Compared to the U.S. population 18–24 years of age, White people
are overrepresented among bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral recipi-
ents, and underrepresented among associate degree recipients.
• Compared to the U.S. population 18–24 years of age, Latine people
are overrepresented among associate degree recipients, and Asian
Americans are overrepresented among all four postsecondary de-
gree recipients.
• Compared to the U.S. population 18–24 years of age, Black indi-
viduals are underrepresented in all of the S&E degree recipients.
• Black students have a larger share of the total at the associate’s and
master’s degree levels in comparison to their shares of bachelor’s
and doctoral degrees.

FIGURE 3-6 Representation of racial and ethnic groups in S&E degree recipients,
2018.
SOURCE: NCSES, 2021a.

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POPULATION DATA AND DEMOGRAPHICS IN THE UNITED STATES 81

• Persons identifying as belonging to groups indigenous to the United

States and its territories—including American Indian, Alaska Na-
tive, Native Hawaiian, and Other Pacific Islander—are most rep-
resented at the associate degree level.
• Persons identifying as Black or Latine or Hispanic are underrepre-
sented among medical school attendees compared to the percentage
of 18–24 year olds who identify with those racial and ethnic iden-
tities. Persons who identify broadly as Asian are overrepresented
numerically in medical schools (AAMC, n.d.b).

Changes in Racial and Ethnic Representation

Among Degree Recipients, 2011–2019
The following tables and accompanying figures summarize NCSES
data on the numbers of people who earned postsecondary S&E degrees in
2011 and 2019.4 (NCSES data report “S&E” degrees and do not include
individuals in medicine and related degrees.) The degrees include associ-
ate’s, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees, and these data are provided
in two formats, Figure 3-7 below and in a series of tables in Appendix B.
Figure 3-7 below illustrates the changes in the proportion of total degrees
earned by race and ethnic group and by degree from 2011 to 2019. The
exact attainment data can be referenced in Appendix B.
The data for the four postsecondary science and engineering degrees
summarized in the tables and graphs above reveal the following trends:

• In all four levels of S&E degrees, the number of degree recipients

increased from 2011 to 2019 for Asian American people, Black
or African American people, Latine people, or Hispanic American
people, and White People.
• The numbers of S&E degree recipients identifying as American
Indian, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander were
small relative to the other racial/ethnic groups, and there was little
change in the numbers between 2011 and 2019.
• For all four degrees, the proportion of White degree recipients de-
creased between 2011 and 2019, with the largest decrease among
associate’s degree recipients and the smallest decrease among doc-
toral degree recipients.
• In all four degrees, the proportion of Latine degree recipients sig-
nificantly increased.

4 NCSES data report “S&E” degrees and do not include individuals in medicine and related
degrees.

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82

FIGURE 3-7 Change in percent of total of S&E degrees awarded by race or ethnicity by degree type between 2011 and 2019.
SOURCE: NCSES, 2021a.

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POPULATION DATA AND DEMOGRAPHICS IN THE UNITED STATES 83

FIGURE 3-8 Proportion of U.S. population and S&E doctorates who identify as
Black or African American, American Indian or Alaska Native, and Latine or His-
panic American.5
SOURCE: U.S. Census Bureau and NCSES Survey of Earned Doctorates, 2022.

• The proportion of Asian American degree recipients significantly

increased among associate degree recipients, and more modestly
among bachelor’s and doctoral recipients.
• For all four degrees, the proportion of persons identifying as being
of more than one race increased significantly.
• As the non-White portion of the U.S. population increases, so too
does the proportion of non-White degree recipients. However, the
increases for historically minoritized racial and ethnic groups do
not appear to keep up with the change in U.S. population (see
Figure 3-8 above).
• For all four degrees, the total number of females (all races/ethnicities
combined) increased. Females were in the majority among bach-
elor’s and doctoral degree recipients.
• For all four degrees, the proportion of females identifying as Asian
American and Latina increased.
• The proportion of Black females increased among doctoral recipients,
but decreased among associate’s and bachelor’s degree recipients.
• For all four degrees, the proportion of White females decreased.

5 The sources do not include data for Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander.

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84 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

CONCLUSION 3-1: Although the representation of minoritized persons

in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics higher education is
increasing, the collective attainment of science and engineering degrees for
Black people, Indigenous people, and Latine people does not reflect their
corresponding growth in the U.S. population.

The data shown above from NCSES and NCES, along with data
from NSF and the National Science Board (National Science Board, 2019;
NCSES, 2021a), demonstrate that in recent history, minoritized individuals’
numeric representation in STEM higher education has increased. Despite
improvements, the collective attainment of S&E degrees for Black, Indig-
enous, and Latine Americans lags behind the U.S. population, and these
racial/ethnic groups remain underrepresented throughout all sectors of the
U.S. STEM enterprise. When looking into discipline-specific data within
STEM from NCSES, Black, Indigenous, and Latine students are better
represented in behavioral and social sciences than they are in engineering
and natural sciences. Furthermore, some data suggest that minoritized in-
dividuals disproportionately leave STEMM (Estrada et al., 2016; Hatfield
et al., 2022) and are underrepresented among bachelor’s, master’s, and
doctoral degree recipients, though additional data are needed (more on
exiting STEMM in Chapter 5).

STEM Higher Education Areas for Further Exploration

The committee identified three topics for further consideration:

• Differences between STEM disciplines. The tables and graphs

above aggregate NCSES data for S&E degree recipients. What is
not shown are degree attainment data for individual S&E disci-
plines, which include a broad swath of disciplines including engi-
neering and computer sciences, the natural sciences, mathematics
and statistics, and social and behavioral sciences. There are disci-
plinary differences in degree attainment by persons from different
racial or ethnic groups. An examination of degree recipients who
identify as Black, Indigenous, and Latine reveals a significant dif-
ference in representation between the behavioral and social sciences
and the other STEM disciplines (Figure 3-9). As can be seen from
Figure 3-9, within STEM, Black, Indigenous, and Latine Americans
are more represented in the behavioral and social sciences than they
are in engineering and natural sciences.
• Measuring persistence in STEM. A second area for further analysis
is to understand the persistence of students in the STEM degrees.

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POPULATION DATA AND DEMOGRAPHICS IN THE UNITED STATES 85

FIGURE 3-9 Degree attainment by persons from underrepresented racial and ethnic
groups in different STEMM disciplines.6
SOURCE: NCSES, 2021a.

This requires knowing the demographics of the students entering

college intending to study STEM, and their educational outcomes—
How many graduated with a STEM bachelor’s degree? How many
switched to a non-STEM major? How many left college with no
degree? Earlier reports suggest that the persistence rate of persons
from excluded ethnic or racial groups—including Black, Indig-
enous, and Latine persons—is significantly less than that of whites
and Asian Americans (e.g., Asai, 2020; Huang et al., 2000; the
National Academies, 2011; Riegle-Crumb et al., 2019). The data
required to measure persistence would include: (i) by race/ethnicity,
who is entering college intending to major in STEM (separated
by two- and four-year institutions), (ii) of these students, who
completed the STEM bachelor’s degree, and (iii) who completed

6 Underrepresented groups include Black or African American, persons from Indigenous

groups—American Indian, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, Other Pacific Islander—and

Latine or Hispanic American. NCSES defines “natural sciences” to include agricultural sci-
ences; biological sciences; earth, atmospheric, and ocean sciences; mathematics and computer
sciences; and physical sciences (astronomy, chemistry, physics). NCSES defines “social and
behavioral sciences” to include psychology, anthropology, area and ethnic studies, economics,
linguistics, political science and public administration, and sociology. Shown are the propor-
tions of degree recipients who identify as persons from underrepresented ethnic or racial
groups (NCSES, 2022).

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86 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

master’s and doctoral degrees in STEM. The committee was unable

to assemble the necessary national data to measure persistence.
• Effects of recent disruptions on enrollment and degree attainment.
The postsecondary degree data summarized above are from the years
prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, which began in 2020 and signifi-
cantly impacted student enrollment and retention. It appears that
the disruption differentially affected students depending on several
factors, including their race and ethnicity, first-generation status, and
family financial resources. It will be important to revisit the enroll-
ment and degree attainment data in several years (NCSES, 2022).

CONCLUSION 3-2: Currently-available data on students who intend to

study science, technology, engineering, and mathematics in their under-
graduate degrees leave out important information on educational outcomes,
including persistence, completion, and transfer to other degree programs.

RECOMMENDATION 3-1: To understand the relative persistence of stu-

dents in STEM higher education, data collection organizations, such as the
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics and the National
Center for Education Statistics, should collect and share with the public
information on the demographics of students entering college planning to
study science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and their
subsequent educational outcomes, disaggregated by race and ethnicity,
gender, and field of study, including:

• how many complete a STEM degree;

• how many switch to and complete a non-STEM degree; and
• how many leave college without a degree.

THE U.S. STEMM WORKFORCE

The committee also examined data to gain a deeper understanding of
the numeric representation of minoritized individuals in the U.S. STEMM
workforce. For the purposes of this report, the committee understood
STEMM workplaces to include businesses, the pharmaceutical sector,
nonprofit organizations, industry, consultants, hospitals, and institutions
of higher education. The committee did not include the significant number
of STEMM professionals who work for government, given the scope of the
statement of task.
There are many ways to measure the STEMM workforce. According
to NCSES, there has been a move for a more inclusive definition of the
STEMM workforce that includes workers from all educational backgrounds
and in middle-skilled and technical positions rather than the historic defi-
nition of people with a bachelor’s degree or above in STEMM. Using this

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POPULATION DATA AND DEMOGRAPHICS IN THE UNITED STATES 87

broader definition, the STEMM workforce was approximately 29 million

people of all educational backgrounds (National Center for Science and En-
gineering Statistics, 2021c), while the American Community Survey (ACS)
puts the number of individuals working in S&E-specific, S&E-related,
and middle-skill occupations at 36 million people of all educational back-
grounds, representing 23 percent of the total workforce in 2019. NCSES
measured individuals in S&E-specific occupations at nearly seven percent of
the total workforce in 2019 (Figure 3-13; National Center for Science and
Engineering Statistics, 2021c). ACS recorded a 2.3 percent increase in the
STEM workforce from 2010 to 2019, exceeding the 1.4 percent increase
for U.S. employment overall (National Center for Science and Engineering
Statistics, 2021c). Individuals with bachelor’s degrees and higher account
for approximately 7.5 million S&E jobs, according to NCSES data, and
NIH supported 46,371 individuals in the biomedical workforce in 2019.
The number and proportion of persons employed in S&E-specific occupa-
tions have substantially increased over time (Figure 3-10).
The industry sectors that employed the largest number of S&E profes-
sionals in 2019 at all levels of education included professional, scientific,
and technical services, at 2.4 million; manufacturing, at 1 million; education
services, at 713,000; federal, state, and local government, at 672,000; and
information, at 614,000. Other significant employers of S&E professionals
included finance and insurance, at 414,000; management of companies and

0 0

FIGURE 3-10 Individuals employed in S&E occupations in the United States,

1960–2019.
SOURCE: NCSES, 2021a.

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88 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

TABLE 3-1 Persons Employed in Different S&E Professions by Race and

Ethnicity and Discipline

SOURCE: NCSES, 2021a.

enterprises, at 360,000; administrative and support and waste manage-

ment and remediation, at 285,000; and health care and social assistance,
at 248,000. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that the number
of jobs available in S&E occupations will grow by 12.7 percent between
2019 and 2029, compared to 3.7 percent for all occupations. The racial/
ethnic representation in selected STEMM professions is shown in Table 3-1.
Although individuals from Black or African American, Hispanic or
Latine, and American Indian or Alaska Native populations represent
greater than 30 percent of the employed U.S. population, they account
for only 23 percent of the STEM workforce with bachelor’s degrees or
higher (see Figure 3-11). White individuals constitute the largest group
in the STEM workforce with bachelor’s degrees or higher, followed by
Asian Americans. In contrast, Black or African American individuals,
who account for 11 percent of total jobs, constitute only nine percent
of all STEM jobs and 5.1 percent of the S&E workforce with bachelor’s
degrees or higher. Hispanic and Latine people, who account for over
17 percent of the total jobs, constitute only eight percent of the STEM
workforce (broadly) and 7.6 percent of the total S&E workforce. Native
Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander make up 0.2 percent of the total S&E
workforce with bachelor’s degrees or higher, while American Indian and
Alaska Native figures are not reported because of insufficient numbers,
as was noted above.
Of the 191,512 full-time faculty members at U.S. medical schools in
2021 (AAMC, 2021), 119,341 (62.3%) identified as White. In comparison,
40,148 faculty members (21.0%) identified as Asian; 7,231 (3.8%) identi-
fied as Black or African American; 6,585 (3.4%) identified as Hispanic or
Latine; 4,709 (2.5%) identified as Hispanic and at least one other race or

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POPULATION DATA AND DEMOGRAPHICS IN THE UNITED STATES 89

ethnicity; 4,046 (2.1%) identified as non-Hispanic and at least one other

race; 295 (0.15%) identified as American Indian or Alaska Native; and 161
(0.084%) identified as Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander.
In terms of the total health care workforce, 60 percent of health care
workers in 2019 were White, 16 percent were Black, 13 percent were
Hispanic or Latine, and seven percent were Asian (Laughlin et al., 2021).
Black and Hispanic health care workers made up relatively larger shares
of aides and personal care workers and direct contact support workers
and accounted for fewer health care providers (Figure 3-12). Of all ac-
tive physicians in 2018 (AAMC, 2019), 56.2 percent identified as White,
compared to 17.1 percent who identified as Asian, 5.8 percent who identi-
fied as Hispanic or Latine, five percent who identified as Black or African
American, 0.3 percent who identified as American Indian or Alaska Native,
and 0.1 percent who identified as Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander; indi-
viduals whose race or ethnicity were not known accounted for 13.7 percent
of active physicians. One recent study found that Black, Hispanic, and
Native American people were underrepresented in ten different health care
professions in 2019 (Salsberg et al., 2021).
According to the 2020 U.S. census, approximately seven million people
worked in general medical, surgical, or specialty hospitals (Figure 3-13).
By race and ethnicity, there was substantial variation across the health

FIGURE 3-11 Employed adults, by workforce, educational attainment, and race

or ethnicity, 2019.
SOURCE: NCSES, 2021c.

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90 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

FIGURE 3-12 Health and social assistance workers by detailed industry, 2019.
SOURCE: Laughlin et al., 2021.

FIGURE 3-13 Racial and ethnic distribution of health care workers by occupation,
2019.
SOURCE: Kaiser Family Foundation (Artiga et al., 2020).

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POPULATION DATA AND DEMOGRAPHICS IN THE UNITED STATES 91

worker categories. White individuals constituted the largest percentage of

health care workers at 60 percent. Black individuals accounted for 16 per-
cent of the health care workforce, Hispanic individuals accounted for 13
percent, and Asian individuals constituted seven percent.

Intersection of Race, Ethnicity, and Gender

Figure 3-14 highlights the disproportionately low representation of
women from minoritized racial and ethnic groups in STEM fields. While
over half of employed Asian American women work in S&E-related and
S&E occupations, White, Hispanic, Black or African American women, and
women of other race or ethnicity work predominantly in non-S&E-related
occupations. Futhermore, regardless of the proportion of women in the
STEMM fields, women earn less than their men counterparts in all racial
and ethnic groups (Figure 3-15), and Asian American women on average
make more than Hispanic or Black men. The median salary for all S&E
occupations in 2019 was $96,000, compared to $80,000 for all occupa-
tions. For women, the median salary for all S&E occupations was $82,000
compared to $100,000 for men.
In terms of promotion and advancement, men are more represented in
supervisor ranks than women, and White individuals are more represented

FIGURE 3-14 Employed women with their highest degree in an S&E field by race
or ethnicity and broad occupation, 2019.
SOURCE: NCSES, 2021a.

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92 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

FIGURE 3-15 Salaries by gender, race, and ethnicity for workers in STEM
occupations.
SOURCE: Pew Research Trusts (Fry et al., 2021).

than individuals from other racial and ethnic groups. While Asian men
and women earn more on average, that does not necessarily translate into
supervisory status.

STEM Employees in Industry

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, five industry groups—
information; professional, scientific, and technical services; manufacturing;
educational services; and government—employed nearly three-quarters of
the total S&E workforce across all education levels. Those same five indus-
trial groups accounted for one-third of total U.S. employment. Industries
in which S&E jobs accounted for the highest proportion of their total
employment included information, utilities, and management of companies
and enterprises. Those with the lowest percentage of S&E jobs included
health care and social assistance, retail trade, and accommodations and
food services (NCSES, 2019).

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POPULATION DATA AND DEMOGRAPHICS IN THE UNITED STATES 93

STEM Employees in Academia

Over 2.3 million individuals whose highest degree was in an S&E field
work in higher education, accounting for 15.3 percent of all employed
individuals whose highest degree was in an S&E field. Of those individuals
with STEM degrees working in higher education, 1.3 million work at four-
year institutions, with the remaining 1.0 million working at two-year and
precollege institutions. According to NCSES’s National Survey of Doctor-
ate Recipients, which collects workforce data for individuals with science,
engineering, or health research doctorates, some 350,000 individuals who
received their doctorates in science, engineering, and health in the United
States work in academia. While the majority of these individuals are full-
time faculty, the percentage employed as full-time faculty has fallen from
approximately 90 percent in the early 1970s to 70 percent in 2019 (Na-
tional Science Board, 2021). Between 1997 and 2019, the percentage of
individuals from unrepresented minority groups in science, engineering,
and health doctoral degrees working in all academic positions and full-time
faculty positions increased from six percent to nine percent (NCSES, 2019).

CONCLUSION
The final sections of this chapter have examined demographic trends
over time in the STEMM workforce. In sum, the data demonstrate that
the STEMM workforce has been increasing over time, represents a sizable
sector of the current U.S. workforce, and is projected to continue growing
in the future. Individuals from historically minoritized racial and ethnic
groups represent a numerical minority of the STEMM workforce with a
bachelor’s degree or higher, indicating a disparity in the positions that re-
quire higher education in STEMM. This may have implications on which
jobs individuals from these groups can pursue, the salaries they earn, and
their long-term job prospects. Data also show that regardless of the pro-
portion of women in the STEMM fields, women earn less than their men
counterparts in all racial and ethnic groups. Finally, the data demonstrate
that among academic faculty and in all races/ethnicities, men are more
likely to be tenured than women.

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1790–2020. https://www.census.gov/library/visualizations/interactive/decennial-census-
measurement-of-race-and-ethnicity-across-the-decades-1790-2020.html
________. (2021c). Race and ethnicity in the United States: 2010 Census and 2020 Cen-
sus. https://www.census.gov/library/visualizations/interactive/race-and-ethnicity-in-the-
united-state-2010-and-2020-census.html
________. (2021d). National population by characteristics: 2010–2020. https://www.
census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/technical-documentation/research/evaluation-
estimates/2020-evaluation-estimates/2010s-national-detail.html
________. (2022a). Decennial Census records: Censuses of American Indians. https://www.
census.gov/history/www/genealogy/decennial_census_records/censuses_of_american_in-
dians.html
________. (2022b) Facts for features: American Indian and Alaska Native heritage months:
November 2022. https://www.census.gov/newsroom/facts-for-features/2022/aian-month.
html
Yang, P.Q., and Koshy, K. (2016) The “Becoming White Thesis” revisited. The Journal of
Public and Professional Sociology, 8(1).

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

PART II

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

Lived Experiences and Other

Ways of Knowing in STEMM

The previous chapters presented evidence on a range of historical and

present-day policies, practices, and data collection that have influenced
the participation and success of systemically minoritized racial and ethnic
groups in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine
(STEMM) careers and organizations. Per the committee’s statement of
task, this chapter provides evidence from the lived experience and other
crucial sources of information beyond traditional quantitative methods.
The goal of the chapter is to provide a firsthand account of some of the
challenges Black scholars encounter as they navigate in STEMM orga-
nizations. The interviews underscore the complex range of experiences,
emotions, and situations that confront even the most successful Black
scholars. This chapter also provides concrete examples of how the issues
identified throughout this report are manifest on a personal level through
the voices of successful Black scholars in STEMM. While the interviews
were structured, they were not intended to qualify as a true qualitative
study. As such, the committee does not provide specific conclusions or rec-
ommendations associated with this chapter beyond an acknowledgment
of the value of soliciting more voices to deepen our understanding of the
lived experience of Black people and other systematically marginalized
groups in STEMM organizations.
There is growing recognition and an emerging evidence base that
acknowledges the importance of documenting the lived experience in vari-
ous fields and disciplines, including education (Orbe, 2008; San Miguel

99

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100 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

and Kim, 2015), obesity (Farrell et al., 2021a,b), mental health (Kaite
et al., 2015), and substance use (Alexandridis et al., 2020). One recent re-
port on effective mentorship in STEMM points to a body of evidence that
demonstrates how understanding students’ lived experiences can improve
the mentoring that faculty members provide (the National Academies
of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2019). Another recent review
highlights a range of federal agencies and initiatives that have incorpo-
rated the lived experience into their research, policies, and practices, and
identifies emerging strategies that may be adopted more broadly (Office
of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, 2021). Finally,
the prioritization of personal knowledge and firsthand accounts that
produce complementary evidence when the published research is lacking
in such perspectives can be seen in numerous recent National Academies
activities.1

INTERVIEWS: LIVED EXPERIENCES OF

BLACK STEMM PROFESSIONALS
To capture the lived experience and to provide a supplemental evidence
base to the data presented elsewhere in this report, the committee con-
ducted a series of structured interviews with Black individuals with careers
in STEMM. The STEMM professionals who were interviewed have reached
elite levels of contribution in their respective fields. The interview excerpts
that follow are not intended as generalizable data; rather, they provide
authentic and vivid examples of lived experience.
The committee’s approach, approved by the Institutional Review Board
(IRB) of the National Academies, is documented in Appendix C. It includes
a detailed description of the methods used to conduct these interviews, as
well as the interview script. Briefly, a total of 29 interviews were conducted
with Black professionals, many of whom are members of the National
Academies Roundtable on Black Men and Black Women in SEM, a group
of individuals who have achieved outstanding records, proved themselves in
the face of racial bias, are recognized by their colleagues, and are known for
their success. Other interviewees included members of the National Acad-
emies who identify as Black or African American. As such, the interviews
do not include the perspectives of professionals who have not yet reached
“elite” status, people who left STEMM, people who are now beginning

1 Examples include The Lived Experience Innovation Collaborative; Responding to the

Current Youth Mental Health Crisis and Preventing the Next One; Communities, Climate
Change, and Health Equity: A New Vision; and Review of Federal Policies that Contribute to
Racial and Ethnic Health Inequities.

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LIVED EXPERIENCES AND OTHER WAYS OF KNOWING IN STEMM 101

their careers in STEMM, and STEMM professionals from other minori-

tized groups. As noted in Chapter 1, the committee elected to focus on the
challenges facing Black Americans in STEMM, recognizing that while there
may be some shared experiences, sociocultural factors differ for different
minoritized groups and individuals, precluding a one-size-fits-all approach.
As such, the committee believes that conducting similar interviews with
members of other minoritized groups will yield different and valuable ad-
ditional evidence. Thus, the structured interviews in this chapter also serve
as a guide for future work and demonstrate the need for additional research
that investigates the unique racialized issues facing other minoritized groups
in the research agenda.

Really, the more and more we could share the stories of individuals and
then the challenges that they have faced and then how they have overcome
them. . . . Storytelling is very powerful. Because a lot of times individuals
are just not aware of the challenges when it comes to diverse individuals,
because they never had to think about it. [Interviewer O.A. 06-03-22 RT
Interview p. 11]

Black people—I’m preaching to the choir in a lot of ways—Black people are

not monolithic. There are so many pieces of us and whatever our experiences
are; it’s helpful to not measure them against the other . . . Everyone’s experi-
ence is so valuable no matter . . . what the road they’ve traveled . . . I think
intersections are so important in people of color and anyone really. I
would say people of color, especially given . . . the challenges that we’ve
consciously experienced and unconsciously experienced . . . the intersec-
tions I think are really important because we are multifaceted, and we
can bring our subjugated selves: I could bring it as Black; I could bring
it as gay; and all those things mount up. [Interviewer L.M. 06-14-22 RT
Interview 2 p.12]

The rest of this section is organized by the subject matter of the inter-
view comments.2 These include experiences of belonging (or not), specific
biased or racist incidents, sources of support from others (mentors, peers,
family, community), and their own sources of resilience (determination,
confidence). These lived experiences emerged as reported in particular
contexts, in response to open-ended questions, but with full knowledge of
their intended audience. They are a communication (Converse and Shuman,

2 The quotations have been lightly edited to remove ordinary conversational disfluencies:

repeated words, “you know,” “I mean,” and the like, retaining the original meaning. No
words have been added. The initials in the brackets refer to the interviewer, not the person
being interviewed.

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102 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

1974) so they might aim to conform to conversational norms, to persuade,

to self-promote, to self-deprecate, to promote a mentor, or to shock.

I think that capturing the lived experiences and the rich description of those
experiences is critical, and that it should be evaluated or valued as much as
some sort of nondescript, and impersonal literature that might be out there as
well, that . . . this is just as important, if not more important, than the other
elements of the report. [Interviewer O.A. 05-26-22 Pilot Interview p. 14]

Belonging
Interview participants were asked about the extent to which they felt
that they belonged and supported in their respective field of study and
expertise.3

And so was my first experience stepping into an environment where . . . stu-

dents didn’t necessarily all look like me and certainly not the faculty . . . there
was no critical mass of scholars of color. And that was, I will admit, when
I first arrived, it was a bit unnerving because I did not feel . . . the opportu-
nity for any kind of sense of belonging or sense of someone else who could
recognize my identity, someone who would be able to affirm my identity
as a young Black woman. [Interviewer Y.A. 06-10-22 Pilot Interview p. 2]

And so my initial reaction was, . . . . do I really belong here, but that re-
ally just lasted for a little while, until . . . I got the hang of it and realized
that not only was I competing from an academic standpoint, but because
of my personal experiences, I felt that I actually had an edge. [Interviewer
J.N.B. 05-17-22 Pilot Interview p. 2]

There were very few moments when I didn’t realize I was one of the few
Black students in a majority White institution . . . This was . . . the early ’70s.
The civil rights movement was still going on. . . . You knew there were com-
munities you just don’t go in. That was a sense of the White students that I
was in class with. They didn’t get it. It was a sense of being separate from the
majority of my classmates. [Interviewer L.M. 06-14-22 RT Interview pp. 3–4]

But certainly, [REDACTED] in particular is an extremely, not only male

dominated, very conservative profession . . . so it was challenging because
many of us were the first or the only in [REDACTED]. I think I was
the second person ever to train at the [PWI 1]. And then I was the first
person ever on the faculty there and so on. And, with that come a lot of
challenges . . . you don’t fit the mold that people are used to. [Interviewer
L.M. 06-16-22 GM Interview p.1]

3 Chapter 5 includes additional evidence related to the concept of belonging.

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LIVED EXPERIENCES AND OTHER WAYS OF KNOWING IN STEMM 103

My experience as an African American in [FIELD REDACTED] has

been often, I was the only one of many quite often, through grad school,
postdoc, and even in industry. . . . I got used to being the only African
American quite often. But overall, I did feel as part of the community. I
never felt as if I was an outsider. I think I must have made good relation-
ships with my majority colleagues that I still felt, as a [scientist], one of
them. [Interviewer O.A. 06-03-22 RT Interview p. 2]

Now thinking back, back when I went to grad school, actually, I do

remember the first semester. I did not feel as if “I belong”—just because
when I reached out to some fellow colleagues, they really weren’t receptive
to me, but then I realized, I just had to find individuals who had a passion
outside of [REDACTED] science. And then I found that in basketball. So,
I did find other grad students that love sports like I did; therefore they
became my community. So, in that sense, . . . honestly, you have to maybe
identify another way of connecting with individuals and therefore, you
may not belong in one way, but you can find that commonality, and there-
fore you can build relationships that can then expand beyond your initial
things that you had in common with them. [Interviewer O.A. 06-03-22
RT Interview p. 2]

Your colleagues didn’t really care about you or to show you what they are
showing others, and you stumble through things. And I still remember my
first mistake of doing something wrong. . . . And instead of telling me how
to correct it, it was used as a more punitive approach to maybe we won’t
allow you to do this anymore, to touch anything anymore. . . . I’m a PI
[principal investigator], I have to place my own order. I had nobody else.
My lab was new. So, I wrote my purchase items I needed to order, took
it to the purchasing officer, and the lady looked at me and said, give it to
your supervisor to sign. Automatically she assumed I wasn’t a PI, but in
fairness to her, I was the first PI really, on the investigator track in that
department. So, it was directly, she gave it back to me right away, asked
me to give it to my PI to sign. I could have reacted violently. I could have
really started screaming on top of my voice, but instead what I told her
was where do you want my PI to sign? And she said, where you signed.
And I took a pen on the desk, signed over my signature, left it for her and
walked away. And that really transformed her even until the time I left
for my institution. It was transformative for her. I don’t think she real-
ized what she did until I signed over my signature. It was the first time
she said, oh my God, he’s a PI. And . . . throughout my stay there, she
was a different person; never looked at people the same way again, made
sure that I got anything I wanted along the way. So that’s the way I dealt
with that experience. . . . We are putting a big grant together, and I was
asked to lead one of the development projects because I was a very young
investigator, a junior investigator. Then I wrote my whole proposal, and
he decided, let me tell you, grantsmanship is a little tricky. We will use

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104 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

somebody’s name as a PI for the development project so that when it gets

funded, you’ll still have the money, but we just want to make sure that
this whole thing goes through without any hitch. And I said, wow, if you
think I’m not good enough to be a PI on a development project, I don’t
need to be part of it. Right. And the irony is that that project scored one
of the best scores ever in the whole program. . . .[Interviewer Y.A. 07-15-
22 GM Interview pp. 4–5]

You are very good as long as you are not a threat to any other person’s
position. And so while those much higher than you would be happy
because . . . they use all your work to praise themselves. Your colleagues
that want similar positions or the next level position, really . . . lack
collaboration with what you’re doing. And I see that everywhere that even
at my level right now, I expect a lot of resistance initially until I prove
myself again. [Interviewer Y.A. 07-15-22 GM Interview p. 1]

Racism and Racial Microaggressions

Although interview participants were not specifically asked whether
they experienced racism or racist incidences, general questions about be-
longing and support (and likely the overall subject of the committee’s work)
elicited a number of examples.

I always said that [grad] school was like A Tale of Two Cities: “It was the
best of times. It was the worst of times.” It depends on who you were. If
you were White, it was the best of times all the time, and they just answer
all my questions, and they invite me over to the house and go meet me at
the bar, and for Black students, I can’t get a professor to talk to me; when
they [professors] talk to me they talk down to me. I don’t belong here.
I’m supposed to figure all this out and the White students are getting old
tests from somewhere that I don’t ever get to see. I’m supposed to perform
at the same level as them. [Interviewer L.M. 05-24-22 RT Interview p. 1]

So, in that first academic position . . . some senior people made it clear
to me that, well, maybe I don’t really belong there . . . I worked very
hard, but some of them actually went out of their ways to complain that
I was publishing too many papers that it must be that the quality is not
good. Even though it is the same places, the same journals that they too
publish in . . . it was largely maybe out of jealousy that some of them
did this, but . . . as the lone Black face there, sadly, you don’t feel good
when people are constantly trying to put you down even though you are
externally getting some recognition. I saw that more as them trying to
compete with me and then maybe also trying to show that maybe I’m
not as good as it appears that I was. [Interviewer L.M. 06-30-22 GM
Interview p. 5]

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LIVED EXPERIENCES AND OTHER WAYS OF KNOWING IN STEMM 105

Not infrequently, White folks will say you’re just being too sensitive.
But when you have a Black colleague, you can share the experience
and say I had the same thing or here’s something you can try. It obvi-
ously led to a more supportive environment when you knew the person
you were talking to about the obstacle you’re dealing with, under-
stood the role that race plays in our society. [Interviewer L.M. 6-14-22
RT Interview p. 9]

I was gone for eight months, and while I was over there: in an email, it
comes across the book has been . . . accepted and the whole list of au-
thors. And I tell you, it was every single person in our department, except
me, [REDACTED] the people who are doing . . . , any kind of work in
our department, every single person in the department, except me, had
been included as an author. And when I saw that, . . . I felt like a horse
had kicked me in the chest . . . that kind of exclusion. [Interviewer Y.A.
07-22-22 RT Interview p. 3]

. . . . But I didn’t really understand what we were supposed to do. So, I

went to the professor and instead of helping me, she says, well, I’m not
going to do your homework for you. . . . I wasn’t asking her to do that.
And so that’s where I understood that some professors would interpret
my questions at a low level of sophistication, as opposed to a high level
of sophistication, which is often a problem for Black and other racialized
students. That’s especially true in medical school, even now, when there’s
some students of color when you’re on the rounds. And when you finally
get in the clinical spaces, a lot of people are jockeying for the attention of
the attending physician. And if you ask a question and then the attending
treats it as if it was a stupid question, but then somebody else asks what
really could be a stupid question, but then they can see, and it, oh, the
brilliance of it. And they, they differentially respond to questions from dif-
ferent people. It could make people of color stop asking questions, which
means they don’t get their questions answered. And then they also don’t
look smarter, engaged or whatever. So, this whole thing of people who are
judging you, responding to your questions at a low level of sophistication,
as opposed to a high level of sophistication because of your so-called race
is a real problem at all levels of education. [Interviewer Y.A. 07-22-22 RT
Interview p. 10]

. . . racism, it’s a tough thing, tough issue . . . even in this year—not

directed to me personally, but even on our campus within science and en-
gineering buildings, I mean, there have been a number of incidents where
students who were legitimately supposed to be inside buildings and people
called police on them. And these are students trying to do research and
mind their own business . . . you see that and, wow this is still going on.
Something that I thought yeah, I shouldn’t have to see that again, and it’s
happening. [Interviewer L.M. 06-30-22 GM Interview p. 6]

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106 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

Experiences at Historically Black Colleges and

Universities and Predominantly White Institutions
Interviewees were asked questions about their experiences with training
at the institutions they attended and in their fields of study over the course
of their careers. Some of the interview participants described their experi-
ences at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) while others
described their experiences at Predominantly White Institutions (PWIs).4

So, at a [PWI 1] research team, it was great because we were all with a new
professor. So we all were doing this science together. We were all learning.
He was learning how to be a professor. We were learning how to be grad
students. So it was that we had that commonality. So that was great. So then
when I did my postdoc, it was a little different and I was, went to a senior
like his PI in the field. I had a pretty large team actually. We think we had
50 individuals in one lab, probably 25 postdocs, 25 grad students. So that’s
where I really had to learn how to work with others. Although you’re really
not on the same team, but we had to share space, share ideas. You had to
learn to work with people that thought they were smarter than you. So that’s
how it really got approached. Like, wow, okay. You were, you’re pretty
good at what you do, [NAME REDACTED] in [REDACTED], and you
can still be yourself and still compete with people that are, you know, overly
confident; I should say. [Interviewer O.A. 06-03-22 RT Interview p. 6]

When you come from a predominantly African American college under-

graduate where you had just a lot of support, a lot of friendships . . . and
then all of a sudden, I arrive on campus at [PWI] where you could go
pretty much half a day/all day without seeing anyone who looked like you.
I would describe at least initially my experience there as being a bit lonely
because I was so used to people being warm and genuine and friendly.
[Interviewer L.M. 05-12-22 Pilot Interview p. 4]

A lot of times I think Whites are reluctant to provide honest feedback to us

either because they think they are going to hurt feelings or they don’t know
if there’s going to be any kind of a backlash. I’ve come out of meetings
where my presentation was okay but I didn’t think it was great. I’ll ask one
of my White counterparts, how do you think it went. “That was great.”
I knew it wasn’t great. We have to make sure that we’re not getting lulled
into everything is fine because people aren’t being genuine and authentic
with us. [Interviewer L.M. 05-12-22 Pilot Interview p. 13]

I was fortunate. I went to an HBCU. I didn’t have the challenge of looking

around and not seeing anyone like me. I saw so many beautiful, incredibly
talented people who I was surrounded with. I had an amazing experience
in undergrad in STEM. [Interviewer L.M. 05-12-22 Pilot Interview p. 4]

4 Chapter 2 includes additional evidence related to HBCUs.

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LIVED EXPERIENCES AND OTHER WAYS OF KNOWING IN STEMM 107

Well you know, at [HBCU 1], you know, was returning to [HBCU 1] was
easy because it was like returning home. And so the challenges that one
may experience as this person of color going to a PWI were different.
[Interviewer Y.A. 06-10-22 Pilot Interview p. 5]

Yeah, I think a lot of that has to do with going to [grad] school at

[HBCU1] and training at [HBCU1]. It instilled confidence in my abili-
ties and having been around people who were supportive of abilities. I
think it gives you a certain sense of confidence that you can certainly take
elsewhere. And so that I would say is part of what would’ve built up. I
would say that the characteristic of resilience came from starting off with a
foundation of confidence. [Interviewer Y.A. 06-30-22 RT Interview 1 p. 2]

In some instances the whole HBCU versus a Big 10, and somehow the
world has given weight to those, as one being more than the other. Again,
I feel like that’s mainstream that has defined that. [Interviewer L.M.
06-14-22 RT Interview 2 p. 12]

I went on to an HBCU. And largely because of the high school that I

went to was, though diverse, it was largely White. And so I just wanted
to experience something where we were the majority. And it was a great
experience. And I learned a lot. I learned a lot of history that I don’t nec-
essarily think, in that time, I would’ve learned elsewhere. And so it was a
pretty nurturing environment and affirming in a lot of ways. [Interviewer
L.M. 06-14-22 RT Interview 2 p. 6]

Mentors, Ingroups, and Outgroups

Some interview participants underscored the importance of having
knowledgeable guides during their education and professional pursuits. The
committee revisits the subject of mentors in Chapters 5–8.

The advice I always give out is basically, you need to have mentors. You
need to have as many mentors as you can possibly find. I have a lot of
mentors. My mentors have been with me for a very long time . . . And it’s
just really important. You cannot do this work without mentors. It’s just
people - it’s not really possible to do it alone. . . . And so having mentors
is absolutely crucial. You need peer mentors, that is people in your same
stage of life and doing what you’re doing at that time. And you have
people older than you. And subsequently I think as a teacher, I have,
but some of my graduate students mentor me, they teach me things that
I don’t know. And so I do think that the key is really about mentoring.
[Interviewer J.B. 06-08-22 RT Interview, pp. 9–10]

I’ve had the privilege of having Black people as mentors, advisors, spon-
sors throughout the course though, and it’s been different at different

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108 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

stages in my, but it has absolutely been seeing them in those leadership
roles that has made me believe that, you know, that it is attainable.
[Interviewer L.M. 06-14-22 RT Interview 2 p. 11]

Early in my career, of course, there weren’t mentors who looked like me,
but there were people who were willing to take me under their wing and
mentor and support and advocate for me, that really took my career off,
all older White men. So that was great. [Interviewer Y.A. 06-02-22 RT
Interview p. 3]

And I had a few White male champions, one of whom became my

main advisor, who I had met because I was in a summer program, the
[REDACTED] summer research program for minorities and women . . .
And he is still a mentor of mine. He will still call me up and see how I’m
doing and see if he can help in any way with my career. So the impor-
tance for me, mentors were absolutely important for graduate school.
[Interviewer J.B. 06-08-22 RT Interview, p. 6]

. . . . also mentors . . . , I had certain people I could reach out to and

ask, ‘Hey, this is what I’m experiencing, what do you think? How should
I understand this experience? How do I make sense of this? To what
should you attribute this?’ And sometimes they called a spade, a spade:
this is racism. . . . Or that I interpreted the situation wrong and perhaps
there’s a different strategy to approach it. [Interviewer O.A. 05-26-22
Pilot Interview p. 4]

So I had this community of Black men that I could rely on, including
upperclassmen, who helped me navigate. I had a Black associate direc-
tor of admissions, [NAME redacted], who was always there for me. My
freshman advisor, [NAME redacted], who was a special assistant to the
president was there. So I had these people to latch onto, and we had an
Office of Minority Education that provided tutorial services, et cetera. So
when you think about wraparound support, I had that at [PWI 1]. Even
though the broader [PWI 1] seemed threatening to me, I effectively had a
buffer. I experienced what Vincent Tinto called institutional integration,
which is high quality interactions with administrators and having quality
connections with peers. Tinto shows that those who have those two sets of
relationships in schools are more likely to persist. I’ve observed that this
principle applies to schools, colleges, and in the workplace. That’s really
what got me through. [Interviewer O.A. 05-26-22 Pilot Interview p. 6]

Peers, Ingroups, and Outgroups

Interview participants also emphasized the importance of having sup-
portive peers and allies during their education and professional pursuits.
The committee revisits this subject in Chapters 7, 8, and 9.

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LIVED EXPERIENCES AND OTHER WAYS OF KNOWING IN STEMM 109

And we had a significant number of Black people. We have 25 in my class

at my first year of class . . . What was our community like? Initially, it
was a community that was—we were a tribe in this era of tribalism. We
formed a tribe. We were there for each other, but at the same time, because
of the lack of diversity amongst our tribe and the lack of resources for
most of our tribe, we all struggled at about the same place. [Interviewer
L.M. 05-24-22 RT Interview p. 2]

So at that point in time, I had to find somebody to study with. It was at

that time that I decided to utilize the skills that I had learned in being
the only Black in a predominantly White school starting from middle
school to high school to college, and decided to start reaching out to my
colleagues who are White and try to find folks, White or other, to try to
find folks that would work with me. Eventually, I found a crew. And in
my sophomore year in medical school, I actually rented a house with
seven other medical students. There was a guy from Taiwan. There was
a guy from Switzerland. There was a guy who was an Army brat. There
was a guy who was of Native American heritage. There was another guy
who was from Canada. And then there was a guy from Berkeley, which
is its own country in itself. And we all lived in this one house with me,
the one Black guy. We would study at night until 10 and 10:30 at night,
and then we would have this big quiz bowl. If I stumped somebody, I had
to teach them. If they stumped me, they had to teach me. And what that
did was like a rise in tide. It lifted all of our boats. We did extremely well
academically. [Interviewer L.M. 05-24-22 RT Interview pp. 2–3]

I went to [PWI] and, you know, all of my classmates, I found went to private
schools and, and had better preparation than I did. [Interviewer J.N.B. 05-17-22
RT Interview p. 1]

In the program that I was in . . . there was another Asian woman who was in
the class with me as well as an African American man. That was very encour-
aging because the rest of the program and all the faculty and all the other
graduate students, the Ph.D. students because I was in a Ph.D. [program].
They were all White. Just showing up and being able to see that there were
at least two people who were considered people of color. We developed a
genuine friendship from the very beginning and became friends throughout
my tenure there. [Interviewer L.M. 05-12-22 Pilot Interview p. 4]

There was a clear sense that [we] the Black faculty were different. It was a small
group of us, and we began to meet with each other even though there were two
of us in medicine. Others were in the social sciences, history. We would begin
having meetings on a regular basis, in one of the more senior faculty members’
homes, and have those discussions. We would talk about how we could get
more students in, how we could support the students that we did have. That
was a sense of support. [Interviewer L.M. 06-14-22 RT Interview p. 6]

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110 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

Savvy
Mentors, peers, and allies may provide insights into norms, the unspo-
ken rules that promote belonging and may help individuals avoid racialized
aggressions and microaggressions. Interview participants described how this
knowledge influenced their experiences.

It’s very difficult to really know exactly what the steps are that should
be taken. There’s always a game being played that you’re not privy to.
So there’s just a lot that you have to learn. [Interviewer J.N.B. 05-17-22
Pilot Interview p. 2]

I do think that there are unwritten rules in any organization. The values,
the actions, the behaviors of people, the norms, the attitudes, all these
things define a culture. And most of those elements are invisible to indi-
viduals when they walk into an organization. I’ll give you an example.
I showed up at [redacted] where I felt uncomfortable because of my
socioeconomic background. I had never had my shirts laundered ever in
my life. I only had two two-piece suits, and I discovered something on
day three because I wore a sport jacket and a gray pair of pants; a blue
sport jacket, and gray pair of pants. And someone pulled me aside and
said, hey, [NAME REDACTED], I’ve never seen this. No one wears a
separate sport jacket and slacks here; it’s always a two-piece suit, shirt,
and tie. And I think if I did not have somebody pull me aside and say
that, I would’ve just gone ahead in this, and perhaps been evaluated in a
way that says, “He doesn’t believe in the culture” or something, because
people will create their own story, right? [Interviewer O.A. 05-26-22
Pilot Interview p. 13]

It was very difficult at times, but that gets back to the resilience: the
family and the confidence, and willing to work harder, you know, to get
promoted at [primarily White institution]—once I knew what I had to
do, you need this many publications . . . and if you have a NIH grant
that helps a lot . . . And so, you tell me what I’ve got to do, and then I’m
going to figure out how to do it. And so that approach seemed to serve
me pretty well, is just trying to understand, what does it take and then
figure out a strategy to do it, irrespective of all the noise. [Interviewer
L.M. 06-16-22 GM Interview p. 8]

I think there were probably about 20 of us that identified as Black or

African American. I sadly, during my first year of medical school, I lost
my father . . . I plowed through and interestingly, I was in the library
and one of my classmates, a White gentleman, expressed his condolences
and he said, you’re getting ready for the exam? I said, yeah, it’s going to
be a . . . [I’m a] little worried. He said, well, did you, did you study from
the exam? And I said, what exam? And so apparently, they had some

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LIVED EXPERIENCES AND OTHER WAYS OF KNOWING IN STEMM 111

of these older exams but we weren’t privy to it. And then there was one
woman, an African American woman, that I often studied with and I
asked her, did you hear? She said, no, I had no idea. And so, you know,
it’s very interesting. Clearly there were some advantages that were just
blatant, and you know, I essentially was oblivious to any of those things
and, you know, we just, that was our thing. We just put our heads down,
and we worked really hard. And we were fortunate to move past some
of those difficult tests. [Interviewer L.M. 06-14-22 RT Interview 2 p. 7]

Money
In addition to social capital, several interviewees discussed the role that
capital resources played in their experiences.

We don’t have the same type of wealth because when we come out of
[REDACTED] school, most of us are first generation [redacted] coming
out. We don’t have the wealth. We have income. But we don’t have wealth.
But with our income, comes the aspect of beholden. We are beholden to our
church. We are beholden to our family. We are beholden to our extended
family. We are beholden to our loans because nobody paid for our educa-
tion to come to the school. [Interviewer L.M. 05-24-22 RT Interview p. 2]

I had a full-ride scholarship, as well a stipend. I think for me that made

a huge difference. I didn’t have the pressure that some of my other col-
leagues had to take on research assistance or teaching assistance in order
to make additional money. The financial support took a huge burden off
of my shoulders because it allowed me to focus on my work every day and
my research as opposed to financials. And honestly, I probably wouldn’t
have been able to afford the program without that level of financial sup-
port. [Interviewer L.M. 05-12-22 Pilot Interview p. 5]

I think we have to find ways of helping take that financial burden off
especially Black Americans, African Americans who are so often first
generation and just do not have the support and don’t want to necessarily
be in debt the rest of their lives. [Interviewer L.M. 05-12-22 Pilot p. 12]

Sources of Resilience
Interview participants raised a range of sources of resilience including
personal resources, such as family, faith, and self-reliance.

Faith, family, colleagues, who believed in me as classmates, faith from go-

ing to church, faith from the prayers of my mother and my grandmother
and my grandfather, faith from understanding who I am and more impor-
tantly, whose I am. Resilience and understanding. It’s not what they call

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112 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

you but what you answer to. Resilience and understanding that don’t give
away your power. Keep your power as close to your chest and don’t allow
people to take it from you. And then humility. [Interviewer L.M. 05-24-22
RT Interview p. 5]

And what that [exclusion] did for me was quickly (and that’s sad), it
quickly made me to look inwards. I mean something you could have asked
people easily get the answer to, you had to go on read it up, you have to
find the literature, the relevant people publish something in order to do the
same experiment you could have just asked somebody about. [Interviewer
Y.A. 07-15-22 GM Interview p. 4]

NATURE OF EVIDENCE: MULTIPLE METHODS

OF GATHERING KNOWLEDGE
There are a wide variety of ways to gather evidence—to learn and know
in understanding pathways to professions in STEMM—that are worthy
of attention and were used by the committee in its work. That diversity
includes traditional quantitative methods as well as model-based inquiry,
Indigenous approaches, oral and community traditions, and interviews to
capture lived experience.
Model-based inquiry takes the premises of the standard scientific
method and provides a different context and process for using them to
build understanding:

. . . . “model-based inquiry” respects the precepts of the scientific method

(that knowledge is testable, revisable, explanatory, conjectural, and gen-
erative). While the scientific method attempts to find patterns in natural
phenomena, the model-based inquiry method attempts to develop defen-
sible explanations. This new system sees models as tools for explanations
and not explanations proper and allows going beyond data; thus, new
hypotheses, new concepts, and new predictions can be generated at any
point along the inquiry, something not allowed within the rigidity of the
traditional scientific method (Castillo, 2013).

Another method derives from Indigenous approaches. One Tewa

scholar (Cajete, 1999) defines Indigenous science as:

a broad category that includes everything from metaphysics to philoso-

phy to various practical technologies practiced by Indigenous peoples
past and present . . . [and, like western science] has models which are
highly contextual to tribal experiences, representational and focused on
higher order thinking and understanding (p. 81 as quoted in Snively and
Corsiglia).

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LIVED EXPERIENCES AND OTHER WAYS OF KNOWING IN STEMM 113

According to the Tewa scholar, Indigenous science includes “explora-

tion of basic questions, such as the nature of language, thought and percep-
tion, the nature of time, human feeling, and knowing, interconnectedness,
and proper relationships to the cosmos. It is a philosophy that gives rise
to a diversity of technologies, such as hunting, fishing, plant cultivation,
navigation, architecture, art, and healing” (pp. 90–91, as quoted in Snively
and Corsiglia, 2001). “Coming to know,” a phrase that indicates a jour-
ney, is the process of “generating or learning Indigenous ways of living
in nature” (Cajete, 2000; Peat, 1994). Indigenous coming to know is “a
journey toward wisdom or a journey of wisdom in action, not a discovery
of knowledge” (Aikenhead and Ogawa, 2007).
Another method is the use of oral and other community traditions
to capture knowledge. Using methods that go beyond written records is
especially important in capturing knowledge about groups that have not
traditionally preserved information via writing or print.

Oral history provides a fuller, more accurate picture of the past by

augmenting the information provided by public records, statistical
data, photographs, maps, letters, diaries, and other historical materi-
als. Eyewitnesses to events contribute various viewpoints and perspec-
tives that fill in the gaps in documented history, sometimes correcting
or even contradicting the written record. Interviewers are able to ask
questions left out of other records and to interview people whose
stories have been untold or forgotten (Baylor University Institute for
Oral History, 2016).

Finally, there are methods for capturing lived experience, which are
called for in the committee’s statement of task; the interviews conducted
by the committee were designed to capture the lived experiences of Black
STEMM professionals. The committee also recognized it is important to
continue collecting lived experiences and to include voices that are not well
represented in the research including those of Black, Indigenous, and other
minoritized individuals.
In the context of the information gathered through the structured in-
terviews with Black STEMM professionals and understanding the nature
of evidence and multiple methods of gathering knowledge, the committee
came to the following conclusion:

CONCLUSION 4-1: Oral history and other means of exploring the

lived experiences of scholars from historically and systemically minori-
tized groups in STEMM offer valuable insights that supplement findings
from other kinds of research. These methods should be continued and
expanded.

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114 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

REFERENCES
Aikenhead, G.S., and Ogawa, M. (2007). Indigenous knowledge and science revisited. Cultural
Studies of Science Education, 2(3), 539–620. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/
s11422-007-9067-8
Alexandridis, A.A., Doe-Simkins, M., and Scott, G. (2020). A case for experiential expertise
in opioid overdose surveillance. American Journal of Public Health, 110(4), 505–507.
https://doi.org/10.2105/ajph.2019.305502
Baylor University Institute for Oral History. (2016). Introduction to oral history. https://www.
baylor.edu/content/services/document.php/43912.pdf
Cajete, G.A. (1999). Igniting the sparkle: An Indigenous Science Education Model. Kivaki Press.
________. (2000). Native science: Natural laws of interdependence. Clear Light Publishers.
Castillo, M. (2013). The scientific method: A need for something better? American Journal of
Neuroradiology, 34(9), 1669–1671.
Converse, J.M., and Shuman, H. (1974). Conversations at random: Survey research as inter-
viewers see it. Wiley.
Farrell, E., Hollmann, E., le Roux, C.W., Bustillo, M., Nadglowski, J., and McGillicuddy, D.
(2021a). The lived experience of patients with obesity: A systematic review and qualita-
tive synthesis. Obesity Reviews, 22(12), e13334.
________. (2021b). The lived experience of people with obesity: Study protocol for a system-
atic review and synthesis of qualitative studies. Systematic Reviews, 10(1), 1–6.
Kaite, C.P., Karanikola, M., Merkouris, A., and Papathanassoglou, E.D. (2015). “An ongoing
struggle with the self and illness”: A meta-synthesis of the studies of the lived experience
of severe mental illness. Archives of Psychiatric Nursing, 29(6), 458–473. https://pubmed.
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26577563/
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. (n.d.). Lived experience innova-
tion collaborative. Roundtable on obesity solutions. https://www.nationalacademies.org/
our-work/lived-experience-innovation-collaborative
________. (2019). The science of effective mentorship in STEMM. The National Academies
Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/25568
________. (2022a). Responding to the current youth mental health crisis and preventing the
next one: Proceedings of a workshop–in brief. The National Academies Press. https://
doi.org/10.17226/26669
________. (2022b). Communities, climate change, and health equity: Proceedings of a workshop–
in brief. The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/26435
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strategies to engage people with lived experience improving federal research, policy, and
practice. https://aspe.hhs.gov/reports/lived-experience-brief
Orbe, M.P. (2008). Theorizing multidimensional identity negotiation: Reflections on the lived
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Peat, F.D. (1994). Lighting the Seventh Fire the spiritual ways, healing, and science of the
Native American. Citadel.
San Miguel, A.M., and Kim, M.M. (2015). Successful Latina scientists and engineers: Their
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<6::AID-SCE3>3.0.CO;2-R

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

PART III

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

Minoritized Individuals in STEMM:

Consequences and Responses to
Racial Bias and How STEMM
Professionals Can Help

The primary focus of the report so far has been on the experience of
minoritized individuals in sciences, technology, engineering, mathematics,
and medicine (STEMM) environments, situated within the larger sociopoliti-
cal context of the United States. As discussed in the first four chapters, the
evidence has demonstrated that minoritized individuals have faced numer-
ous systemic barriers, including macro-level policies and practices that have
negatively impacted their opportunities, representation, and ability to thrive
in STEMM careers. This chapter shifts the lens of analysis from an examina-
tion of racial bias at the systemic level to an examination of racial bias as it
occurs at the individual and interpersonal levels. This chapter addresses the
charge in the statement of task on reviewing the research and evidence on
the ways in which racism at the individual level impedes STEMM careers for
minoritized individuals. Furthermore, this chapter also addresses the charge
to identify methods of improving recruitment, retention, and advancement of
members of minoritized groups. To do so, the committee reviews literature
covering Black individuals, but also Latine and Indigenous individuals.
The chapter begins by summarizing research describing how and why
race and ethnicity are salient social categories. This research finds that
as a result of several social cognitive processes, individuals create social
categories, distinguish ingroups and outgroups, and assign personal mean-
ing on the basis of race and ethnicity. All of these factors have implica-
tions for the ways in which individuals express and experience racial bias,
and the consequences of racial bias are reviewed in detail in the second
half of this section. These include a range of cognitive, emotional, and
physiological outcomes associated with experiencing racism in STEMM

117

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118 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

contexts: negative impacts of predominately White contexts, stereotype

threat and social identity threat, imposter phenomenon, stigma and coping,
attributional ambiguity, physical health impacts, and race-based rejection
sensitivity. This section concludes with a major key finding: minoritized
individuals experience a range of adverse cognitive, emotional, and physi-
ological consequences as a result of facing racial bias.
The second part of the chapter summarizes the noteworthy ways in
which these individuals respond to bias in STEMM environments, includ-
ing other professional spaces. These responses can be categorized into
three general groups: exiting the field, implementing strategies to fit in,
and collectively mobilizing to transform the STEMM environment. Each
response has different implications for the advancement, recruitment, and
retention of minoritized individuals in STEMM.
The chapter concludes with a discussion of ways in which STEMM pro-
fessionals can redesign local STEMM environments to support minoritized
individuals. These strategies center on fostering connections, emphasizing
communal values, affirming kindness cues, and increasing a sense of belonging.
Overall, the committee focuses on the experience of being in minori-
tized groups that deviate from White norms to the extent that individuals
in those groups are often the target of racial biases and systemic racism
in the United States—people who are Black, Indigenous, and Latine—and
the impact on individuals in STEMM contexts specifically. Broadly speak-
ing, these minoritized groups control fewer resources, have less access to
STEMM professions and fields, and are more vulnerable to racism and
exclusion. The material in this chapter dovetails with that in Chapter 6,
which turns from people’s experiences as the targets of racism to experi-
ences of gatekeepers who possess power within STEMM and, whether
consciously or unconsciously, perpetuate racism.

SOCIAL COGNITIVE PROCESSES AND

CONSEQUENCES OF RACIAL BIAS
People carve the world into social categories or groups along many
axes, including race and ethnicity, a tendency that can be seen in the social
cognitive process of social categorization. The first part of this section
details how creating such groups can lead to psychological experiences of
“us” and “them.” This includes a consideration of how individuals may
be members in particular social groups and subjectively identify with their
groups to varying degrees (social identity), which has consequences for
well-being when group esteem is threatened. The second part of the sec-
tion demonstrates that there are a range of adverse cognitive, emotional,
and physiological consequences that minoritized individuals experience as
a result of facing bias against their racial or ethnic group.

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MINORITIZED INDIVIDUALS IN STEMM 119

SOCIAL CATEGORIZATION AND SOCIAL IDENTITY

The human mind simplifies information processing through social cate-
gorization, which is the process of categorizing people into groups based on
perceived visual, functional, or role similarity and inferring that members
of a group share these and other common attributes (Fiske, 2005; Hilton
and von Hippel, 1996; Macrae and Bodenhausen, 2000). Such inferences
allow humans to take mental shortcuts in processing information about
new people; thus, when a person encounters an individual for the first time,
they often categorize that individual into a social group, based on perceived
salient characteristics. This grouping is often accompanied by the inference
that members of a given group are more similar to others in that group as
compared to members of other groups. This kind of inference is the essence
of stereotyping, which is the overgeneralized attribution of characteristics
to others based on their group membership (Fiske, 2005; see Chapter 6 for
more on how social categorization underpins stereotyping, prejudice, and
discrimination).
This process of social categorization is also reflexive, where individuals
also think of themselves as belonging to groups. Groups to which an indi-
vidual belongs are their “ingroup,” whereas other groups to which they do
not belong are their “outgroup.” Thus, from the perspective of any given
person, social categorization divides the world into “us” (ingroups) and
“them” (outgroups). Ingroups may be based on ascribed characteristics
(e.g., groups based on age, sex, race, or ethnicity) or chosen characteris-
tics (e.g., groups based on professions, roles, religion, nationality; Brewer,
2007). Research using social identity theory (Tajfel, 1978; Tajfel and Turner,
1979) shows that a person’s identification with their various ingroups is a
central component of that individual’s self-concept. Some ingroups may be
more important to a person’s sense of self than others, in that people derive
greater self-esteem from those identities (Brown, 2000). In addition, people
exhibit a strong tendency to favor their ingroups relative to outgroups in
social evaluations and resource allocations. This tendency has been used
to explain intergroup prejudice as well as discriminatory behaviors (Böhm
et al., 2020; Leaper, 2011; Wolfe and Spencer, 1996). These phenomena are
not limited to racial groups in United States, but they occur with various
types of groups, everywhere, throughout history.
When particular groups are of high status and power, whether histori-
cally or in the short term as the result of specific situations, other groups
are often measured against the norms established by the high-status group
(Fiske et al., 2016). In relation to race, research shows that the more a
person deviates from the non-Hispanic White norms (hereafter referred to
as White)—a high-status group—in terms of skin color, hair, accent, and
physical features, the more racism a person is likely to experience (Blair
et al., 2004; Dixon and Telles, 2017; Eberhardt et al., 2006; Maddox and

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120 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

Perry, 2018; see Chapter 2 for more on historical context for race and sta-
tus in the United States). Below, this chapter describes a range of cognitive,
emotional, and physiological outcomes associated with experiencing rac-
ism in STEMM contexts. This includes sections on the negative impacts of
predominantly White contexts, stereotype threat and social identity threat,
imposter phenomenon, stigma and coping, attributional ambiguity, physical
health impacts, and race-based rejection sensitivity.

Negative Impacts of Predominantly White Contexts

For minoritized individuals in STEMM, navigating classrooms and
environments in which they are a clear numeric minority has measurable
psychological, physiological, and behavioral effects (see Chapter 3 for a
summary of issues that contribute to numeric representation). These pre-
dominantly White contexts threaten two fundamental human needs. The
first is the human need to belong. Anthropologists, social psychologists,
and sociologists show that all humans have a universal need for attach-
ment affiliation (Bowlby, 1969, 1973; Casella and Fowler, 2005; Cosmides
et al., 1992; Maslow, 1943, 1968; Sherif et al., 1988). From an evolutionary
perspective, seeking belonging is necessary for survival across many species
(De Waal, 1990, 2009). Affiliation needs lead humans to set aside personal
desires for the sake of belonging to a group where roles, norms, and respon-
sibilities promote the survival of all group-affiliated members (Cheney et al.,
1986; Panter-Brick et al., 2001). Investigators have (Baumeister and Leary,
1995) concluded that “the desire for interpersonal attachments—the need
to belong—is a fundamental human motivation.” People experience well-
being and prosperity in the presence of social connection (Baumeister and
Leary, 1995; Dunbar and Barrett, 2007) and stress and pain akin to physi-
cal pain in the presence of social exclusion (Eisenberger and Lieberman,
2005; Fiske, 2009).
The second fundamental need threatened by predominantly White
contexts is the need to be valued and treated with dignity. Drawing on evo-
lutionary, social, and developmental psychology, one scholar (Hicks, 2011)
concluded that individuals feel their dignity is violated when some aspect of
their identity is rejected. Dignity violation, which may include obvious acts
of discrimination or subtle acts of ostracism, activates negative emotions
that compromise decisionmaking, social judgments, and problem-solving
(Isen, 2008; Keltner and Lerner, 2010). Dignity violations in the context
of STEMM academic settings impact cognitive functioning related to aca-
demic success, motivation, and an array of other outcomes to be described
in the upcoming paragraphs.
There are four features of predominantly White contexts that often
make it difficult, if not impossible, for minoritized individuals to have these

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MINORITIZED INDIVIDUALS IN STEMM 121

needs of belonging and dignity met in a full or satisfactory way. The first
is that in such environments, there are few, if any, people who share one’s
identity; this results in a lack of high-status role models (Dasgupta, 2011;
Griffith and Dasgupta, 2018; Sekaquaptewa et al., 2007; Sekaquaptewa
and Thompson, 2002; Stout et al., 2011). The second is a lack of sup-
port and opportunity for building relationships with peers from similar
backgrounds, which results in a weaker network (Blake-Beard et al., 2011;
Dasgupta, 2011; Dennehy and Dasgupta, 2017; Thiem and Dasgupta,
2022). The third is inadequate access to material and knowledge resources
resulting, in part, due to resource-poor social networks and disconnec-
tion from central individuals with influence (Castilla et al., 2013a,b; Jack,
2016, 2019; Mishra, 2020; Simmons, 2011; Stephens et al., 2012; Thiem
and Dasgupta, 2022). The final feature is that in such environments, one’s
contributions are not recognized or valued (Castilla, 2008; Griffith et al.,
2022; Misra et al., 2017).
These four features are very much part of STEMM training and work
environments, and as elsewhere, they have a profound impact on minori-
tized individuals who work in these types of local environments. They
contribute to minoritized individuals feeling like solos or tokens, cut off
from insider knowledge networks, and that their work and contribution
is invisible (see Chapter 4 for descriptions of these phenomena from lived
experience). As a result, individuals start to doubt their belonging, ability,
and commitment to the endeavor, especially when alternative choices and
paths are available (Dennehy et al., 2017; Thiem and Dasgupta, 2022).
Threats to belonging that are driven by low numeric representation of
similar others and absence of strong relationships or a social network are
particularly potent in transition periods such as the transition to college,
to graduate school, or to a new job (Dasgupta, 2011; Hurtado and Carter,
1997; Thiem and Dasgupta, 2022).

Stereotype Threat and Social Identity Threat

Stereotype threat is situation-induced worry that arises in achievement-
oriented situations when individuals feel apprehensive that their perfor-
mance will be judged in ways that confirm negative stereotypes targeting
their ingroup (Steele, 1997, 1998, 2011). This worry acts as a stressor for
the individual, taxing their working memory capacity and undermining
their objective performance relative to non-stereotyped group members.
However, when an achievement-oriented situation is redesigned to explicitly
disavow the negative stereotype (and be identity safe), the same individu-
als perform as well as non-stereotyped peers (for reviews, see Aronson and
Steele, 2005; Crocker et al., 1998; Schmader et al., 2008; Steele et al.,
2002).

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122 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

A concept closely related to stereotype threat is social identity threat,

which focuses on situations where individuals feel their valued identi-
ties are marginalized or ignored, which in turn affects much more than
performance—their sense of belonging, motivation, interests, persistence,
and aspirations to persist. By activating negative stereotypes and un-
dermining belonging, stereotype threat and social identity threat reduce
self-confidence in one’s ability (or self-efficacy) and leads individuals to
withdraw from the domain. This is the experience of many minoritized stu-
dents at predominantly White universities, women (of multiple racial and
ethnic identities) in science and engineering, and professionals on upward
career trajectories in professions where they (minoritized individuals, and
women of multiple racial/ethnic identities) are often tokens (e.g., STEMM;
Blascovich et al., 2001; Emerson and Murphy, 2014; Fischer, 2010; Lewis
and Sekaquaptewa, 2016; Sekaquaptewa et al., 2007; Spencer et al., 2016;
Steele et al., 2002). Consequently, many of these individuals tend to leave
their academic or professional path (Ceci and Williams, 2010; Ceci et al.,
2009; McArdle, 2008).

Imposter Phenomenon
Social identity threat sometimes leads individuals to lose confidence in
their abilities, Consequently, they remove themselves from achievement-
oriented environments even when their performance is equal to that of
their peers. In other words, high performance and high confidence are
not always strongly correlated (Dasgupta, 2011; Stout et al., 2011). Thus,
social identity threat is closely related to the imposter phenomenon, a term
coined more than three decades ago (Clance and Imes, 1978). Research on
the imposter phenomenon (also known as imposter syndrome) shows that
sometimes individuals privately believe they are faking talent (Clance and
Imes, 1978; McGrego et al., 2008); in these cases, they are more likely to
attribute their strong performance to luck, effort, or personal charm (Chae
et al., 1995; Clance, 1985; Thompson et al., 1998) instead of personal
ability (Topping and Kimmel, 1985). They are dissatisfied with their perfor-
mance even when it is at par with peers and colleagues, feel unsure of their
ability, and have low expectations of repeated future success (Chrisman
et al., 1995; Cozzarelli and Major, 1990; Kumar and Jagacinski, 2006;
Thompson et al., 1998). Members of minoritized groups who are solos or
tokens in high-achieving, predominately White contexts are particularly
vulnerable to imposter phenomenon (Bravata et al., 2020). For example,
African American graduate students at predominantly White universities
experience imposter fear, which is associated with lower academic confi-
dence or self-efficacy (Ewing et al., 1996). Likewise, for women who are
a small numeric minority in engineering, academic failures are associated

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MINORITIZED INDIVIDUALS IN STEMM 123

with a sharp decrease in self-esteem, and academic successes do not result

in an increase in self-esteem (Crocker et al., 2003). Taken together, research
demonstrates that the experience of being a numeric minority in high stakes
achievement environments—like those of STEMM—shakes individuals’
confidence in their own ability, especially in the face of difficulty. This
remains true even if their actual performance is objectively equivalent to
individuals of the majority group.

Stigma and Coping

Social identity threat is related to another body of research on stigma.
A stigma is an attribute of a person that is associated with devalued ste-
reotypes and is deeply discrediting in society (Goffman, 1963, p. 3). A dis-
credited attribute could be visible, such as one’s skin color or body size, or
could be hidden but discreditable if revealed, such as one’s criminal record,
struggles with mental illness, or poverty. Carrying a stigma complicates
everyday interactions—stigmatized individuals may be wary of engaging
with people who do not share their stigma; meanwhile, those without a
certain stigma may disparage, overcompensate, or attempt to ignore stig-
matized individuals. Research demonstrates the negative impacts of stigma
on self-esteem, achievement, mental health, and physical well-being (for a
review, see Major and O’Brien, 2005; also see Bryant-Davis and Ocampo,
2005). Sometimes, societal stigmas are internalized by minoritized individu-
als, leading them to experience a lack of deservingness, self-directed racism,
and self-devaluation (Frost, 2011; Wester et al., 2011).
In the face of stigma, individuals may engage in multiple forms of
coping to regulate their emotion, cognition, and behavior (Sanchez et al.,
2018). Some coping strategies help individuals buffer against the stress-
ful event (Aspinwall, 2004), while others may exacerbate the stress. One
review highlighted commonly used strategies for coping in the face of
discrimination, such as attributing negative events to experiences of dis-
crimination as opposed to internalizing the event and blaming oneself;
disengaging self-esteem and effort from identity-threatening situations; and
increasing one’s personal identification with the stigmatized group (Major
and O’Brien, 2005).

Attributional Ambiguity
Even when situations do not activate social identity threat specifically,
they often create a feeling of uncertainty in minoritized individuals about
the cause of someone else’s behavior toward them, be it positive or negative
(Major et al., 1994; Mendes et al., 2008; Smith and Wout, 2019). This feel-
ing of uncertainty is called attributional ambiguity, and it happens in many

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124 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

contexts, including STEMM environments (Bandyopadhyay et al., 2022;

O’Brien et al., 2016). Experiences of attributional ambiguity arise in inter-
actions between people of different status groups, where the lower-status
interaction partner feels uncertain about whether the cause of the higher-
status person’s behavior toward them is based on personal deservingness
(e.g., their actual ability or qualifications) or the result of racial bias. In the
context of race, this ambiguity occurs when minoritized individuals interact
with White individuals; in such interactions, the minoritized individual may
wonder whether positive feedback from the White individual is genuine or
the result of overcompensating, and if negative feedback is deserved or the
result of stereotyping or prejudice (Major et al., 2002).
Evidence demonstrates that in interracial interactions (i.e., interactions
between individuals of different races), Black individuals trust feedback
more (both positive and negative) if their identity is masked than if their
identity is revealed (Crocker et al., 1991). When their identity is revealed,
they attribute negative feedback to the evaluator’s prejudice, which pro-
tects their self-esteem, but they are unable to trust positive feedback
as genuine, which undermines self-esteem. Individuals who belong to
multiple minoritized groups, such as Black women, may face additional
obstacles of determining whether another person’s behavior toward them
is a result of one of several types of bias (e.g., racism, sexism), a unique
intersectional form of bias, or personal deservingness. Such intersectional
forms of attributional ambiguity are under-researched (Remedios and
Snyder, 2015).
Attributional ambiguity can yield both positive and negative out-
comes for the minoritized individual (Aronson and Inzlicht, 2004; Hoyt
et al., 2007; King, 2003; Major and Crocker, 1993). Attributing an
ambiguous event to prejudice or discrimination may protect minoritized
individuals’ self-esteem by preventing them from attributing the event
to their personal characteristics (e.g., Crocker et al., 1991; Hoyt et al.,
2007; Mendes et al., 2008). However, attributing events to discrimination
may yield adverse outcomes as well, such as distress, reduced well-being,
and threats to identity and belongingness (Albuja et al., 2019; Chae
et al., 2011; Miles et al., 2020). For instance, one study analyzed the
perceptions of racial microaggressions—subtle or indirect form of racial
discrimination (see Chapter 6 for more on microaggressions)—among
Black doctoral students in STEM and found that participants’ sense
of belonging and identity as scientists were negatively impacted (Miles
et al., 2020). Mixed signals wherein minoritized individuals receive uni-
versity communications that affirm commitment to diversity while simul-
taneously experiencing microaggressions in classroom settings may also
contribute to attributional ambiguity in STEMM educational contexts
(Estrada et al., 2018).

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MINORITIZED INDIVIDUALS IN STEMM 125

PHYSICAL HEALTH IMPACTS OF BEING

THE TARGET OF RACISM
Over the past several years, there has been a substantial growth in re-
search on the association between racism and health outcomes. This work
shows that racism experienced at every level (e.g., institutional, interper-
sonal) undermines psychological health (Araújo and Borrell, 2006; Jones
and Neblett, 2019; Pieterse et al., 2012) and physical health (Paradies et al.,
2015; Solomon et al., 2022; Williams et al., 2019a,b). In fact, the director
of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and leading medi-
cal societies, including the American Medical Association (AMA), declared
racism to be a serious public health threat (Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, 2021; O’Reilly, 2020). In terms of psychological health, racism
faced by minoritized individuals is associated with increased anxiety (Stein
et al., 2019), depressive symptoms (English et al., 2014), major depressive
disorder (Russell et al., 2018), distress (Nguyen et al., 2021), and suicidal
ideation (Madubata et al., 2022). Some scholars note that negative psycho-
logical consequences associated with racism share features associated with
trauma (Pieterse et al., 2012).
In terms of physical or physiological health, experiences of racism
are significantly associated with poor cardiovascular health (Javed et al.,
2022), hazardous drinking behavior (Gilbert and Zemore, 2016), poor
sleep (Slopen et al., 2016), and cancer-related risks (Black et al., 2015;
Plascak et al., 2022). A number of studies suggest that stress-induced
“weathering” among older Black individuals, defined as the cumulative
health impact of repeated experiences of social, economic, or political ex-
clusion and effortful coping, induces morbidity both directly and indirectly
through unhealthy behaviors (Geronimus, 2001; Geronimus et al., 2006).
Weathering is thought to be partially responsible for race disparities in
metabolic illnesses such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Multiple
studies connect extended psychosocial stress to inflammation (McDade
et al., 2006; Melamed et al., 2006; Weinstein et al., 2007). Inflammation,
in turn, plays a causal role in cardiovascular problems and poor blood
sugar control resulting from insulin resistance (Grundy et al., 2004; Yudkin,
2003). Chronic low-grade inflammation is linked to cardiovascular disease
(Danesh et al., 2000), type 2 diabetes (Pradhan et al., 2001) and meta-
bolic syndrome (McDade and Hayward, 2009; Ridker et al., 2003). Using
a nationally representative probability sample from the 2005–2006 U.S.
National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project, one study found that in-
flammation was most consistently associated with older Black men’s greater
metabolic problems, less control over blood sugar levels, and negative car-
diovascular outcomes (Das, 2013). Moreover, inflammation significantly
mediated men’s race disparities in metabolic states. The authors of that

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126 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

study argued that inflammation is an underexamined “biological gateway”

through which stressors in social environments affect older Black men’s
diabetic and cardiovascular outcomes. In sum, the scientific literature shows
that racism creates a substantial and disproportionate burden of illness on
minoritized individuals.

RACE-BASED REJECTION SENSITIVITY

Research shows not all minoritized individuals experience the same
context in the same way. For example, individual differences in expectations
shape how minoritized individuals interpret their environment, which in
turn influences their adjustment to academia and other STEMM contexts.
Some people are more sensitive to rejection based on their race, which in-
fluences their interpersonal experiences in predominantly White contexts.
Research has found that college students’ expectations of race-based rejec-
tion can strain their social relationships and undermine their sense of confi-
dence in the academic institution they are enrolled in. This has been found
to result in reduced motivation to pursue personal goals among rejection-
sensitive students, compared to less rejection-sensitive students who con-
tinued to persist (Mendoza-Denton et al., 2002). A later study showed that
ethnic identification and race-based rejection sensitivity predicted decreased
intention to persist in school among African Americans but did not predict
lower grade point average (Mendoza-Denton et al., 2008). These findings
demonstrate that individuals who belong to a given minoritized racial or
ethnic group do not represent a monolith. There are important individual-
level differences within members of a given group, and these differences can
inform experiences and outcomes. Therefore, some minoritized individuals
may thrive in predominately White contexts while others struggle. Addi-
tional research studying these individual-level differences is necessary and
important for better understanding the discussed range of adverse cognitive,
emotional, and physiological consequences.

Summary
The committee wishes to highlight a key finding that emerged from
the information summarized in the above sections: Minoritized individu-
als experience a range of adverse cognitive, emotional, and physiological
consequences as a result of facing racial bias. Moreover, individuals who
occupy multiple minoritized identities may face added complexities and
consequences navigating STEMM spaces as a result of facing multiple
sources of bias. There is a paucity of research on the experience of such
individuals, and the committee noted that more is needed. The committee
also felt it important to emphasize that minoritized individuals in STEMM

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MINORITIZED INDIVIDUALS IN STEMM 127

FIGURE 5-1 Minoritized individuals’ responses to facing racial bias.

SOURCE: Brown, 1986.

are not a monolith, both within a given group and between groups. As
such, the experiences and consequences of racial bias may vary at the
individual level. Additional research and expanded sampling to include
larger and more representative samples of all minoritized racial and ethnic
groups is necessary to better understand these potential similarities and
differences.

Minoritized Individuals’ Responses to Racial Bias

The following section reviews three noteworthy ways in which minori-
tized individuals respond to experiences of racism. These responses can be
grouped loosely into three groups: exiting the field, implementing strate-
gies to fit in, and collectively mobilizing to transform the environment (see
Figure 5-1; Brown, 1986).

STRATEGIES FOR EXITING: DISIDENTIFICATION AND PASSING

Exiting is a common response for minoritized individuals experienc-
ing racism in STEMM environments. Exiting generally encompasses two

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128 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

patterns: moving away from and often leaving the field (disidentification)
and moving away from one’s ingroup (passing; Woodcock et al., 2012).
National data of more than 200,000 students who started college in fall
2004 at 326 four-year institutions across the United States show that Black,
Latine, and Native American students enter college with aspirations to
major in STEM at levels similar to their White and Asian peers. However,
their paths diverge in college. Four-year (2008) and five-year (2009) college
graduation rates reveal that Black, Latine, and Native American students
complete college with STEM majors at lower rates (15.9, 13.2, and 14.0%
respectively) compared to their White and Asian American peers (24.5 and
32.4% respectively). These differences become more pronounced when
comparing the five-year graduation rate (Higher Education Research Insti-
tute, 2010; see Chapter 3 on related data).
In an attempt to identify specific barriers responsible for persistence
gaps, other research identified a few key characteristics that differentiated
students who earned bachelor’s degrees in STEM fields from those who
did not (American Council on Education, 2005; the National Academies
of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2011). This research found that
students who successfully completed bachelor’s degrees in STEM were more
likely to: (i) enter college with rigorous high school preparation; (ii) have
access to high-quality information and support related to higher education
and career pathways that influenced their choice of college and naviga-
tion while in college; and (iii) have financial support that allowed them
to focus on academic work without juggling long hours of paid work. In
other words, high school preparation, social support, and financial capital
strengthened students’ skills and persistence in STEM. Furthermore, there is
evidence demonstrating that even after statistically accounting for students’
socioeconomic status and academic preparation, cultural experiences in col-
lege influenced STEM students’ performance, engagement, and persistence
(Chang et al., 2011). Therefore, the nature of the context is another critical
factor, and environments that fail to affirm inclusion may result in individu-
als implementing exiting strategies. These strategies are discussed next.
Disidentification is one exiting strategy that minoritized individuals may
use to deal with persistent social identity threat and belonging uncertainty.
Disidentification is the process of becoming less invested in, or the long-
term abandoning of, a formerly valued activity, interest, or social identity.
Consequently, individuals may disidentify from their STEMM degree or
profession, which places minoritized individuals at risk of leaving the field
of STEMM (Woodcock et al., 2012).
Ironically, the more a person’s sense of self is contingent upon doing
well in a particular domain, the more vulnerable they are to social identity
threat because of the worry that their underperformance or failure may
prove the stereotype true in others’ eyes. Disidentification creates distance

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MINORITIZED INDIVIDUALS IN STEMM 129

between the self and a domain that includes sets of specific stereotypes (e.g.,
STEMM), and thus is one way that minoritized individuals can mitigate the
effects of social identity threat (Major and Schmader, 1998). While disiden-
tifying from the field is an individual-level strategy implemented by minori-
tized individuals in the face of racism, larger racist systemic-level barriers
can continue to remain in place even after the person exits, if no top-down
changes are made (see Chapter 8). Research shows that disidentification
is more likely to happen in early stages of academic or professional devel-
opment, such as when individuals in transition (e.g., college to a job), or
among individuals who are new to the environment (Callagher et al., 2021).
Consider Black, Indigenous, and Latine students at predominantly White
universities or girls and women in science and engineering, where their in-
group is numerically underrepresented. Research has found there is a sub-
stantial number of high-performing individuals who are exiting their field or
taking a different academic or professional path (Ceci and Williams, 2010;
Ceci et al., 2009; McArdle, 2008; Pinker, 2008; Rosenbloom et al., 2008).
While it may appear that the choice to leave or opt for a different path ap-
pears to be made freely, there is a body of research demonstrating that these
critical decisions are in fact shaped by stereotypes. These stereotypes inform
ideas about who is likely to succeed or fail and who belongs in a given en-
vironment (Cheryan et al., 2009; Logel et al., 2009; Settles, 2004; Spencer
et al., 1999; Steele et al., 2002; Stout et al., 2011; von Hippel et al., 2011;
Walton and Cohen, 2007, 2011; Woodcock et al., 2012). For example, a
three-year longitudinal study of African American and Hispanic/Latine un-
dergraduate students in STEM majors showed that experiences of stereotype
threat were associated with scientific disidentification, which in turn predicted
a significant decline in the intention to pursue a scientific career (Woodcock
et al., 2012). This effect was stronger for Hispanic/Latine students than
African American students. Other research found that African Americans
experiencing stereotype threat disengaged from academics in response to
negative performance feedback (Nussbaum and Steele, 2007).
Passing—psychologically distancing oneself from one’s ascribed social
ingroup—is another type of exiting. Passing is only possible if a person can
conceal their disadvantaged group membership, which may be the case for
individuals from poor or working-class origins, individuals who are lesbian,
gay, bisexual, or transgender, and Black, Indigenous, and Latine people
with light skin color who can pass as White. This is a form of exiting as
well, wherein an individual “exits” their own social identity and no longer
thinks of themselves as a member of the racial or ethnic group (Brown,
1986). There is a small set of contemporary research on passing among
minoritized individuals, particularly in the context of STEMM (McGee,
2016; Ong, 2005). Additional research is necessary to better understand
this phenomenon.

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130 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

STRATEGIES FOR FITTING IN AND SURVIVING:

GRIT, RESILIENCE, AND CODESWITCHING
Grit and resilience are related concepts that describe how minoritized
individuals might try to fit in and survive in achievement-oriented environ-
ments, such as STEMM. Grit is an individual trait that reflects a single-
minded pursuit of long-term goals regardless of setbacks (Duckworth et al.,
2007). Studies show that grit is significantly associated with improved
academic performance (Christopoulou et al., 2018).
Resilience is defined as a healthy and adaptive functioning following ad-
verse events (Southwick et al., 2014). It is an individual’s ability to bounce
back or overcome difficult stressors and adversity (Masten and Narayan,
2012). Resilience is sometimes conceptualized as an individual-level trait
(Debb et al., 2018) and at other times as a process of adaptation or having
a better-than-expected outcome (Southwick et al., 2014). Research shows
that increased trait resilience is associated with higher levels of subjective
well-being and increased optimism and life satisfaction among African
Americans college students (Utsey et al., 2008). Other research, viewing
resilience as an ongoing process, identified several predictors associated
with the process of becoming more resilient (Johnson, 2011). These in-
clude: (i) participating in learning communities with peers who share one’s
racial or ethnic identity (Leyva, 2021); (ii) participating in STEMM pipe-
line programs (e.g., Lane and Id-Deen, 2020); (iii) connecting with social
support structures, community, and family (e.g., Fernández et al., 2021;
Pumaccahua and Rogers, 2022; Rincón et al., 2020); (iv) having oppor-
tunities to giving back to communities (Page-Reeves et al., 2019; Rincón
and Rodriguez, 2021); (v) affirming one’s racial identity (e.g., Morton and
Parsons, 2018; Sparks et al., 2021) including language heritage (Stevenson
et al., 2019); (vi) engaging in self-renewal activities and religiosity (e.g.,
meditation; Gazley and Campbell, 2020); and (vii) integrating multiple
identities (Ross et al., 2021).
There is critical literature examining resilience in STEMM among mi-
noritized individuals (Gonzalez et al., 2021). For example, one recent study
explored the factors that allow Black women to be successful and thrive
in engineering professions. Interviews with a sample of Black women en-
gineers who had at least 10 years of work experience in industry showed
that the integration of race, gender, and role identities fostered resilient
engineering identities (Ross et al., 2021). Similarly, longitudinal research
shows that Native scholars who have STEMM mentors with knowledge
of Native culture are more likely to endorse STEMM values and persist in
STEMM (Estrada et al., 2022).
Like exiting, grit and resilience are individual-level forms of cop-
ing where individuals carve out their own path despite the existence of

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MINORITIZED INDIVIDUALS IN STEMM 131

structural barriers. An overreliance on individuals’ resilience to “make

it” in STEMM ignores the need for a critical examination of structural
barriers in STEMM institutions (McGee and Bentley, 2017; Morton and
Nkrumah, 2021) that contribute to the persistence of underrepresentation
and exclusion of minoritized individuals, as well as the need to change
them. Structural changes in STEMM cultures to promote antiracism, diver-
sity, equity, and inclusion will require more than the advocacy and actions
of minoritized individuals with grit or resilience (see Chapter 8 for more).
Codeswitching is another way that people from minoritized groups
adapt to a predominantly White context and culture temporarily.
Codeswitching is a context-dependent impression management strategy
where minoritized individuals adjust their self-presentation in predomi-
nantly White contexts to fit in and be accepted by mirroring the White
majority (McCluney et al., 2021). This occurs through mirroring norms,
attributes, and behaviors. Recent codeswitching research shows how mi-
noritized employees may navigate predominately White contexts by dress-
ing differently, changing their speaking style, adopting specific hobbies, and
adopting specific topics of conversation (Boulton, 2016; Koch et al., 2001;
McCluney et al., 2021). Through codeswitching, a person acculturates
to a predominantly White culture while in the company of White people
and switches back to a different, more authentic, self-presentation in non-
White environments. For instance, a Black emergency medical doctor from
California indicated having to become more familiar with ice hockey and
the National Hockey League games because that was a popular topic of
conversation among his mostly White work colleagues; however, when
interacting with another minoritized surgeon, that individual felt freer to
discuss “making it” and facing discrimination in medicine as a person with
dreadlocks (Brown, 2021).
One form of codeswitching among Black individuals involves chang-
ing hairstyles or chemically altering one’s natural hair to fit into the White
norms and rules that define professional appearance in predominately
White contexts, including STEMM (Bryant, 2013; Dawson et al., 2019;
Donahoo, 2022; Ferguson and Dougherty, 2021; Johnson and Bankhead,
2014; Opie and Phillips, 2015). Codeswitching may be a double-edged
sword. One the one hand, there is evidence demonstrating it is associated
with increased perceptions of professionalism (McCluney et al., 2021). On
the other hand, it reaffirms the expectation that White norms and appear-
ances are the default (McCluney et al., 2019; Opie and Phillips, 2015; Ray,
2019; Rabelo et al., 2021), and it may undermine feelings of authenticity
(McCluney et al., 2019). Moreover, minoritized individuals may feel pres-
sured to codeswitch because of psychological penalties for not doing so
(Brown, 2021; Dickens and Chavez, 2018; McCluney et al., 2021; Morales
et al., 2021).

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132 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

COLLECTIVELY MOBILIZING TO TRANSFORM

THE DOMINANT STEMM CULTURE
Historically, programs to address the numeric underrepresentation
of systemically minoritized groups in STEMM have focused on “fixing”
individuals—e.g., improving scholastic performance, increasing interest,
providing research experiences (Asai, 2020). However, solely relying on
this “deficit-based framework” may lead to the assumption that the cause
of the problem is the character of minoritized individuals rather than the
persistence of structural barriers (e.g., Coleman and Davis, 2020; Rocha
et al., 2022). It also creates the false impression that minoritized individuals
are passive. Shifting to an “asset-based” framework (Denton et al., 2020)
identifies the strengths, social, and cultural capital among minoritized indi-
viduals and returns power to these individuals to counter structural racism;
thus, such a shift may prove beneficial (Yosso, 2005). Research on valida-
tion theory has demonstrated positive effects on student persistence when
educators take an asset-based approach by valuing students’ strengths and
celebrating inclusion (Barnett, 2011; Linares and Muñoz, 2011).
Despite being numerically underrepresented, minoritized students and
faculty in STEMM have been active in building welcoming, affinity-based
professional communities, both virtual and in-person, to strengthen their
sense of belonging, provide support, expand networks, and grow the next
generation in STEMM. For example, the Society for Chicanos, Hispanics,
and Native Americans in Science (established in 1973; SACNAS, n.d.), the
National Society for Black Engineers (established in 1975; NSBE, n.d.), and
the American Indian Science and Engineering Society (established in 1977;
AISES, 2021) are some of the first professional societies to address the paucity
of people from minoritized groups in various STEMM disciplines. These pio-
neer organizations—which typically work as membership societies, with dues,
student chapters, and annual in-person conferences—provide refuge, support,
mentorship, professional development, and ingroup role models for emerg-
ing scholars (Martin et al., 2016; Ondrechen, 2014; Ross and McGrade,
2016). Qualitative research showed that after attending a SACNAS research
conference, students reported increased motivation and networking (Perez
and Robnett, 2014). Other research on the impact of SACNAS local chapters
showed that Iowa State University students in STEM advanced their careers
through attending regular chapter meetings, workshops, seminars on campus,
frequently communicating opportunities from the national SACNAS office,
and attending the annual national conference (Flores et al., 2018).
Recently, affinity-based communities have sought to use the internet,
social media, and social networking platforms to connect minoritized peo-
ple across geographical distances and surmount the isolation often faced
in STEMM. For example, the nonprofit Ciencia Puerto Rico (CienciaPR)
was launched in 2006 through a social networking website with the goal

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MINORITIZED INDIVIDUALS IN STEMM 133

of creating a critical mass of scientists from the Puerto Rican community

(Guerrero-Medina et al., 2013). In addition to promoting access to in-
formation about scientific training pathways and careers, CienciaPR uses
its website and social media platforms to counter the negative effects of
minoritization in STEMM, challenge the mainstream White-centric narra-
tive by celebrating and affirming Puerto Rican cultural identity in science,
and create opportunities for engagement of Puerto Rican members of the
STEMM community. Through collaborations with various media outlets,
the organization promotes culturally relevant science communication in
both Spanish and English that highlights the contributions of Puerto Rican
scientists and scientists affiliated with Puerto Rican community and locates
scientific advances and information in the context of the lives of Puerto
Ricans (Guerrero-Medina et al., 2013). Many of CienciaPR’s programs are
designed to enable its community of more than 15,000 scientists to influ-
ence their environments through knowledge and leadership (Colón, 2015;
González-Espada et al., 2015). These programs resulted in an engaged
community that mobilized following the 2017 Hurricanes Irma and María,
as well as during the COVID-19 pandemic (Forman, 2020; Lynn, 2018;
MacArthur et al., 2020; Nirmal, 2021).
The number of identity-based organizations and movements has in-
creased in recent years thanks to social media and as a result of large-scale
conversations on racism in society (see Box 5-1). Other organizations, such
as LatinXinBME, have leveraged new platforms and tools such as Slack
and Twitter to overcome geographical divides and isolation in predomi-
nantly White contexts. Using Slack has allowed LatinXinBME to create

BOX 5-1
Finding Community on Social Media

The purpose of this box is to highlight that spaces on social media have
been a place where minoritized individuals in STEMM can find community and
start mobilizing.
As an example, Nature recently published a piece focusing on the emer-
gence of a movement on social media that came about in response to racially
motivated incidents (Gewin, 2021). In response to the murder of George Floyd,
and the false accusation against the Black birdwatcher Christian Cooper in New
York City, the hashtag #BlackBirders was created and ignited the #BlackBirders
week. Black researchers and scientists from a range of STEMM disciplines then
developed a #BlackinSTEM week series. Each field, for instance physics, re-
ceived its own week of social media events with the intention of helping diversify
and create more inclusion in these environments, generate institutional change,
and build community. The Nature article includes the interviews of five research-
ers who took part in #BlackinSTEM week (Gewin, 2021).

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134 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

conversation channels centered around specific topics, centralize informa-

tion relevant to the community, initiate private messages between members,
and engage members across time zones. Among the most popular topics
are making career connections, mentoring, mental health, and issues of
particular concern to Latine communities, such as immigration (Aguado
and Porras, 2020).
Minoritized scientists and health professionals have also recently started
mobilizing to examine how the nation teaches STEMM disciplines and to
call for the incorporation of antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion into
the curriculum.1 For example, an effort to transform STEMM emerged
among Indigenous scholars who noted that there was a disconnect between
Western practices of STEMM education and Indigenous ways of knowing
and that this dissonance prevented their matriculation into these majors
(e.g., Chow-Garcia, 2016; Lee Bitsoi and Lowe, 2018; Smith et al., 2014;
see Chapter 4 for more on Indigenous ways of knowing). Instead of advising
students to change and comply with Western practices, Indigenous scholars
advocate to create more integrated approaches to STEMM that empha-
size the central premise of Indigenous knowledge, which is that all things
are connected (Deloria, 1992). Specifically, some scholars have worked to
“find a pedagogy of holism combining the best of both” to assist in build-
ing capacity (Marker, 2015, p. 3). One group, for example, describe how
Indigenous knowledge regarding medicine, technology, math, and anatomy,
passing orally across hundreds or even thousands of years, can advance
STEMM knowledge pursued by the West (Lee Bitsoi and Lowe, 2018).
The process of combining involves assessing assumptions, structures, and
practices of STEMM. The broadening of STEMM to involve Indigenous
students, employees, and local tribal members in the development of these
processes is critical to shifting the historical paradigms of these fields, result-
ing in STEMM fields that broaden to incorporate culturally diverse learners.
Furthermore, there have been other recent efforts to transform aca-
demic institutions. For instance, minoritized scientists, medical students,
and professionals have advocated for change in the form of returning
ancestral remains to Indigenous communities (Gulliford, 1996). Others
have worked to acknowledge unethical research with Black and Indigenous
people. Some individuals have focused on teaching about the history of
discrimination against many different peoples in the history of science and
medicine in the United States. This has taken many forms, including orga-
nizing town halls, teach-ins, op-eds, reading groups, and other initiatives
to help STEMM faculty and other members of the scientific community
broaden their understanding of the causes and consequences of racism in

1 This section draws on an expert review commissioned by the committee (Smith, n.d.).

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MINORITIZED INDIVIDUALS IN STEMM 135

their respective disciplines (Adelekun et al., 2019; Braun and Saunders,

2017; Hagopian et al., 2018).

CONCLUSION 5-1: There are a few noteworthy ways to describe how peo-
ple from historically and systemically minoritized groups respond to racism
in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM)
environments, including other professional spaces. These responses can be
loosely grouped as follows: exiting the field, implementing strategies to fit
in, and collectively mobilizing to transform the STEMM environment.

HOW STEMM PROFESSIONALS CAN HELP

In this final section of the chapter, the committee explores specific steps
that individuals might take to help promote inclusion through the design of
STEMM environments. These steps are grouped into three broad catego-
ries: signal inclusion through numeric representation and spatial design of
local environments; build peer relationships and community for minoritized
groups; and create access to high-status relationships.
This section and the recommended actions center around Stereotype In-
oculation Model, which holds that “social vaccines” can protect one’s mind
against noxious stereotypes, analogous to biomedical vaccines that protect and
inoculate one’s physical body against noxious bacteria and viruses (Dasgupta,
2011; Stout et al., 2011; Thiem and Dasgupta, 2022). The committee’s ap-
proach is motivated by a growing body of research that demonstrates that
when local STEMM cultures are redesigned to foster social connections
among minoritized individuals, increase exposure to experts from minoritized
groups, and link STEMM with communal values, these cultural cues act as
social vaccines. Specifically, they increase minoritized individuals’ sense of
belonging in STEMM, protect against negative stereotypes, and preserve
their self-efficacy, motivation, and persistence in STEMM (Dasgupta, 2011;
Dennehy and Dasgupta, 2017; Estrada et al., 2021; Thiem and Dasgupta,
2022; Wu et al., 2022). This section relies on research on minoritized indi-
viduals’ experiences in early training and career stages. However, research on
minoritized individuals in middle- and late-stage of their careers is still scarce,
and more is needed (see Chapter 9 for the research agenda).

SIGNAL INCLUSION THROUGH NUMERIC REPRESENTATION

AND SPATIAL DESIGN OF LOCAL ENVIRONMENTS

Provide a Diverse Representation of STEMM Role Models

It is common for academic organizations and workplaces to elevate some
individuals as exemplars of success by raising their portraits on the wall
and celebrating their accomplishments through media stories and awards.

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136 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

These exemplars communicate what “great” looks like within that orga-
nization. It is easy to draw the inference that others who look like these
success exemplars have potential to be great as well. Conversely, it is easy
to infer that people who look different have less greatness potential.
Research shows that when young people who are numerically under-
represented in STEMM (e.g., women students in engineering) are exposed
to images and success stories of a racially diverse array of successful women
engineers, they express more positive outcomes (Wu et al., 2022). These in-
clude positive implicit attitudes toward STEMM, reporting more confidence
in their own engineering ability, and identifying more strongly with these
exemplars, compared to other women students who are exposed to success
stories of men engineers or engineering innovations with no mention of the
engineer’s gender. In a way, these diverse exemplars of success act as im-
portant role models. In fact, women students’ subjective identification with
success stories of women engineers predicts greater self-confidence in their
own ability, which in turn predicts stronger intentions to pursue careers in
engineering (Stout et al., 2011).
Other research has found that successful individuals are likely to be-
come role models themselves if three key conditions are met. First, there are
others that are able to identify with them, second they believe their success
is something that can be attained, and third they have overlapping simi-
larities with others (Asgari et al., 2010, 2012; Aspinwall, 1997; Blanton,
2001; Davies et al., 2005; Haines and Kray, 2005; Hoyt and Blascovich,
2007; Lockwood, 2006; Lockwood and Kunda, 1997, 1999; Lockwood
et al., 2002; Marx and Roman, 2002; Marx et al., 2005). The dimension
of similarity may be similar life history, shared group membership, com-
mon academic or professional interests, and so on. For example, research
shows that encountering professional women who were framed as similar
to the self in terms of background (collegiate or gender) bolsters young
women’s implicit beliefs about their own leadership ability. However, when
the professional women were framed as different from the self, there was
no effect on women’s implicit self-beliefs about leadership, and in fact, this
even backfired on occasion (Asgari et al., 2012; for additional reading see
Parks-Stamm et al., 2008; Rudman and Phelan, 2010). This latter finding
may be explained by the possibility that successful ingroup members who
are perceived as different from oneself may increase feelings of threat. These
feelings of threat may signal leadership potential is not possible (Mendes
et al., 2001).
One longitudinal study found that both quality and quantity of contact
with similar exemplars of success jointly enhance young women’s implicit
leadership self-concept and increase ambitious career goals (Asgari et al.,
2010). Even though personal contact and mentoring relationships (dis-
cussed more below) are powerful ways to find role models, role models

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MINORITIZED INDIVIDUALS IN STEMM 137

may include more indirect contacts, such as with successful individuals with
whom one has had only brief contact with or were connected through social
media exposure (for a partial review, see Gibson, 2004).
Role models are particularly important to minoritized individuals
in high-achievement domains (Blanton et al., 2000; Stout et al., 2011).
For example, research has demonstrated that after hearing about a high-
performing Black peer in a stereotyped field, Black students demonstrated
positive outcomes including increased performance and self-efficacy. After
hearing about a low-performing Black peer, Black students showed opposite
outcomes (Blanton et al., 2000). Moreover, encountering a high-performing
Black person is associated with increases in Black students’ confidence even
more so than what encountering a high-performing White person does for
White students.

Build a Critical Mass of Minoritized Individuals

Building a critical mass of minoritized individuals in a local context
reduces feelings of evaluation apprehension and elevates performance and
full participation. Research shows that Black women’s academic perfor-
mance is enhanced when they are in a group of same-race peers compared
to when asked to perform in the context of being the only Black person in
an all-White environment (Inzlicht and Ben-Zeev, 2003; Sekaquaptewa and
Thompson, 2002). In the presence of other Black peers, negative stereotypes
about the group become less prominent in the minds of Black students, feel-
ings of performance apprehension are reduced, and performance is elevated
(Sekaquaptewa et al., 2007). Similarly, other research examined women’s
behavior after they were randomly assigned to engineering teams that vary
in gender composition (Dasgupta et al., 2015). Women in engineering teams
with a critical mass of same-sex peers expressed less worry and anxiety and
were more verbally engaged in the team task compared to women who are
the only woman in their team. Even though negative gender stereotypes
were present in their minds, women’s self-confidence was inoculated against
such stereotypes if they were in teams with a critical mass of other women
(Dasgupta et al., 2015; see Chapter 7 for more on teams).

Create Congruency Between Expressed Diversity

Values and the Reality of the Environment
Organizations signal their endorsement of diversity and inclusion values
in many ways. One of the most common strategies includes the increased
use of diversity and inclusion statements. However, research has found
that what minoritized individuals trusted more than diversity and inclu-
sion statements is actually seeing minoritized employees in the workplace

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138 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

(Purdie-Vaughns et al., 2008). For example, pictures showing a diverse

group of employees in an organization’s informational materials increased
prospective applicants’ trust in the company. When the demographic diver-
sity of people was prominent, diversity statements became less important.
However, if diversity signals did not match the reality within the company,
such measures backfired; new recruits saw the diversity signals as disingenu-
ous and lost trust in the organization (Cheryan et al., 2009).
Another feature of local environments that signals diversity values in-
cludes the physical design. One study found that the aesthetics of workspaces
conveyed clues about its culture, values, and norms (Cheryan et al., 2009).
Imagine walking into a workspace where you see vibrant nature posters
on the wall and a bookshelf with a variety of books, puzzles, and stacks of
water bottles in the corner. Alternatively, imagine that the workspace had
Star War posters on the wall, science fiction books in the bookshelf, video-
games, and a stack of soda cans in the corner. A room with science fiction
paraphernalia and videogames signaled a masculine geeky culture, while a
room with nature posters and puzzles signaled that all genders are welcome.
Women felt more welcome and, in turn, expressed more interest in computer
science classes and majors if they were in the room with nature posters than
the one with Star Wars posters. Additional research should be conducted to
examine which specific features of a physical environment are most inclusive
to promoting antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEMM.

BUILD PEER RELATIONSHIPS AND

COMMUNITY FOR MINORITIZED GROUPS

Broker Ingroup Peer Relationships by Developing “Near Peer” Mentors

Peer mentorship programs that broker relationships between new stu-
dents from minoritized groups with other students who share their identity
is another feature of local environments that enhance belonging and thriv-
ing (Dennehy and Dasgupta, 2017; Herrmann et al., 2016). These “near
peers,” who are only slightly more senior, mentor early career colleagues,
a form of mentorship that has been found to be effective, including for
minoritized individuals in STEMM environments (Dennehy and Dasgupta,
2017; the National Academies, 2020; Rockinson-Szapkiw and Wendt, 2020;
Thiem and Dasgupta, 2022; Wu et al., 2022). Authentic relationships with
successful ingroup peers safeguard individuals from the impacts of negative
ingroup stereotypes. For example, a one-year mentoring relationship with
a same-sex peer mentor during the first year of college was enormously ef-
fective for female engineering students at protecting them against academic
anxiety. Same-sex peer mentoring also protected the female students’ well-
being, enabled them to have increased success in obtaining experiential

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MINORITIZED INDIVIDUALS IN STEMM 139

learning opportunities (e.g., engineering internships), and increased their

retention in engineering and other STEM majors (Dennehy and Dasgupta,
2017; Wu et al., 2022). These benefits achieved by having same-sex men-
tors were not only present in the first year of college when mentoring was
active, but also endured through graduation and one-year post-graduation
(Dennehy and Dasgupta, 2017; Wu et al., 2022). Having male peer mentors
in the first year of college produced results statistically no different from
having no mentors (Dennehy and Dasgupta, 2017; Wu et al., 2022). In
short, a low-cost, light-touch, near-peer mentorship experience in a critical
transition period in life yielded dividends through the college years and one
year after graduation, long after mentorship had ended.
One benefit of ingroup peer mentors and other peer role models derives
from their relatability and shared experiences. For example, a national
sample of African American undergraduates majoring in STEM disciplines
found that from these students’ perspectives, perceived similarity of values
rather than demographic similarity was the most important factor associ-
ated with protégé perceptions of high-quality mentorship, which in turn
was associated with stronger personal commitment to pursue STEM careers
(Hernandez et al., 2017).

Normalize Struggles and Strengths of Minoritized Groups

Hearing that adversity and struggle is a normal experience and part
of the journey bolsters persistence and performance. For example, Black
students who learned from a slightly more senior peer that all students
encounter challenges and that the challenges are usually temporary ex-
perienced positive outcomes. Specifically, they were not concerned about
whether they belonged in college, but instead attributed their challenges
to the broader college environment. Consequently, these students with the
senior peer were more likely than Black students in a control condition to
achieve higher grades and improved well-being (Walton and Cohen, 2011).
As a corollary, emphasizing the strengths that come from the culture,
history, and knowledge of historically and systemically minoritized groups
can also empower numerically underrepresented students in higher educa-
tion, such as first-generation working-class students (Stephens et al., 2014;
Townsend et al., 2019). For example, first-generation students learning
from senior first-generation peers about the positive and negative effects of
their working-class status on their overall college experience reduced both
anxiety and bolstered college adjustment (Stephens et al., 2014). Research
with 670 STEM minority undergraduates (Black and African American and
Latine) and non-minority (White and Asian students) found that an inter-
vention that raised students’ awareness about stereotype threat and encour-
aged them to use their lived experiences to generate coping strategies that

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140 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

work for them protected their abstract reasoning, increased course grades,
and decreased worries about confirming racial and ethnic stereotypes (Ben-
Zeev et al., 2017).

Create Affinity-Based Peer Programs

When young people transition from high school to college, they are
often in new environments and unmoored from prior social supports, and
so, often experience uncertainty about belonging and self-doubt. This is
especially likely for students from minoritized groups who are also numeri-
cally underrepresented in higher education. Affinity-based programs that
gather a cohort of similarly situated students in the transition to college
have been found to be very effective.
For example, summer bridge programs that take place during the
summer before college starts help first-generation students, low-income
students, and students from minoritized racial and ethnic groups make
a smoother transition to college (Ramirez et al., 2021; Strayhorn, 2011).
Such programs enhance college-related social capital through an immersive
on-campus experience, spanning several weeks, that strengthens socioemo-
tional ties among peers, builds relationships with faculty and staff, and
familiarizes students with campus resources (Ashley et al., 2017; Bradford
et al., 2021; Suzuki et al., 2012). A systematic review of STEM-specific
summer bridge programs found that students leave these programs with
increased feelings of preparedness and belonging more in college, and they
get better grades post-program (Ashley et al., 2017). A recent meta-analysis
examining STEM-specific summer bridge programs found similar positive
outcomes (Bradford et al., 2021). Summer bridge program participants,
including minoritized, and first-generation students are also more likely to
graduate within six years of college matriculation than a matched compari-
son group (Douglas and Attewell, 2014).
Another study on summer bridge programs showed that including a
component that has new students from minoritized groups hearing from
senior peers from similar identity groups plays a key role in their success.
One study, for example, looked at outcomes from a sample of summer
bridge program participants in which most participants were from minori-
tized racial and ethnic groups, first-generation students, and/or low-income
students (Ramirez et al., 2021). All participants received information about
academic resources available to them on campus, but only half of the par-
ticipants also heard from senior first-generation college students. These
senior students told stories about encountering and overcoming identity
related obstacles. Program participants who heard from these senior peers
reported greater interest in using campus resources compared to program
participants who did not hear from them. Given the demonstrated benefits

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MINORITIZED INDIVIDUALS IN STEMM 141

of summer bridge programs, additional research is needed to identify which

specific elements of these programs drive each outcome.
Living-learning student communities are another affinity-based peer
program. These communities foster socioemotional and academic relation-
ships among a cohort of students transitioning into college who have com-
mon academic interests or a shared identity. Students live together in the
same residence hall, attend at least one class together, and interact together
in structured activities (Brower and Inkelas, 2010). Consistent with the
Stereotype Inoculation Model, immersion in a community of ingroup peers
increases psychological fit within the local environment. This is especially
important for students who are in a small numeric minority in the context
of their larger university environment. The local community, in this case,
is a space in which students are protected from tokenization and doubts
about their belonging, bolstering their confidence and persistence (Thiem
and Dasgupta, 2022).
Research shows that as compared to those who are not participants,
those in living-learning communities have more frequent academic interac-
tions with their peers, and they experience a stronger sense of belonging
within their university and living-learning community (Dahl et al., 2020;
Schussler and Fierros, 2008; Wawrzynski et al., 2009; Wu et al., accepted
in principle). Studies demonstrate that the social support from the commu-
nity peers also increases academic persistence (Inkelas et al., 2007; Soldner
et al., 2012) and reduces academic anxiety. These factors have been found
to help students earn higher grades (Wu et al., accepted in principle).
As with summer bridge programs, research suggests that living-learning
communities are particularly beneficial for orienting students to campus
resources. Compared to students living in traditional residential campus
communities, students participating in living-learning communities are
more likely to use campus resources such as computer labs, academic advi-
sors, and peer counselors, and they are more invested in participating in
research, studying abroad, and conducting a thesis project (Brower and
Inkelas, 2010; Dahl et al., 2020; Inkelas et al., 2007). This pattern of find-
ings may occur as a result of increased knowledge of these opportunities
and increased confidence they may experience. They are also more likely to
maintain higher academic confidence or self-efficacy up to three years later
after a program is over (Brower and Inkelas, 2010). Importantly, research
has identified value of living-learning communities for women of color in
STEM (Johnson, 2011).
In addition, communal aspects of college are also emphasized through
living-learning communities. These communities show that learning is not
something that only occurs in classrooms. Rather, learning can happen in
informal spaces with peers, through activities, and within residence halls
outside of class (Brower and Inklas, 2010; Shapiro and Levine, 1999).

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142 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

Furthermore, these communities may help students connect with faculty

through informal low stakes one-on-one interactions (Eidum et al., 2020).
Programs that create more opportunities for faculty-student interactions are
likely to attract faculty members who are more communally oriented, and
research shows that students who prioritize communal values may have a
preference to interact with faculty who share similar values (Fuesting and
Diekman, 2017). Therefore, minoritized students, who may be more likely
to prioritize communal values, may appreciate this particular aspect of
living-learning communities.

Curriculum Change Initiatives

Curriculum change initiatives also contribute to increased performance
and persistence for minoritized students. One significant intervention to
increase inclusion has occurred with the adoption of course-based un-
dergraduate research experiences, sometimes called Freshman Research
Initiatives. During the research experiences, faculty provide students with
opportunities to engage in discovery as part of a course, as opposed to a
more traditional instructional model. Students work in collaborative teams
and take part in each element of the research process, including developing
research questions, collecting data, analyzing data, and drawing conclusions
(Alkaher and Dolan, 2014; Auchincloss et al., 2014; Bangera and Brownell,
2014; Weaver et al., 2008). Studies on these research experiences show that
this shift in the curriculum toward doing “authentic” research results in a
range of positive outcomes that include greater knowledge acquisition, in-
creased self-efficacy and shifts in psychosocial outcomes, a greater sense of
belonging in the scientific community, increased retention, increased persis-
tence for all students, and an increased science identity (Alkaher and Dolan,
2014; Brownell et al., 2013; Drew and Triplett, 2008; Hanauer et al., 2012;
Jordan et al., 2014; Lopatto et al., 2008; Rodenbusch et al., 2016; Shaffer
et al., 2010, 2014). Increases in science efficacy, identity, and values have
been shown to predict persistence for minoritized STEM students one year
and four years after graduation (Estrada et al., 2011, 2018). Moreover,
these courses equalize retention rates for minoritized students compared to
non-minoritized students (Rodenbusch et al., 2016), which is significant,
given that first-year courses contribute toward large numbers of minoritized
students with an expressed interest in STEMM leaving their STEMM career
pathways. Despite critiques (Linn et al., 2015), several national reports
have recommended course-based undergraduate research experiences as
an important mechanism for increasing persistence and retention of stu-
dents (the National Academies, 2017; President’s Council of Advisors on
Science and Technology, 2012). The measured psychosocial shifts indicate
that in addition to affecting learning outcomes, course curriculum changes

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MINORITIZED INDIVIDUALS IN STEMM 143

potentially provide increased affiliation cues and affirm student dignity and
inclusion for minoritized students.

CREATE ACCESS TO HIGH-STATUS RELATIONSHIPS

Because of long-standing barriers, students from minoritized groups
may be unable to cultivate meaningful relationships with people in higher-
status roles, such as managers, professors, and other organizational leaders.
These relationships are critical for opening doors to important opportuni-
ties for students, such as internship positions, career advice, and future let-
ters of recommendation (e.g., Castilla et al., 2013a,b). For example, many
working-class students who are the first in their families to attend college
and do not have parents helping them navigate college life may not recog-
nize the importance of forming these relationships or may not know how to
cultivate them (Collier and Morgan, 2008; Jack, 2016). Even students who
do understand the importance of faculty relationships may feel uncomfort-
able and self-conscious approaching high-status people they do not know
out of a fear that doing so will make them be perceived as a “suck-up”
(Collier and Morgan, 2008; Jack, 2016). Consequently, students, including
minoritized students, often avoid approaching faculty members.

Enable Access to High-Status Mentors

Mentorship plays an essential role in the development and career tra-
jectories of emerging STEMM professionals. Much of science professional
development is based on an apprenticeship or mentorship model in which
junior trainees work directly with other STEMM professionals and develop
through their guidance. Mentorship is “a reciprocal, dynamic relation-
ship between mentor (or mentoring team) and mentee that promotes the
satisfaction and development of both” (McGee, 2016; p. 232). Mentoring
relationships are complex and have a substantial impact on the professional
and personal lives of the mentees (the National Academies, 2020).
Mentees are not passive recipients of their mentors’ guidance. Ideally,
they and their mentors collaborate in reciprocal ways as they plan, act, re-
flect, question, and problem-solve (Pfund et al., 2016). While mentees acquire
research skills they need to be scientifically productive and build professional
knowledge to advance their careers, mentors acquire skills that enable them
to nurture the academic and professional growth of the next generation
more effectively. Mentors are successful if they can support their mentee in
attaining transferable skills, knowledge, and confidence necessary to meet the
latter’s individual goals. This requires mentors to understand their mentees’
unique needs and desires, as well as the flexibility and humility to adjust
their approach to support the mentees’ success. In addition to disciplinary

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144 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

training, successful mentees also must acquire the tacit “know how,” or social
capital, to navigate political and disciplinary minefields, maintain personal
and professional integrity, and learn the values of their professional fields
­(Csikszentmihalyi, 2009; Yosso, 2005; Zambrana et al., 2015).
The positive impacts of mentoring on student mentees are clear. Men-
tors contribute to students’ science identity by recognizing their mentees’
talent, teaching them what to do, validating their aspirations, and providing
opportunities for mentees to take on more responsibility (Chemers et al.,
2011; Hurtado et al., 2009). More generally, strong mentorship is associ-
ated with mentees’ self-efficacy (Laursen et al., 2010). Mentorship also
benefits the mentor by fostering a sense of fulfillment, sharpening mentors’
leadership skills, and increasing their self-awareness (Dolan and Johnson,
2009; Laursen et al., 2010). Increased productivity among research mentees
is associated with increased productivity for research mentors (Dolan and
Johnson, 2009). For minoritized students in STEM, mentorship enhances
pursuit of research-related career pathways (Hathaway et al., 2002; Nagda
et al., 1998).
One study examined factors that predicted the integration of minori-
tized individuals in the STEM environment from students’ junior year
through the postbaccalaureate year (Estrada et al., 2018). Researchers
assessed mentees’ perceptions of the extent to which their mentor pro-
vided quality psychosocial, networking, and instrumental support. Results
showed longitudinal support demonstrating that quality mentorship ex-
periences were significantly associated with the integration of minoritized
individuals in STEM (Estrada et al., 2018). Despite these promising find-
ings, research demonstrates that Black, Latine, and Indigenous individuals
typically receive less mentoring than their non-minoritized peers (Ginther
et al., 2011; Morzinski and Fisher, 2002; Thomas, 2001).
Mentoring relationships are influenced by the mentor and mentee’s
perceptions of the other (Byars-Winston et al., 2020) and are culturally
informed in ways that vary by race and ethnicity (Byars-Winston et al.,
2015, 2020; Prunuske et al., 2013). For example, research has shown that
minoritized women in STEM are more interested in having discussions
pertaining to issues of race and ethnicity with their mentors, as compared
to their White counterparts (Muller et al., 2012).2 Differences in priorities
between mentors and mentees regarding race and ethnicity can create a
disconnect and can potentially hurt minoritized mentees (Byars-Winston
et al., 2015, 2020).
One qualitative study examined perspectives on mentoring minoritized
students that were held by a sample of White faculty who did not often

2 Differences in priorities between mentors and mentees regarding race and ethnicity can create

a disconnect, and can potentially hurt minoritized mentees (Byars-Winston et al., 2015, 2020).

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MINORITIZED INDIVIDUALS IN STEMM 145

mentor minoritized individuals (McCoy et al., 2015). In the interviews,

their use of race-neutral, “colorblind” language (avoiding racial terms but
implying them) allowed these White faculty members to describe their stu-
dents as inferior, both academically and across a range of perceptions, while
potentially ignoring issues related to structural racism. The faculty stated
they utilized colorblind methods to “treat everyone equal;” however, the
findings showed that their colorblind approach had negative implications
for their perception of the mentees, including the assertion of their mentees
as being inadequately prepared.
Misalignment of diversity related beliefs and expectations between men-
tors and mentees can complicate mentoring relationships (Carlone and
Johnson, 2007; Chang et al., 2011; Hurtado et al., 2009; Johnson et al.,
2011). Some programs, such as the National Institutes of Health-funded Na-
tional Research Mentorship Network aims to strengthen alignment between
mentees and mentors by teaching faculty five clusters of skills (McGee; 2016;
Pfund et al., 2016). These include (i) teaching and evaluating research skills,
(ii) building honest and trusting mentor-mentee relationships; (iii) providing
psychosocial support (motivation, coping strategies, belonging); (iv) being
culturally responsive (being self-aware of bias, reducing impacts of stereo-
type threat); and (v) being an active sponsor (helping mentees network,
advocating for them, promoting their professional development).
Students from minoritized groups may be most comfortable forming
working relationships with faculty of similar identities (Blake-Beard et al.,
2011). However, as demonstrated in earlier chapters (see Chapter 3), few
faculty are members of minoritized groups. This limits the chances that mi-
noritized students have to interact with them. As an added barrier, the few
minoritized faculty members tend to be over-extended. In part, this results
from the fact that they are highly sought out by students with similar identi-
ties (Hirshfield and Joseph, 2012; Mondisa, 2018; Padilla, 1994; Stanley,
2006; Zambrana et al., 2015). Which is to say, numeric underrepresentation
of minoritized faculty can contribute to the limited professional networks of
students from minoritized groups. It is important, therefore, for academic
STEMM departments to form relationships with STEMM organizations ded-
icated to nurturing diverse talent, such as SACNAS, NSBE, and the Annual
Biomedical Conference for Minoritized Scientists. In addition, it is important
for STEMM departments to create and support local chapters of these or-
ganizations and create annual opportunities for cohorts of students to travel
to their conferences to build a network of peers and professionals from
similar identity groups. These in-person connections can be supplemented
with participation in virtual groups for minoritized scholars in STEMM (e.g.,
@LatinXinBME). Additional research is needed to examine the potential
impact of other high-status individuals, including sponsors and champions,
in other STEMM organizational environments beyond higher education.

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146 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

ORGANIZATION OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS

This concluding section offers recommendations aligned with the core
areas of empirical research discussed in the chapter. Specifically, Recommen-
dation 5-1 corresponds to signaling inclusion through numeric representation
and spatial design of local environments. Recommendation 5-2 corresponds
to building peer relationships and community for minoritized groups. Rec-
ommendation 5-3 corresponds to creating access to high-status relationships.
Recommendation 5-4 corresponds to additional strategies that are centered on
fostering connections, emphasizing communal values, affirming kindness cues,
and increasing an overall sense of belonging. The final, Recommendation 5-5,
is centered on continuing research experience curriculum-based initiatives.

RECOMMENDATION 5-1: Leaders and gatekeepers of science, technology,

engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) organizations, higher
education, and human resource offices can improve minoritized people’s
individual and interpersonal experiences in STEMM educational and pro-
fessional environments through the following practices:
1. Improve numerical diversity through the admission, hire, and in-
clusion of minoritized individuals at all levels of an organization:
a. Establish information systems across institutions using com-
mon metrics for comparison purposes to collect data, track
success, and identify areas of numeric disparities. Results
should be transparent, up-to-date, and accurate.
b. Hire more minoritized individuals, especially in positions
where minoritized role models are often missing (e.g., leader-
ship, mentorship), with the aim of building a critical mass.
c. Determine whether the institutional diversity statement re-
flects the reality of the institutional environment, and di-
rectly address discrepancies.
d. Adapt curriculum, physical environment, media stories, and
other content to incorporate more examples of minoritized
role models.

RECOMMENDATION 5-2: Leaders and gatekeepers of science, technol-

ogy, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) organizations,
higher education, and human resource offices can improve minoritized
people’s individual and interpersonal experiences in STEMM educational
and professional environments through the following practices:
1. Create and provide continued investment in evidence-based pro-
grams that connect minoritized individuals to ingroup peers,
institutional resources, and professional networks. These invest-
ments require significant expertise in their designs and execution,

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MINORITIZED INDIVIDUALS IN STEMM 147

and they may not yield immediate results; however, they can
increase a sense of welcome and belonging through the ability
to connect with individuals from similar racial and ethnic back-
grounds. Types of programs may include the following types of
resources:
a. Summer bridge programs.
b. Living-learning communities.
c. Peer and near-peer mentorship programs.
d. Actively work to form relationships with national-level af-
finity societies (e.g., SACNAS, NSBE, AISES), create local
chapters, and provide opportunities for minoritized indi-
viduals to connect with them.

RECOMMENDATION 5-3: Leaders and gatekeepers of science, technol-

ogy, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) organizations,
higher education, and human resource offices can improve minoritized
people’s individual and interpersonal experiences in STEMM educational
and professional environments through the following practices:
1. Create and provide continued investment in programs that fa-
cilitate working relationships between minoritized individuals to
high-status professionals:
a. Create and invest in mentorship programs, while also hiring
more minoritized faculty.
b. Conduct additional research examining the roles of other
high-status individuals such as champions and sponsors on
fostering STEMM careers for minoritized individuals.

RECOMMENDATION 5-4: Leaders and gatekeepers of science, technol-

ogy, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) organizations,
higher education, and human resource offices can improve minoritized
people’s individual and interpersonal experiences in STEMM educational
and professional environments through the following practices:
1. Develop interpersonal environments and institutional norms that
promote inclusion, dignity, belonging, and affirmations of kindness:
a. Actively recognize minoritized individuals’ contributions to
STEMM across multiple mediums such as portraits, media
stories, awards.
b. De-center White professional norms in culture, dress, and
appearance.
c. Conduct additional research examining which features of the
physical environment are most likely to promote sustainable
antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEMM.

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148 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

d. 
Emphasize and recognize the importance of communal
values in STEMM work.
e. 
Redesign STEMM curriculum to incorporate Indigenous
ways of knowing, and actively involve Indigenous communi-
ties in the development of this process.
f. Create cultural norms that communicate the strengths and
struggles of minoritized groups.
g. Provide access to culturally responsive mental health provid-
ers or resources with experience in addressing racial stress,
trauma, and aggressions for minoritized individuals who
have experienced distress and would like to pursue these
options.
h. Conduct bi-annual “cultural audits” to determine if the in-
stitution is fostering an environment of inclusion.

RECOMMENDATION 5-5: Leaders and gatekeepers of science, technol-

ogy, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) organizations,
higher education, and human resource offices can improve minoritized
people’s individual and interpersonal experiences in STEMM educational
and professional environments through the following practices:
1. Use evidence-based design and implementation practices to build
curriculum initiatives that increase access to discovery, including,
for example, course-based research experiences.

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The Gatekeepers of STEMM:

How Individual Bias and Inequality
Persist and How STEMM
Professionals Can Help

The previous chapter focused on minoritized individuals who aspire

to be in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine
(STEMM). It included data examining experiences of racism, consequences
of racism, and how minoritized individuals may respond to racism. It also
covered strategies on how to improve minoritized individuals’ experiences
in STEMM. The current chapter builds on this work by continuing to
focus on individual and interpersonal bias but flipping the attention from
the perspective of minoritized individuals to what the committee refers to
as the gatekeepers of STEMM. There is a substantial body of research in
each of these areas, and this chapter can stand alone from the previous one.
However, Chapters 5 and 6 are meant to be read and understood together
as they are not mutually exclusive phenomena, but rather two sides of the
same coin. Like the previous chapter, the current chapter addresses the
charge in the statement of task on reviewing the research and evidence on
the ways in which racism at the individual level impedes STEMM careers
for minoritized individuals. Here, the committee also addresses the charge
to identify methods of improving recruitment, retention, and advancement.
This chapter comprises three sections, beginning with a definition of
who the gatekeepers are in STEMM. The second section describes different
types of racial bias gatekeepers exhibit and discusses the unique function
of each type. The third section describes several social motives gatekeep-
ers have and how larger demographic shifts in the nation can inform
individual-level decisions of gatekeepers.
Overall, this chapter shows that gatekeepers possess power and can
determine who is and who is not included in STEMM fields. The chapter

165

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166 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

centers on the research, which describes that most often in STEMM, non-
Hispanic White males occupy the gatekeeper role, and that these individuals
define the skills, identities, and values necessary for minoritized individuals
to persist in STEMM. Furthermore, as discussed in detail below, gatekeepers
can perpetuate racism at the individual and interpersonal levels. Racial bias
is not only more automatic, but also more ambivalent and ambiguous than
most people think, which means that individuals, including gatekeepers,
cannot monitor their own bias and will unwittingly perpetuate it. Finally,
gatekeepers hold social motives that keep the White status quo of gatekeeping
intact. These factors are at odds with promoting antiracism, diversity, equity,
and inclusion in STEMM and make gatekeepers unlikely to be change agents.
Given these factors, fully explored below, STEMM professionals who want
to help advance antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEMM should
seek to develop accountability structures at the level of the organization to
help identify potential patterns of racial bias among gatekeepers.
The literature on individual and interpersonal racism covered in this
chapter focuses largely on White-on-Black racism. Clearly, racism targets
Latine, Indigenous, and Asian individuals as well, but in comparison, these
groups have not been studied as much. Therefore, as noted in the beginning
of this report, the committee urges creating similar reports on the distinctive
forms of racism where sufficient research exists. In addition, the committee
urges that more research be conducted on the experiences of each racial and
ethnic group, including additional research on understanding the impact of
those experiences in STEMM.
The committee urges this for several reasons. First, each of these groups
has a distinct history and a distinct set of experiences with White gatekeep-
ers, and each group faces its own unique set of stereotypes, prejudices, and
discriminatory behaviors. Thus, forms of racism can differ across groups
(Fiske, 1998). For instance, Latine immigrants have varied origins, but
White discrimination targets them in a categorical way, almost as much
as Black individuals (e.g., Fernández et al., 2021). Latine individuals are
often viewed as foreign, criminal, and low-skilled (Harris et al., 2020),
hardly conducive to STEMM recruitment. White individuals tend to view
Native Americans through varied lenses also: the noble, wise, nature-loving
elder Indian stereotype versus the ignoble, disreputable alcoholic stereotype
(Burkeley et al., 2017); the former stereotype touches on ways of knowing.
Other dimensions of racism find White, anti-Asian bias as judging Asians
more competent than White people but less socially skilled, so less suited
to leadership positions (Lin et al., 2005). In this chapter, the committee
does not presume to directly compare experiences across groups. Rather,
the committee’s intention is to address some general principles of gatekeep-
ers that tend to cut across their aggregate reactions to various minoritized
individuals.

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THE GATEKEEPERS OF STEMM 167

DEFINING AND EXAMINING GATEKEEPERS

The following section begins by defining gatekeepers and providing
several examples of which individuals in STEMM can occupy the role of
gatekeeper. This discussion demonstrates how power is central to defining
and identifying gatekeepers and how gatekeepers’ decisions can directly
shape antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion outcomes in STEMM
environments. Subsequently, the chapter reviews the literature examin-
ing gatekeepers through the lens of race and ethnicity and demonstrates
that in STEMM contexts, like many other contexts in American society,
credentialed non-Hispanic White men are most likely to occupy the role
of gatekeepers.

Defining Gatekeepers
The term gatekeeper is defined simply as any individual who possesses
power in a given STEMM context or situation, where power includes the
control over valued outcomes and resources (DiTomaso et al., 2007; Torelli
et al., 2020; Yu and Zhao, 2019). Gatekeepers in STEMM can exert their
power across a range of everyday behaviors. For example, they can define
boundaries, decide who does or does not get tenure, decide who should be
hired, decide who gets recognition and praise, and direct the flow of and
use of resources. Individuals such as managers, supervisors, admissions
officers, principal investigators, heads of laboratories and research groups,
deans, university presidents, and chief executive officers represent some of
the most common gatekeepers in STEMM.
In the context of STEMM, gatekeepers can exert their individual power
as a single actor (e.g., a boss promoting an employee) or as an actor within
a larger group of other gatekeepers (e.g., a committee). Understanding
gatekeepers as a source of power and influence has important implications
for antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion-related outcomes in STEMM
environments. They can directly shape minoritized individuals’ ability to ac-
cess, be included, and thrive in STEMM, as they define the skills, identities,
and values necessary for minoritized individuals to persist (Estrada et al.,
2011). Therefore, gatekeepers are the central focus of this chapter.
Even though power and status are often correlated, status is not a nec-
essary feature of the gatekeeper role. Status is defined broadly as the social
prestige that comes with an individual’s position within a group (DiTomaso
et al., 2007; Torelli et al., 2020; Yu and Zhao, 2019). For example, a
graduate student in physics may be tasked with directly informing who is
admitted to a Ph.D. program. While the graduate student does not neces-
sarily possess status in an academic STEMM context, in this situation they
do possess power to inform admissions. Therefore, individuals who do not

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168 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

always have status but possess power on a more situational basis can also
occupy the role of gatekeeper.
Conversely, some individuals possess both power and status, and their
gatekeeping role may persist over time and incorporate power over deci-
sions that have large-scale or organizational-level impact. For example, a
university president whose term spans several years will likely make deci-
sions that affect the entire student body.

White Gatekeepers in STEMM

Chapter 2 covers an extensive history of how a racial hierarchy was
created and reinforced in the United States to systematically advantage
White individuals (structural racism), and Chapter 3 provides detailed fig-
ures on racial disparities in STEMM contexts. The section below is meant
to complement these chapters by providing additional analysis of White
advantage in STEMM from the perspective of the psychological literature
at the individual and interpersonal levels (gatekeepers).
Due to differences in structural power and status, some groups oc-
cupy the gatekeeper role in STEMM more often than others. A century
of psychological research shows that in the United States, specific salient
characteristics—including being White, male, English-speaking, middle-
aged, and credentialed—individually and together confer higher power and
status, and with them, respect, and influence. Thus, research shows that
non-Hispanic, White, male, credentialed individuals, as the racial group
with higher power and status, are the most frequent gatekeepers in STEMM
and elsewhere (for reviews, see Bobo and Charles, 2009; Fiske, 1998, 2010;
Richeson, in press). Though not all gatekeepers are White and not all White
individuals are gatekeepers, the two are correlated.
Some areas within STEMM, such as anthropology, sociology, geoscience,
biology, and psychology, are more diverse than others, including engineering,
chemistry, math, physics, economics, computer science, and political science
(Langbert, 2018). However, as a whole, STEMM has a particular lack of di-
versity compared with other fields (see Chapter 3 on the recent demographic
data of STEMM). For example, 80 percent of university and college faculty
are White, but in STEM, 91 percent are White and 96 percent are White at
more selective schools (Li and Koedel, 2017; Nelson et al., 2010).
While power and status are disproportionally located within this group,
there is research demonstrating that many White individuals express dis-
comfort identifying as White because of the association with White su-
premacy (Grzanka et al., 2019; Thomann and Suyemoto, 2018). However,
ignoring one’s race does not make its privileges, power, and status vanish
(Helms, 1990). Salient characteristics convey status without the individual
choosing to, so certain immediately apparent features anchor interpersonal

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THE GATEKEEPERS OF STEMM 169

interactions in any human’s situation, including STEMM environments

(Berger et al., 1972; Carter et al., 2019; Ridgeway, 2019). Whether or not
it is acknowledged, in the West generally and the United States specifically,
White individuals carry higher status in countless ways (Fiske, 2010). For
example, “White” is the default assumption for citizens (Devos and Banaji,
2005), just as “male” is the default for “scientist” (Cheryan and Markus,
2020). The linguistic standard dialect comes from White speech (Labov,
1972), and research has found that White individuals widely favor other
White individuals and have anti-non-White prejudices (Charlesworth and
Banaji, 2019; Dovidio and Gaertner, 2010).
Importantly, from this structural position of power follows the risk of
enacting racism (also sexism, heterosexism, etc.; Fiske, 1993). In U.S. soci-
ety, White individuals have largely controlled social constructions of race
and have historically defined it as essential, even biological. Furthermore,
to maintain these beliefs, they tend to favor more neighborhood segregation
and limit discretionary contact (e.g., Charles, 2000). Most White individu-
als are not routinely interdependent with (i.e., on teams with) minoritized
individuals. As other chapters elaborate, these factors underlie structural
racism (see Chapters 2 and 3).
These practices may find their way into STEMM contexts, and rac-
ism may also be enacted at the individual and interpersonal levels via
gatekeepers. For example, White gatekeepers may frame local cultural “fit”
in terms such as “requires brilliance” or “innate/fixed talent” that alien-
ate, discourage, and undermine minoritized individuals who aspire to that
career (Chestnut et al., 2018; Muradoglu et al., 2022; Storage et al., 2016).
On the other hand, the use of other, more welcoming terms such as “learn-
able skills” and “can grow” implies support, encouragement, and growth
(Burnette et al., 2020). Even though this welcoming interpersonal approach
is possible, the later sections in this chapter will show that on average,
White individuals hold beliefs that maintain their power and privilege,
scoring higher on social dominance, conservatism, and system justification.
Thus, gatekeepers tend to favor power, status, homogeneity, similarity, and
familiarity. That is, on average White individuals are prone to keeping their
surroundings White (Charles, 2000). The next section examines in detail
how gatekeepers manifest and perpetuate racism at the individual.

EXAMINING RACISM PERPETUATED BY GATEKEEPERS

Gatekeepers (as well as other individuals) possess three kinds of psy-
chological bias: cognitive stereotyping, emotional prejudice, and behavioral
discrimination, all of which perpetuate racism at an individual level and
undermine antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion. Each of these is ex-
plained below. Following that, the section explores several different clusters

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170 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

by which racism can take form, including old-fashioned or blatant racism;

more modern or aversive racism; and cognitive biases that can perpetuate
racism but occur automatically.

Stereotypes, Prejudice, and Discrimination

Cognitive stereotyping, emotional prejudice, and behavioral discrimi-
nation are forms of psychological bias that tend to correlate but operate
differentially (Bodenhausen et al., in press). Additionally, all three forms
of bias tend to target members of an outgroup (e.g., another racial group
or “others”) as a category, more than the individuals’ own ingroup, whom
they tend to individuate or personalize.
Stereotyping is where an individual overgeneralizes a set of character-
istics, such as being untrustworthy, unfriendly, incompetent, pushy, unat-
tractive, or contagious, to outgroup members as a whole (Nicolas et al.,
2021). This cognitive bias occurs as the result of social categorization,
where individuals put people into different groups based on perceived simi-
larity (see Chapter 5 for more on social categorization and its relation to
stereotyping; Leonardelli and Toh, 2015). This categorization occurs for all
people across time in order to quickly determine which social environments
are safe and which are threatening.
Prejudice is an evaluative bias, where individuals attach affective values
to groups that might range from simple negative-positive attitudes to com-
plex emotions, such as envy, resentment, scorn, pity, and fear (Cottrell and
Neuberg, 2005; Fiske et al., 2002; Smith et al., 2007). Positive prejudices
include admiration and pride (Cuddy et al., 2007). Emotional prejudices
predict discriminatory behavior twice as well as cognitive stereotypes do
(Talaska et al., 2008).
Discrimination is behaving distinctly toward an outgroup member,
based on stereotypic assumptions or emotional prejudices. Discrimination
includes both active harm (attack) and passive harm (neglect), as well as
active help (protect) and passive help (tolerate; Cuddy et al., 2007). As
other chapters show, discrimination occurs in everyday interactions, includ-
ing within STEMM organizations. For example, common discriminatory
behaviors include not being hired or promoted, qualifications judged as
supposedly insufficient, being unfairly fired, unfairly denied services, and
being unfairly stopped, searched, and treated by the police (Williams et al.,
1997, 2008).

Explicit Bias, Old-fashioned Racism, and Dehumanization

White Americans, as the dominant racial group and most frequent gate-
keepers in STEMM, can sometimes be explicitly biased (Bobo and Charles,

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THE GATEKEEPERS OF STEMM 171

2009; Fiske, 1998, 2010; Richeson, in press). Explicit bias is also referred
to as overt or “old-fashioned” racism. Overt racism, forged in years of
slavery and oppression, inaccurately views Black individuals as inferior to
White individuals, even as subhuman, dating back to pseudo-logic justify-
ing slavery (Oh, 2020).
No group of individuals are immune from expressing bias; even educa-
tors show some racial biases (Turetsky et al., 2021). However, over time,
overt or “old-fashioned” expressions of bias have been on the decline.
Multiple factors, such as systemic-level shifts in policies (see Chapter 2)
have, in part, helped reduce the occurrence of blatant bias, even at the
individual level. Examples of this trend include integrated housing (Jahoda
and West, 1951) and integrated neighborhoods leading to less racial bias
(Oliver and Wong, 2003). Systemic change also includes implementation
of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. § 2000e - 2000e17),
which prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of a number of
protected “classes,” including race (National Archives, n.d.; U.S. Code,
n.d.). Research demonstrates that racial attitudes changed significantly
for most White Americans over the 20th century, in part because of these
systemic-level policy changes (Schuman et al., 1985; Smelser et al., 2001).
Although overt biases have on average become less common as mea-
sured on surveys, they have not become extinct. A hardcore resistant
10–20 percent of the population (depending on the measure; see Figure 6-1;
National Research Council, 2001), almost all White, still express overt
biases by openly endorsing segregation, White supremacy, and Black infe-
riority. Research focused on bias toward Black Americans has shown that
forms of overt bias include, expressed outward hostility and degradation,
beliefs that minoritized individuals are unintelligent and criminal, a general
overall negative “feeling thermometer” about Black individuals, and sup-
port for formal forms of racial discrimination (Henry and Sears, 2002). De-
mographic groups scoring high on these scales are often White individuals,
who dominate gatekeeper roles, and less educated people whose own status
is precarious, except for their perceived White superiority (e.g., Henry and
Sears, 2002). Research also shows that Black individuals on average still ex-
perience and perceive more discrimination than White individuals do (Earle
and Hodson, 2020). In fact, White individuals on average are more likely to
deny Black individual’s reports of discrimination. Instead, White individuals
on average view their own group as losing ground, as Black individuals gain
civil rights. Conversely, research demonstrates Black individuals less often
view civil rights as a zero-sum game over time (Peacock and Biernat, 2021).
Besides endorsing salient stereotypes of being criminal, lazy, and unintel-
ligent, extreme racists have been found to rate Black individuals as being less
than human (Kteily et al., 2015). Using the graphic of silhouettes showing the
“Ascent of Man (sic)” from quadrupedal apes to our modern upright form,

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172 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

FIGURE 6-1 Trends in White’s attitudes about racial intermarriage. Oppose Laws:
Do you think there should be laws against marriages between Blacks and Whites?
Favor Intermarriage: Do you approve or disapprove of marriage between Whites
and Non-Whites? (Adapted from Shuman et al., 1997).
SOURCE: National Research Council, 2001.

42 percent of a representative sample of Americans rate African Americans

as being less than fully human (Jardina and Piston, 2022). Although most
participants (57%) rated African Americans and White individuals the same,
the study demonstrated that African Americans were not always perceived as
fully human by everyone as a result of the variation in this perception among
participants. Furthermore, these ratings predict consequential behavior, such
as presidential voting. In addition, these ratings correlate with denying that
Black people as a group have typically human attributes, such as being warm
and good-natured (Haslam and Loughnan, 2014). Studies have demonstrated
that overt, subhuman racist epithets and metaphors that liken Black individu-
als to primates are also found in police dispatch tapes and newspaper crime
reports (Goff et al., 2008), and early visual processing links them to criminality
(Eberhardt et al., 2004).
Most White individual do not subscribe to these overtly racist and
inaccurate views, but there are certain attributes that are predictive of such
biases. One such difference is by political party; there is data demonstrating
that White Republicans believe that anti-White discrimination outweighs
anti-Black discrimination (Earle and Hodson, 2020; Peacock and Biernat,
2021). Another difference is by personality; certain personalities among
White individuals are predictive of tendencies toward exhibiting biases
more than others. For example, a cluster of three conceptually related

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THE GATEKEEPERS OF STEMM 173

traits that are usually self-serving and are socially adverse—narcissism,

Machiavellianism, and psychopathy (Furnham et al., 2013; Paulhus and
Williams, 2002)—significantly correlate with increased outgroup prejudice
(Hodson et al., 2009; Koehn et al., 2019), racism, (Jonason et al., 2020),
and social dominance orientation, which is a tendency toward maintaining
social inequalities (Ho et al., 2015; Hodson et al., 2009).
Narcissism, a strong or inflated sense of the self and entitlement, also deval-
ues others and lacks empathy (Rauthmann and Kolar, 2012). Machiavellianism
focuses on deceit and exploiting others, often manipulatively, working in logical
yet immoral ways to gain power, while psychopathy entails a substantial lack
of empathy and regard for others, often accompanied by antisocial behavior,
and irresponsibility (Hodson et al., 2009). While there is as yet no research
linking these personality types to STEMM settings, there is no reason to expect
individuals with these personality types to be absent from such settings (Logan
et al., 2019). That said, although certain personalities may be more inclined to
hold racist prejudices and to discriminate overtly, these explicit biases can be
and are held by others as well.
Despite the variability in White individuals’ expressions of racial bi-
ases, overt bias continues to be the rarest form. As the next section will
show, more indirect or covert forms of racism are even more common and
pervasive, including in academic environments, among White individuals
despite their better intentions. This makes covert biases difficult to control.

Aversive, Symbolic, and Modern Racism

Because most well-socialized individuals believe old-fashioned, overt
racism to be unacceptable, verbalized racial attitudes became less direct, en-
abling “modern” racism to often fly under the radar (Dovidio and Gaertner,
1986). Various forms of less obvious contemporary racism uphold current
systems of racial inequality (Gaertner and Dovidio, 1986; McConahay,
1986; Sears et al., 2000). Aversive racism is where individuals who hold and
may express outwardly egalitarian attitudes nevertheless have an aversion
to members of their outgroups (e.g., White individuals having an aversion
to Black individuals, Indigenous individuals, Latine individuals). Aversive
racism describes a subtler racism than old-fashioned racism that is not
recognized by White individuals as inappropriate, based on contemporary
standards, but this aversion shows they still harbor negatively prejudiced
attitudes (Dovidio and Gaertner, 2004). These prejudices leak out in non-
verbal responses, described below.
Symbolic racism, a related form of modern racism, occurs when mem-
bers of the dominant racial group hold what seem like cohesive beliefs, but
their beliefs are actually informed by underlying bias. Empirically, their
attitudes stem from anti-Black sentiment such as Black individuals are

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174 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

intrinsically lacking, being lazy, and too demanding; that they are no longer
victims of discrimination; and that Black individuals are allegedly getting
more than they deserve (Henry and Sears, 2002). As such, individuals who
are likely to endorse symbolic racism, tend to disfavor race-based policy
related to minoritized racial groups (e.g., affirmative action; Brandt and
Reyna, 2012). These modern forms of racism are generally not recognized
as discriminatory and do not necessarily violate the law, but may still rein-
force racial inequalities.
Two related forms of indirectly racist behaviors include microaggres-
sions and incivility (Andersson and Pearson, 1999; Sue, 2010; Torino et al.,
2019). Incivility is defined as low-intensity types of conduct that may not
be obvious to others in their intent to harm, unlike overt discrimination
(Cortina et al., 2013; Kabat-Farr et al., 2020). While microaggressions can
be similar to incivilities, some scholars have noted that microaggressions
are usually targeted toward groups that face marginalization (Patterson,
2017). Some examples of these behaviors may include disrespectful verbal
behaviors, such as premature use of a person’s first name, and distant non-
verbal behaviors, such as not making eye contact and being distracted.
At work, this may include behaviors such as exclusion (Martin and Hine,
2005). Microaggressions and incivilities appear in STEMM contexts, with
some evidence suggesting they can be targeted against minoritized individu-
als; research has looked specifically at the experiences of Latine engineering
students (Smith et al., 2022) and minoritized students in STEMM programs
in colleges (Dortch and Patel, 2017; Lee et al., 2020; Miles et al., 2020).
A study of college students found that microaggressions and incivilities
may not occur as isolated incidents, but are ingrained within the larger
campus culture, so minoritized individuals may frequently encounter them
from multiple sources on campus (Lee et al., 2020). Furthermore, these
experiences of microaggressions act as a major barrier because they reduce
minoritized individuals’ sense of belonging within STEMM contexts (Miles
et al., 2020; Smith et al., 2022).
To summarize, gatekeepers are likely to hold racial attitudes that are
covert, hidden from self and others, but still imply White superiority, sup-
port the status quo, and prefer racial hierarchy. These forms of bias are
pervasive. For example, across most occupations, hiring managers favor a
White over Black candidate (Bertrand and Mullainathan, 2004).

Unexamined Cognitive Bias: The Privilege of Not Thinking

Regardless of changing norms, individual racism has cognitive under-
pinnings that remain unchanged. Racial cognitive bias is thus harder to
detect than overt racism. The following research will show that ordinary
individual racial bias is not only more automatic, but also more ambivalent

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THE GATEKEEPERS OF STEMM 175

and ambiguous than most people think—and often too much so for gate-
keepers to notice at all. Because of their position as holders of dispropor-
tionate power, gatekeepers have the privilege of not thinking about their
own stereotyping, making them vulnerable to doing more of it (Fiske,
1993). This means that individuals cannot easily monitor their own bias,
and they will unwittingly perpetuate it. To counter racism in STEMM, sys-
temic accountability at the organizational level will be essential.

Automatic Category Detection and Implicit Associations

The following research will show that ordinary individual racial bias is
more automatic than most people think. As discussed in Chapter 5, social
categorization is the process by which people categorize others into groups
based on perceived similarities (Allport, 1954; Bodenhausen et al., in press),
and research finds that the racial categorization effect is robust (Kubota and
Ito, 2017; Pietraszewski, 2018).
As social beings, people categorize each other automatically by dimen-
sions that are universal (gender, age) and those salient in a given culture
(in the United States, race/ethnicity; Allport, 1954; Bodenhausen et al., in
press). With defined racial categories come culturally associated stereotypes
and prejudices. Even White introductory psychology students who do not
endorse stereotypes and prejudices explicitly have been found to still carry
those associations from the environment (Devine, 1989). For these individu-
als, their automatic racist associations will contrast with their more con-
trolled, deliberate egalitarian responses. For those who explicitly endorse
the stereotypes and prejudices, the two responses are the same.
Relatively automatic and controlled responses emerge in implicit biases
versus explicit biases. Explicit bias includes the already-discussed overt
expressions of prejudice and explicit endorsement of stereotypes. On the
other hand, implicit bias refers to stereotypic beliefs and negative evalu-
ations, about social groups that pop into mind quickly, often with little
awareness or intention (Blair et al., 2015; Greenwald and Banaji, 1995).
Implicit attitudes (prejudice) and beliefs (stereotypes) are conceptualized as
strong mental associations connecting social groups with positive or nega-
tive evaluations in the case of implicit prejudice, or with specific attributes
(brilliant vs. mediocre), in the case of implicit stereotypes. The stronger the
mental association, the faster they get activated in a given situation.
The Implicit Association Test (IAT) measures implicit biases (stereo-
types and prejudices) that would otherwise not be captured on standard
or more explicit psychological measures. The IAT is a categorization test
that measures the strengths of associations between a concept (such as a
racial group; e.g., “Black” and “White”) and a series of attributes (e.g.,
“good” and “bad”). For example, participants taking the IAT may be

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176 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

asked to categorize on the same side of the screen, one specific racial group
(White) with one specific set of attributes (good), and on the other side a
different racial group (Black) and a different set of attributes (bad). Then
they do the opposite pairings (e.g., pairing Black and “good”). The faster
they pair the ingroup/good and outgroup/bad than the reverse, the more
implicit bias they are showing (Fazio and Olson, 2003; Greenwald et al.,
1998). Research using a variety of racial outgroups, including Latines
(Pérez, 2010) and probably Native Americans (Poitra and Norder, 2019),
show similar patterns. White individuals, as the historical majority, are
seen as “owning” the nation to the degree that “White” is more rapidly
paired with “American” than are other racial and ethnic groups (Devos
and Anderson, 2019).
Decades of research using the IAT have demonstrated a substantial prev-
alence of implicit bias against Black individuals, such that White individuals
on average associate their own group labels (White, European-American)
with positive attributes and the outgroup (Black, African Americans) with
negative attributes (Banaji et al., 2021; Kurdi et al., 2019). The IAT web-
site attracts millions of participants over the age 18, so results generalize
to populations besides students, a common pool of research participants.1
In specific studies, participants include STEMM professionals who act as
gatekeepers and who commonly show implicit bias against minoritized
groups (Jost et al., 2009). Implicit bias correlates with social exclusion by
race (Rudman and Ashmore, 2007), as well as employment decisions for a
variety of protected groups, including race and ethnicity (Jost et al., 2009).
In a meta-analysis of 217 studies, implicit associations reliably predicted
intergroup behavior (Kurdi and Fiske, 2019).
Implicit bias is relatively automatic and unintentional but is still in-
formed by intergroup motivation and context such as affiliation, where so-
cial networks, both small and large, shape implicit racial attitudes. Motives
to affiliate with other people, to create a shared reality, can meaningfully in-
fluence the expression of automatic bias (Sinclair et al., 2005). For example,
White Americans express less implicit racial bias in the presence of Black
experimenters compared with White experimenters. For good or ill, these
social tuning effects operate through affiliation networks, leading people
to adopt the attitudes and perspectives of other network members (Jacoby-
Senghor et al., 2015). These processes may be implicated in the persistence
of societal racial disparities, despite reductions in individual levels of racial
bias. People working in racially homogenous STEMM departments and
organizations may be particularly susceptible to perpetuating racial biases,
given they are not being challenged to question their existing worldviews.

1 https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/takeatest.html

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THE GATEKEEPERS OF STEMM 177

Increased numeric diversity may be essential to interrupting existing social

cognitive processes for White individuals.
Reviewing studies of real-world implicit bias in millions of online
participants reveals its link to systemic discrimination in particular re-
gions (Charlesworth and Banaji, in press). For example, anti-Black/
pro-White IAT scores in a county’s teachers predicted racial gaps in chil-
dren’s achievement tests and racial disparities in school discipline (Chin
et al., 2020; Riddle and Sinclair, 2019). Regional implicit racial bias has
also been found to be predictive of upward mobility from one generation
to the next. Specifically, among low-poverty neighborhoods, a significant
factor that was predictive of smaller Black-White intergenerational gaps
included Black men growing up in tracts that have less racial bias among
White individuals (Chetty et al., 2020). The point here is that implicit
biases predict discriminatory behavior, whether between individuals or
“in the air,” i.e., systemic.
Both implicit and explicit biases are measurably decreasing, thanks to
the millennial generation. In the nearly two million online respondents, race
and skin-tone implicit biases have markedly improved over the past decade,
faster than age and disability biases, but not as fast as sexuality biases (see
Figure 6-2; Charlesworth and Banaji, 2019). The same holds for explicit
biases (see Figure 6-2). These trends match nationally representative survey
samples, as noted earlier. But individual change does not immediately or au-
tomatically change systemic factors. Even without individual-to-individual
bias, structural disparities (housing segregation, wealth gaps, underfunded
schools, over-policing—and more) persist (see Chapter 2 for a fuller history
of structural racism in the United States). Still, automatic biases complicate
the issue because individuals may perpetuate biases without even knowing
they are carriers of contagion (Charlesworth and Banaji, in press), and this
is true for STEMM educators and professionals.

Ambivalent, Plausibly Deniable Biases

Research shows that ordinary individual racial bias is more ambivalent
than most people think. Most forms of bias have both positive and nega-
tive components, allowing individuals to claim and to feel unbiased. For
example, a person might claim that Black individuals cannot do science,
but they can do music and sports; this same individual can then claim to
respect Black people, just not in STEMM. The two key dimensions of
stereotypes enable this (Abele et al., 2021; Fiske et al., 2002). One dimen-
sion is the group’s perceived competence and status in society. Americans
report in representative sample surveys (Cuddy et al., 2007) that our society
views some racial and ethnic groups as more capable (Asians, Whites, Jews,
British, Germans) than others (Italians, Turks, immigrants from Africa or

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178

FIGURE 6-2 Change and predicted change in implicit and explicit attitudes from 2007
to 2020: observed monthly weighted averages (2007–2016) of implicit association test
(IAT) D scores (implicit attitudes; top two rows) and explicit-preference scores (explicit
attitudes; bottom two rows), as well as forecasts of the autoregressive-integrated-moving-
average (ARIMA) model (2017–2020). Solid black lines indicate decomposed trends
of observed data (removing seasonality and noise), solid light-gray lines indicate the
weighted monthly means from observed data, dotted black lines within the light-gray ar-
eas indicate the means of the ARIMA forecasts, light-gray areas indicate 80 percent con-
fidence intervals (CIs), and dark-gray areas indicate 95% CIs of the ARIMA forecasts.
SOURCE: Charlesworth and Banaji, 2019.

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THE GATEKEEPERS OF STEMM 179

Latin America). The other dimension is warmth (trustworthy, friendly).

People believe that others like themselves are trustworthy.
Racial stereotypes about people viewed as Black depend on whom you
ask about whom and in what context. Elite student samples (Princeton,
from 1933 to 2003) report that Black Americans are stereotypically warm
but incompetent, suggesting a patronizing bias, or liking without respect-
ing (Bergsieker et al., 2012; Katz and Braly, 1933). If supported widely,
this would reflect on Black STEMM students’ experiences with peers and
colleagues. Perceived subtypes of Black people2 provide more differentiated
but still stereotypic images. Native Americans are also viewed in terms
of subtypes, including noble and ignoble, though the aggregate, overall
generic image might seem neutral (Burkley et al., 2017). Immigrants, too,
are subtyped into racialized groups: respected and liked Canadians and
Western Europeans; threatening Asian and Jewish competitors; contempt-
ible Mexican, Central American, and African migrants (note that “race”
dominates the subtyping patterns; Lee and Fiske, 2006).
These nuances are important to the experiences of STEMM trainees,
graduates, and professionals. To the extent a peer views a minoritized
peer ambivalently (e.g., as nice but dumb) this is a deniable prejudice
suggesting a condescending pity. Indeed, in online and laboratory studies,
well-meaning liberal White respondents talk down to Black peers, dumb-
ing down their vocabulary and topic choices (Dupree and Fiske, 2019).
High-status people who want to “get-along” do the same competence
downshift when interacting with a lower-status person (Swencionis and
Fiske, 2016). If these results characterize STEMM interactions, it is pos-
sible that White individuals are unintentionally patronizing their Black
colleagues, while feeling friendly in the attempt. Ambivalence is hard to
detect because on a superficial level it seems pleasant. Again, a cognitive
feature of individual racism makes individuals unaware or able to deny
their prejudices. The larger context can monitor them better than they
can monitor themselves.

2 More of a puzzle is an adult sample’s report that Black Americans are viewed neutrally

on warmth and competence, likely a deliberately careful response, given other measures of
racial attitudes and the sensitive nature of expressing opinions on racism (Kervyn et al.,
2015). Alternately, this may mask a combination of common subgroups that cancel out to
neutral: low-income people (race unspecified) are stereotypically neither competent nor warm
(representative sample; Cuddy et al., 2007). Black professionals are however stereotypically
competent, and only moderately warm (nationally representative sample; Cuddy et al., 2007).
Combining across low and high status would add up to neutral. Consistent with the idea that
race and class combine to produce most non-Black adults’ stereotypes of Black people because
of subgroups, a sample of online Black adults rated Black subgroups much as Black students
did, with competence largely a function of social class (Fiske et al., 2009).

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180 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

Ambiguous Attributions Maintain Flexibility

The following research summarized here show that ordinary individual
racial bias is more ambiguous than most people think. When gatekeepers
are ambiguous about the reasons behind their decisions, they gain flex-
ibility; that is, they can later plausibly deny that the choice was racist. To
illustrate this, the committee has gathered examples that reveal this process
of ambiguous attributions about feedback, performance, and discomfort.
For example, was that person treated in a certain way because of their race
or because of a bad interview? The implication of this ambiguity is that
organizational-level accountability must rely on examining the gatekeeper’s
aggregate patterns and choices, not on any single choice that may have
ambiguous origins.
Minoritized individuals can experience attributional ambiguity (dis-
cussed in Chapter 5): Is this negative feedback a result of my performance
or my race? (Major and O’Brien, 2003). Gatekeepers must also attribute
minoritized individuals’ outcomes to either race or individual factors. How
they introduce a new staff member, in terms of causal attributions, indicates
the opposing views that can make or break a career: “This is Henry, hired
under our new diversity plan” versus “This is Henry, whose excellence for
this job made him our top choice.” Attributions to category, as in affirma-
tive action, are stigmatizing (Heilman et al., 1992), but subtle and indirect.
When the reason for the evaluator’s decision is ambiguous (either target’s
individual factors or target’s category, such as race), it maintains flexibility
and thus, deniability. Being accountable for a decision assumes that observ-
ers can pin it down.
Another attributional dilemma comes from distinguishing whether a
gatekeeper’s decision mainly favored the ingroup or disfavored the out-
group (Tajfel and Turner, 1982). When White gatekeepers opt to choose
others similar to self, they are not necessarily displaying hostility to minori-
tized individuals, but perhaps comfort with other ingroup White individu-
als. In a zero-sum game, the outcome for the excluded minoritized person
is the same, but the cause differs. Responding to overt hostility, such as
not being chosen because of being a minoritized individual, differs from
responding to passive exclusion, such as not being chosen because the
gatekeeper favors White individuals. When managers describe choices as a
matter of fit (the ingroup “fits;” Heilman, 1983), they create attributional
ambiguity and plausible deniability.
When gatekeepers fail to put their response into words, they again
obscure the decision. Gatekeepers maintain flexibility by communicating
nonverbally, whether intentionally or not. In social interactions, nonverbal
distance cues, such as sitting farther away or not facing the other, signal the
gatekeeper’s lack of engagement, as well as an interaction not going well for

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THE GATEKEEPERS OF STEMM 181

the more engaged, lower status person; this signal affects the minoritized
person’s performance. For example, Black and White highschool students—
trained to behave according to the same script—interviewed with White
college students for a STEMM research assistant job (Fiske, 2010). White
interviewers talking to Black interviewees displayed nonverbal discomfort,
at a minimum, and possibly antipathy, given that they ended the interview
sooner, oriented away, and conveyed disfluencies. In a second study, White
interviewers were trained to display the same nonverbal cues directed to-
ward the White or Black applicants in the first study. White interviewees,
treated as if they were Black, performed worse and judged the interviewer
as less competent, compared with White interviewees treated as White
(Word et al., 1974).
Nonverbal behavior expresses gatekeepers’ racial category-based re-
sponses that are made outside of full consciousness or awareness. This has
self-fulfilling effects on minoritized individuals (Rosenthal and Jacobson,
1968). In general, cognitive racial expectations come across in spoken
words, while affective prejudices come across as nonverbal impressions
(Dovidio et al., 2002). Gatekeepers are not called to account for their
nonverbal behavior because the signal is often too ambiguous or noisy in
any given instance.
While the previous chapter covered the psychological impacts of ex-
periencing racism from the perspective of the minoritized individual, the
committee was not able to incorporate a similar section in the current
chapter—namely, the psychological impacts of perpetuating racism from
the perspective of the gatekeeper in STEMM. This is a result of the dearth
of research in this area; more is clearly needed.
A critic might argue, specifically with regard to STEMM gatekeepers
and bias, that STEMM professionals are trained to observe, analyze, and
interpret objectively, so they would not be vulnerable to errors and biases
in judging others. Unfortunately, graduate training does not guarantee
accuracy on the types of reasoning implicated in judging other people:
statistics, confounds, or logic (Lehman et al., 1988). No research at this
time demonstrates that STEMM gatekeepers are immune from perpetrating
racial bias. The perpetual minoritization of Black, Indigenous, and Latine
students, faculty, professionals implies that something is amiss.

GATEKEEPERS’ SOCIAL MOTIVES TO

PRESERVE THE STATUS QUO
This section reviews literature demonstrating that gatekeepers tend to
possess several social motives that enable the preservation the status quo
of gatekeeping (i.e., that most gatekeepers tend to be White). The role of

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182 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

gatekeeper selects for people with status-quo-perpetuating attitudes and

encourages those attitudes because they preserve the position’s advantages.
The same is true for the gatekeeper’s motives, which are self-serving be-
cause they can be. Gatekeepers see opportunities and rewards everywhere
(Keltner et al., 2003). Gatekeepers can attend to their goals because they
are not contingent or as dependent on other people (Guinote, 2017). Gate-
keepers are prone to stereotyping outgroup others because powerholders
by definition do not depend on their subordinates (Fiske, 1993). Likewise,
White individuals tend to endorse beliefs that favor their continuing power
and status (Fiske, 2010). All these self-serving tendencies appear in the core
social motives that drive gatekeepers. These are loosely grouped into the
following categories: (i) belonging; (ii) understanding and controlling, and
(iii) esteeming and trusting. Comprehending these motives can suggest how
to intervene in systemic structures that routinely advantage White individu-
als. Belonging works as the overarching social motive, while understanding
and controlling are considered the more motivated cognitions, and esteem-
ing and trusting are motivated affects. Each of these are discussed below.

Belonging as a Moral Credential

As discussed, minoritized individuals desire and often work toward a
sense of belonging in STEMM, but are usually denied (see Chapter 5). On
the other hand, it would seem that White gatekeepers automatically feel
they belong in STEMM contexts, given U.S. history and given that they
are most likely to occupy those positions. Thus, belonging for gatekeepers
is not necessarily a recognition of their competence and achievement, as
belonging would be to minoritized individuals (Dupree and Fiske, 2019;
Swencionis and Fiske, 2016). Furthermore, gatekeepers have power to de-
termine who belongs and who does not belong in STEMM.
Organizations make tradeoffs between instrumental (practical) and
moral (justice) reasons for policy, including policy pertaining to advanc-
ing diversity. Institutional justifications for antiracism, diversity, equity
and inclusion, if they focus on profit or benefits to White individuals, are
generally pleasing to White respondents (Starck et al., 2021), but they are
instrumental justifications and not justice oriented. For example, this senti-
ment may reflect the belief that “diversity helps increase profit.” For Black
respondents, the justification for belonging is often social justice, which
communicates shared morality. For example, this sentiment may include
the belief that “advancing diversity is the right thing to do.”
Instrumental justification correlates with academic settings that show
greater racial disparities. Instrumentality sends the message to minoritized
individuals that now they are welcome only because they are useful—
not because equitable belonging is the right way to treat another human.

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THE GATEKEEPERS OF STEMM 183

From the perspective of minoritized individuals, being useful for instru-

mental purposes, but not being part of the moral circle, is dehumanizing.
Gatekeepers generally seek to be accepted as a good and unprejudiced
person, and as such use diversity instrumentally and make belonging a
moral credential (Dupree and Fiske, 2019; Swencionis and Fiske, 2016).
For example, having chosen one minoritized individual for the shortlist
demonstrates, in the mind of the gatekeeper, a lack of prejudice, while hir-
ing a White person from the shortlist feels justified (Merritt et al., 2012;
Monin and Miller, 2001).

Understanding and Controlling Resources

Gatekeepers are more likely to understand the social world as full of
groups that will not change and that exist in dominance hierarchies. In that
regard, gatekeepers tend to favor power, status, homogeneity, similarity,
and familiarity, and altogether preserve the status quo, which they usually
control. Several cognitive belief systems support these biased understand-
ings, including essentialism, dominance, authoritarianism, system justifica-
tion, and a need for closure. All of these create obstacles for antiracism,
diversity, equity, and inclusion-related change, maintain White gatekeeper
control over resources, and make gatekeepers unlikely to be change agents.
Essentialism is the belief that specific social categories, such as racial
groups, are natural, and individuals who belong to specific social cat-
egories have essences, or underlying natures that are associated with that
category (Medin and Ortony, 1989). These essences that relate to category
membership are believed to be naturally occurring, inborn, and immutable
characteristics. Consequently, essentialist beliefs are associated with more
rigid and categorical thinking, and subsequently a greater stereotyping,
prejudice, racism, and greater support for boundary enhancing policies
(Keller, 2005; Mahalingam, 2003; Mandalaywala et al., 2018; Roberts
et al., 2017). This cognitive bias is analogous to endorsing the belief that
race is a biological and not a social construct (Schudson and Gelman,
2022). STEM faculty who view ability as fixed, for example, have bigger
racial disparities regarding student motivation and achievement (Canning
et al., 2019). More generally, a growth mindset, instead of a fixed mindset,
facilitates student engagement and performance (Muenks et al., 2019).
Social dominance orientation is another belief system that tends to
underpin support for the status quo. It is an individual-level difference in
the preference for group-based hierarchy and inequality, and individuals
who have higher levels of social dominance orientation tend to make deci-
sions and judgments that serve to protect the status quo (Ho et al., 2020;
Pratto et al., 1994). For example, this effect has been examined within
the racial categorization of multiracial individuals (Ho et al., 2013, 2017).

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184 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

One study found that White individuals who were strong endorsers of
social dominance orientation, as compared to those White individuals
who were not, were more likely to categorize a multiracial (Black-White)
individual as being Black as compared to White. This was especially true
when these White participants believed that their high status was threat-
ened. This pattern of categorization—exclusion from a higher status racial
group membership—is consistent with racial status boundaries that are
reinforced by excluding multiracial people from the White racial group
(Ho et al., 2013).
Greater endorsement of maintaining socially based inequalities is also
a significant predictor of policy preference. One study found that the
more that individuals held strong motivations to endorse hierarchy be-
tween groups, the less they perceive inequality between “higher status”
and “lower status” groups. Furthermore, perceiving less inequality was sig-
nificantly associated with rejecting egalitarian social policies (Kteily et al.,
2017). Individual differences in social dominance orientation therefore
predicts which STEMM gatekeepers will be open to leveling the playing
field and which will favor hierarchies.
Another example of a belief system that often endorses and maintains
the status quo is right-wing authoritarianism, which is a politically oriented
motivation to submit to authority, acting aggressively with the purpose
of supporting authority, and often displaying hostility toward outgroup
members (Altemeyer, 1998). Research has defined two primary facets of
right-wing authoritarianism that tend to drive behaviors. First, individuals
who score high in right-wing authoritarianism tend to perceive individuals
as being a part of either their ingroup or an outgroup. Furthermore, those
who are deemed to belong in the outgroup are perceived as threatening
authoritarianism values. Second, individuals who score high in right-wing
authoritarianism tend to perceive themselves as possessing a greater sense
of morals, and subsequently feel justified to behave in ways that uphold
systems and figures of authority (Whitley, 1999). Increased endorsement of
right-wing authoritarianism is associated with more negative attitudes and
more prejudice toward outgroup members (Duckitt et al., 2002; Sibley and
Duckitt, 2008).
Individuals with system justification beliefs tend to find society to be
generally fair, that most policies serve the greater good, and that people
generally get what they deserve. According to system justification theory
(Jost and Banaji, 1994; Jost et al., 2004), people vary in their motivation
to defend and uphold existing systems. That gatekeepers would be espe-
cially likely to favor stability is aligned with preserving the status quo, and
indeed advantaged groups’ system-justifying beliefs correlate with higher
self-esteem, well-being, and ingroup favoritism (Jost and Hunyady, 2003).
The opposite holds for disadvantaged groups whose system-justification

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THE GATEKEEPERS OF STEMM 185

beliefs correlate with lower self-esteem, lower well-being, and less ingroup
favoritism, as well as self-stereotyping. When even low-power groups sub-
scribe to system justification, it might not seem to serve their self-interest or
group interest, but apparently many low-power group members prioritize
predictability over their own interests, at least sometimes. Gatekeepers can
exploit this, because justifying the system entails endorsing positive stereo-
types about their own group. Indeed, system justification works better for
White individuals than for Black individuals (Rankin et al., 2009).
Need for closure relates to an individual’s preference (or a situation’s
demand) to arrive at an answer quickly rather than having persisting am-
biguity (Kruglanski, 1990; Kruglanski and Webster, 1996; Webster and
Kruglanski, 1994). As compared to individuals with a lower need for clo-
sure, individuals with a greater need for closure generally have a need to
arrive at a decision quickly, and they have a need to create and maintain
simple structures (Neuberg et al., 1997; Roets and van Hiel, 2007). As such,
these individuals may tend to be more rigid in their thinking and are likely to
endorse essentialist categorizations, rely on stereotypes, and support author-
itarian ideologies. Consequently, the need for closure predicts bias (Roets
and van Hiel, 2011; Theodorou and Kosic, 2021), with a higher need for
closure significantly associated with prejudice against a range of outgroup
members (e.g., Bianco et al., 2022; Burke et al., 2017; Shah et al., 1998).

Esteeming and Trusting as Meta-Perceptions

Besides motivated cognition that reflects understanding and control in
favor of the status quo, gatekeepers seek esteem in the form of respect and
appreciation. Because their higher status and power predicts that others
will see them as competent, gatekeepers seek recognition of the other main
social cognitive dimension, esteem for their warmth in terms of morality
and friendliness. This occurs in high-status bosses interacting with subordi-
nates (Swencionis and Fiske, 2016), and liberal White individuals prioritize
conveying warmth in their interactions with Black interaction partners.
However, because of a perceived warm-competence trade-off—if you are
too smart, you must be cold—these well-intentioned White adults in online
experiments downshift their competence to seem folksy and down with
the people (see section above on ambivalent, plausibly deniable biases).
White Democratic candidates for President do the same thing for Black
and Latine audiences (Dupree and Fiske, 2019). Therefore, well-meaning
STEMM mentors may be at risk of similarly patronizing behavior; in their
attempts to make friends with their mentees, they could be too warm and
not respectful enough.
Interracial meta-perceptions, or how each person thinks the other
sees them and wanting others to see oneself positively, arise in interracial

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186 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

interactions in dozens of laboratory studies (Shelton et al., 2006). Meta-

perceptions are distinct from general perceptions because they are rela-
tional; they are one’s beliefs about how the interaction partner perceives
the self (Shelton and Richeson, 2006). In other words, meta-perceptions
are perceptions of the self, through the lens of the other. Much of the re-
search has focused on interracial interactions between a White individual
and a minoritized individual (Shelton and Richeson, 2005). On the one
hand, researchers have focused on the perspective of the White individual,
including experiences of anxiety (Plant and Devine, 2003) about how they
are viewed. For example, in an interracial interaction between a Black in-
dividual and a White individual, the White individual’s meta-perceptions
could include the extent to which their Black interaction partner would
like them. White individuals express concern about their meta-perceptions
in the context of interracial interactions, particularly, concerns about be-
ing perceived as prejudiced by the other individual (Shelton and Richeson,
2006). In contrast, Black individuals may care more about whether their
White interaction partner respects them.
Taking these perceptions together, White individuals and minoritized
individuals during interracial interactions may have different impression
management goals stemming from their meta-perceptions (Fiske et al.,
2015). White individuals want to be perceived as moral, fair, and unbiased
(Bergsieker et al., 2010). Minoritized individuals want to be respected and
perceived as competent. In a STEMM context, respect for one’s ability is
more relevant than reassurance that one is not a racist.
As a foundational study has demonstrated, there are two primary
motivations for White individuals not wanting to be perceived by their mi-
noritized interaction partner as prejudiced (Plant and Devine, 1998). First,
some White individuals are externally motived to respond and be perceived
as not prejudiced. This motivation is driven out of fear of facing negative
social consequences. On the other hand, some individuals may be internally
motived to respond and be perceived as not prejudiced. This internal moti-
vation is rooted in a set of personal values. Furthermore, individuals who
are more internally motivated to respond without prejudice, as compared to
individuals who are externally motivated, navigate interracial interactions
in very different ways. Across a series of studies, White individuals who
were internally motivated to respond without prejudice were more likely to
engage in partner-focused behaviors toward their Black interaction partner.
For example, they were more likely to show them the respect they wanted
and remember more details about what they said and did. Conversely,
individuals who were externally motivated were more likely to focus on
the self by avoiding engaging in behaviors their partner may find as biased
and were not as sensitive to their partner’s desire for respect (LaCosse and
Plant, 2020).

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THE GATEKEEPERS OF STEMM 187

For gatekeepers to build trust between themselves and minoritized indi-

viduals, this means getting past a challenge for many White liberals—con-
templating their race’s role in oppressing minoritized individuals, especially
Black individuals. Although anti-social traits predict racism, individuals
who mean well and are not necessarily anti-social can still perpetuate rac-
ism. Specifically, White individuals facing racial stress may be vulnerable to
a range of emotions (e.g., fear, guilt; Grzanka et al., 2019). These emotions
inform the display of behaviors that work to restore a sense of racial com-
fort as well as White superiority (DiAngelo et al., 2011). When affirmed,
White individuals no longer feel threatened by Black people’s progress
(Wilkins and Kaiser, 2014). Consistent with these ideas, White individuals
scoring higher on a White “fragility” scale also endorsed modern racism,
social inequalities, and allegedly colorblind racial attitudes (Langrehr et
al., 2021).

THREATS TO GATEKEEPERS FROM DEMOGRAPHIC

SHIFTS IN THE UNITED STATES: THREAT, ANXIETY,
AND SYSTEM-REINFORCING BEHAVIORS
As discussed in the previous section, gatekeepers tend to possess several
social motives that encourage the preservation of the status quo. The pres-
ent section looks at how attempts to preserve the status quo, enacted at
the individual and interpersonal levels by gatekeepers, might be informed
by larger demographic shifts. The research reviewed below shows that
specific societal-level demographic shifts occurring in the United States
may be perceived as a potential threat to the preservation of the status quo
and a source of anxiety around this possible loss of power and status. As
such, cues signaling these demographic shifts can inform individual- and
interpersonal-level outcomes among gatekeepers.
Even while minoritized individuals remain severely underrepresented
across multiple STEMM contexts, the United States is experiencing a mas-
sive demographic shift (see Chapter 3 for more on this). Specifically, the
population of minoritized individuals has been growing faster than White
individuals, and minoritized individuals could attain majority-minority
status by 2050 (Richeson and Sommers, 2016). While the percentage of
non-Hispanic White individuals is decreasing over the years, scholars have
noted that the changes regarding how race and ethnicity are measured
and categorized through the U.S. Census over the years also increases the
complexity of understanding the demographic shift. Nevertheless, the per-
ception and framing of majority-minority has become more mainstream in
recent political events and in the media (Craig et al., 2018).
Some researchers have focused on examining perceptions of this
shift by White individuals. A body of research demonstrates that some

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188 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

non-Hispanic White individuals may perceive the majority-minority shift

as a threat to their power and status as a member of a dominant group.
Furthermore, this perceived shift is associated with greater reported feel-
ings of anxiety, and often greater support of policies that serve to promote
White dominance (i.e., maintain their position in society; see Craig et al.,
2018 for review).
Non-Hispanic White individuals’ perceptions of and outcomes associ-
ated with majority-minority shifts taking place in the United States (Perkins
et al., 2022) have been captured in a series of experiments manipulating
the salience of this shift. Research has found that cues signaling a majority-
minority shift were associated with perceptions of threat, and subsequently
a greater tendency to perceive mixed-race faces as belonging more so to
minoritized racial groups, thus demonstrating an increased tendency to up-
hold racial boundaries and restrict who counts as White. This phenomenon
increases the number of individuals who may be targeted with discrimina-
tion, as a greater number of individuals, including those of mixed race,
may be perceived as minoritized individuals (Krosch et al., 2022). Similarly,
perceptions of a decreasing White demographic group were associated with
feelings of existential threat, and, subsequently, support of far-right extrem-
ism as displayed by more positive feelings toward the Ku Klux Klan (KKK)
and other alt-right and neo-Nazi groups (Bai and Frederico, 2021) and
support for White supremacy (Fortunato et al., 2022). In a related series
of experiments, researchers found that exposure to cues about majority-
minority shifts was associated with non-Hispanic Whites’ concerns about
facing anti-White discrimination (Craig and Richeson, 2017). In short,
they fear experiencing the discrimination currently faced by minoritized
individuals now.

CONCLUSIONS
As the previous sections have shown, many gatekeepers tend to possess
several social motives that enable the preservation of the status quo. As
discussed above, these social motives include belonging, understanding and
controlling resources, and esteeming and trusting. These factors contribute
to advantage gatekeepers and disadvantage minoritized individuals, their
position challenges the gatekeepers’ proclivity to notice, let alone remedy
racism in STEMM. Furthermore, additional research demonstrated demo-
graphic shifts occurring in the United States, specifically perceptions of the
“majority-minority” shift, may be perceived as a potential threat to the
preservation of the status quo, and a source of anxiety around this possible
loss in power and status. These perceptions can further invoke support for
far-right extremism and maintenance of the White status quo. Taken all to-
gether, though not impossible, these numerous factors and cognitive biases
make gatekeepers unlikely to be change agents.

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THE GATEKEEPERS OF STEMM 189

CONCLUSION 6-1: Like other people, gatekeepers often have attitudi-

nal biases, cognitive mechanisms, and social motives that keep the White
status quo intact. Racial bias is not only more automatic, but also more
ambivalent and ambiguous than most people think. That means that indi-
viduals, including gatekeepers, may not be able to monitor their own bias
impartially, and may unwittingly perpetuate it.

CONCLUSION 6-2: Additional research is needed to examine the psy-

chological impacts of perpetuating racism from the perspective of the
gatekeeper in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine.

ORGANIZATION OF THE RECOMMENDATION

As discussed in the chapter and the conclusions, gatekeepers may not be
able to monitor their own bias, are unlikely to become change agents them-
selves, and yet they are still a source of power and influence over antiracism,
diversity, equity, and inclusion-related outcomes in STEMM contexts. There-
fore, the recommendation in the current chapter is aimed at intentionally cre-
ating links between two levels; the level of the organization and the level of
the individual gatekeeper. The essence of the recommendation for this chap-
ter involves generating systems of accountability at the organizational level,
above gatekeepers, that can help identify behavioral patterns of individual
gatekeepers. In turn, understanding and identifying behavioral patterns may
shed light on potential patterns of bias, which can be helpful for initiating
top-down change to improve conditions for minoritized individuals.

RECOMMENDATION 6-1: Leaders of science, technology, engineer-

ing, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) organizations and directors of
human resource offices can improve minoritized people’s individual and
interpersonal experiences in STEMM educational and professional envi-
ronments through the following practices:
Create organizational-level or unit-level information systems to
• 
collect data on the decisions of gatekeepers. Data collected may
include, but not be limited to hiring, admissions, promotion, ten-
ure, advancement, and awards. Data should be examined in the
aggregate to identify patterns of bias exhibited by gatekeepers
based on race and ethnicity.
Include responsibilities related to advancing antiracism, diversity,
• 
equity, and inclusion in leadership role descriptions and require-
ments for advancement into management.
Develop systems with more widely shared, inclusive decisionmak-
• 
ing processes and shared authority over the allocation of resources,
which should limit the negative consequences that occur when
gatekeeping is concentrated in a select few individuals.

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190 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

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Diverse Work Teams: Understanding

the Challenges and How STEMM
Professionals Can Leverage the Strengths

In the previous two chapters, we examined individual and interpersonal

racism from two distinct perspectives, namely the minoritized individual
and the gatekeeper. This chapter examines situations where these individu-
als are brought together, in a team. The way that much science is done
today relies on individual scientists training or working together in this way,
and in light of teamwork’s central role in science, technology, engineering,
mathematics, and medicine (STEMM), the committee here explores the
dynamics of numerically diverse teams, describes the challenges that can
arise within them, and discusses how STEMM professionals can leverage
the potential strengths of diverse teams.
The chapter begins by defining teams as a small number of individuals
with different roles and responsibilities who interact independently to perform
tasks and accomplish shared goals. The research shows that teams are part
and parcel of STEMM in educational and professional settings. As recent calls
to increase “team science” continue, many STEMM organizations and profes-
sionals may be motivated to improve the conditions of effective diverse teams.
After, the chapter examines the research on how racial and ethnic diver-
sity in teams impacts team performance. A common narrative is that diverse
teams perform better. As the research shows, the evidence around the impact
of team diversity on team performance is not straightforward, and in some
cases even contradictory. This is driven, in part, by a key finding demonstrat-
ing that numeric diversity alone is necessary but insufficient to help produce
positive team performance. Numerous challenges can threaten performance,
including anxiety about working with people from other race and ethnicity
groups and prevalent mistreatment targeting minoritized individuals.

199

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200 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

The chapter then reviews literature finding that under ideal conditions,
diverse teams can be leveraged to produce positive performance outcomes.
Some conditions include promoting inclusion and a positive team climate
and working under conditions of psychological safety. Further, a body of
research finds that attending to teamwork contexts may also help facilitate
prejudice reduction among individuals. We end by concluding that STEMM
professionals who want to help advance antiracism, diversity, equity, and in-
clusion (ADEI) need to take an active approach to diverse team management.
To leverage the potential strengths of diverse teams, several ideal conditions
should be actively fostered, and careful and conscious management of diverse
teams is needed. These are specified.

TEAMS WITHIN STEMM

STEMM culture has historically been characterized by and centered on
individualism and competition with others (Gilliam et al., 2017; Morton
et al., 2019). In academia, in particular, reward structures, including grades
and promotions, are all allocated at the individual level. Yet the way most
science is done today in practice relies on individual scientists training or
working together in teams of varying sizes. In addition, in recent years there
have been calls to increase “team science,” or the formation of collabora-
tive groups with experts from various disciplines leveraging their strengths
to solve increasingly complex problems of social and scientific importance
(National Research Council, 2015). Innovative curricula have also been
developed for introductory courses that center teamwork and innovation
(Full et al., 2021; Handelsman et al., 2022), which have been linked to in-
creased retention of minoritized students (Handelsman et al., 2022). Thus,
improving the conditions of diverse teams to yield effective teamwork is
often a priority for STEMM training, organizations today, and nations as
they tackle the problems of tomorrow (Phillips et al., 2014).
A team is defined as a small number of individuals with different roles
and responsibilities that interact together and interdependently to perform
tasks and accomplish goals that are shared (Katzenbach and Smith, 1993;
National Research Council, 2015). In STEMM, teams are typically made
up of two to ten individuals (National Research Council, 2015), and this is
also the scale of most of the research on teams presented in this chapter. In
STEMM, teams may take several forms. These may include working together
in laboratory spaces, mentorship, online or asynchronous collaborative work,
and other work models (Robotham et al., 2021). As individuals continue to
come together to form teams, they bring with them not only their individual
differences in knowledge and education (Shemla and Wegge, 2019), but
also their entire selves, including their individual racial and ethnic identities
(Osseo-Asare et al., 2018). However, the numeric underrepresentation of

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DIVERSE WORK TEAMS 201

minoritized individuals in STEMM has made studying the impacts of racially

and ethnically diverse teams limited, if one omits international students and
international employees. Therefore, the current literature discussed is inclu-
sive of studies across several contexts. There is opportunity within STEMM
for the formation of diverse teams along racial and ethnic backgrounds if
numeric diversity increases, but as will be explored through this chapter, the
formation and maintenance of effective diverse teams depends on a number
of factors that go beyond numeric representation alone.

RACIAL AND ETHNIC DIVERSITY WITHIN TEAMS:

IMPACT ON TEAM PERFORMANCE
It has been long theorized that racially and ethnically diverse teams may
yield more positive performances on outcomes like innovation and creativity,
as compared to racially and ethnically homogenous teams. This is because
individuals from various race and ethnicity groups may contribute more
varied experiences, perspectives, information, and ideas to help improve
overall performance (Richard et al., 2021; Timmerman, 2000). However,
the evidence around the impact of team diversity on team outcomes is not
entirely straightforward, and in some places contradictory—with some re-
search demonstrating associations with positive outcomes and others with
negative outcomes (e.g., positive or negative performance; Bell et al., 2011;
Ely et al., 2012; Horwitz and Horwitz, 2007; Joshi and Roh, 2009; Kirkman
et al., 2004; Schneid, 2015; Smith-Doerr et al., 2017; Stahl et al., 2010; van
Knippenberg and Schippers, 2007; Wang et al., 2019; Webber and Donahue,
2001). Consequently, the research on demographic diversity of teams and
performance is inherently unclear and limited (Avery et al., 2022; Smith-
Doerr et al., 2017; Williams and O’Reilly, 1998).
A closer look at the literature suggests why these conflicting findings
arise. First, not all the research investigating team diversity is focused
on race and ethnicity as the primary lens of diversity. Some studies have
focused on other demographic factors, such as age or gender. Some research
may even define “diversity” in terms of other factors like education, values
(Wang et al., 2019), different skill sets, fields of study, or other non-identity
characteristics. Beyond conceptualization differences, some studies may
vary in how they measure diversity (Shemla et al., 2016), which can inform
inconsistencies in the results.
Second, simply having a numerically diverse team does not automat-
ically result in positive performance outcomes. In fact, many negative
emotions and experiences related to interracial anxiety may impede the in-
terpersonal process of team dynamics, and subsequent performance. As de-
scribed in depth in Chapter 2, historical systems of racial segregation have
divided the United States into neighborhoods and subsequently schools that

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202 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

were stratified by race. The historical legacy of policies, systems, and prac-
tices that uphold racial segregation continues today. Therefore, most friend-
ships, relationships, and interpersonal interactions remain largely stratified
by race, and interracial interactions (interactions of people from various
racial and ethnic backgrounds) remain infrequent, especially for White
individuals (Banaji et al., 2021; Fahle et al., 2020). Since interracial interac-
tions remain infrequent, they may provoke anxiety and negative emotions
for those involved when they do happen (Avery et al., 2009; Mallet et al.,
2008; Richeson and Shelton, 2007, 2012; Shelton et al., 2010). For exam-
ple, a White individual may have anxiety about appearing prejudiced in the
interaction, while a minoritized individual may have anxiety and concerns
about being stereotyped or facing discrimination during the interaction
(see also Chapter 5 and Chapter 6; Dunton and Fazio, 1997; Plant et al.,
2008; Shelton, et al., 2005, 2010). These anxieties, negative emotions, and
expectations may impede the cohesion, functioning, and subsequently the
performance of a team, generally yielding negative performance outcomes
(Richeson and Shelton, 2007; Richeson and Sommers, 2016).
Third, a numerically diverse team does not ensure that the team will
also be antiracist, equitable, and inclusive of minoritized individuals. A sig-
nificant body of research has focused on the range of negative experiences
and outcomes of prejudice, stereotyping, discrimination, stigmatization,
and tokenization for minoritized individuals in spaces that are predomi-
nately White (see Chapter 5 for more information about minoritized indi-
viduals; and see Chapter 6 for more about the perpetration of prejudice,
stereotyping, and discrimination; Richeson and Sommers, 2016). These
dynamics also play out in team settings (Smith-Doerr et al., 2017). Specifi-
cally, while the incorporation of a few minoritized individuals may make
a team more numerically diverse, these individuals may represent solos
or “tokens” of their racial or ethnic group and face feelings of alienation
and isolation. (Allaire, 2019; Basile and Black, 2019; Dickens et al., 2020;
Wilkins-Yel et al., 2022). Further, individuals who are tokens may face
the added pressure of becoming the symbolic representation of their entire
identity group. Asymmetrical power dynamics and an unwelcoming climate
may sideline minoritized individuals from full participation, thus reducing
the overall potential of the team’s performance (Smith-Doerr et al., 2017).
In teams that require contributions from everyone, formation of numeri-
cally diverse teams may be achievable, depending on the context; however,
moving into norming inclusion may be more intense and take longer.
Therefore, numerically diverse teams are not automatically inclusive and
may actually perpetuate racial disparities if conditions that foster inclusion
are not actively pursued.
What are those conditions, and how to effectively pursue them? To
better understand positive performance outcomes, recent research has

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DIVERSE WORK TEAMS 203

suggested that it may not be a question of whether diverse teams perform

better than non-diverse teams; rather it is a question of which conditions
can realize this potential (Galinsky et al., 2015; Joshi and Roh, 2009).
Under ideal conditions, there is evidence suggesting that team diversity
can be leveraged to produce positive performance outcomes (Ellemers and
Rink, 2016; Galinsky et al., 2015). One major condition is having a team
that promotes an inclusive positive climate, which requires positive inter-
personal working conditions for minoritized individuals on the team (Ely
and Thomas, 2001; Ely et al., 2012; West, 2002). In short, the quality of
interpersonal interactions matter. For instance, one study examined two
years of data on racial composition, employee attitudes, and their impact on
team performance. The researchers found that when White and minoritized
team members perceived the team environment as supportive, there was a
positive association between team diversity and bottom-line performance
(Ely et al., 2012). Relatedly, research focused on gender diversity of teams
has found that having a critical mass of women in science is an important
antecedent of promoting greater inclusion and a positive climate (Griffith
and Dasgupta, 2018; Ong et al., 2018; Smith-Doerr et al., 2017). While
the benefits of building a critical mass for gender minorities in STEMM are
known, additional research examining building a critical mass for racial
and ethnic minoritized individuals on STEMM teams is needed.
Other important factors pertain to the structure and context of the
team. A recently published study demonstrated that the specific structure of
the team roles may help leverage the promising effects of a diverse team on
positive performance. The researchers found that more racially and ethni-
cally diverse teams were associated with greater team performance when
there was greater participation diversity (i.e., individuals with a diverse
range of temporal involvement, including core and peripheral performers).
The authors suggest that having clarity around different team member’s
participation roles provides a behavioral script for team members and eases
interracial anxiety. This was supported by additional findings showing that
cooperation contributes toward this pathway (Avery et al., 2022). Likewise,
Bresman and Edmondson (2022) also found that diverse pharmaceutical
teams underperformed relative to homogenous team due to their avoidance
of interpersonal risk. However, when diverse teams worked under condi-
tions of psychological safety, there was a positive relationship between
diversity and performance.
Further, research has identified some additional conditions that may
promote a positive association of team diversity and performance include
the following. These may include having diversity across all levels of
management teams (Richard et al., 2021), having organizational leaders
with greater visionary behaviors who do not categorize their team into
subgroups (Greer et al., 2012), designing teams with clear objectives to

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204 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

maximize knowledge management systems (Guillaume et al., 2017), and

having greater congruence between team diversity and the diversity in the
local community (Richard et al., 2017).
In general, most research summarized here suggests that attending to
the conditions under which a diverse team works maximizes the likelihood
of more positive performance outcomes. Because STEMM work frequently
occurs in teams, team leaders may be interested in actively monitoring
and managing for these teamwork conditions to help facilitate positive
outcomes. In the following sections, we move beyond the outcome of team
performance to explore how attending to teamwork conditions may also
reduce the inclination for individuals to be prejudiced, which may have
important implications for fostering antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclu-
sion on STEMM teams.

THE CONTACT HYPOTHESIS: REDUCING PREJUDICE

THROUGH INTERRACIAL INTERGROUP CONTACTS
In addition to considering how team diversity may impact performance,
a related body of research has examined another outcome, namely preju-
dice reduction. This substantial body of research has investigated whether
contact between individuals from multiple racial and ethnic groups may
help reduce bias.
Against the backdrop of a racially stratified society, negative prejudices,
stereotypes, and discriminatory behaviors toward minoritized individuals con-
tinue, in part due to the lack of exposure to minoritized individuals (Pettigrew
et al., 2007). White individuals who have limited exposure to, or “contact”
with, minoritized individuals are generally more likely to hold racial biases,
and conversely, those with greater exposure may be generally less likely to
hold those biases (Pettigrew, 1998). The contact hypothesis (Allport, 1954)
posits that under the right conditions, interracial intergroup contact can be
positive, and it can help reduce prejudice. Increasing contact with individu-
als of multiple racial and ethnic groups may be a key factor in challenging
and mitigating racist prejudices, stereotypes, and discriminatory behaviors in
society. For the contact to be positive and yield the intended impact of help-
ing reduce bias, original theorists proposed that individuals must meet under
four specific conditions (Allport, 1954; Pettigrew, 1998). Each of these are
described below.

The Conditions of the Contact Hypothesis

• Equal Status: individuals of different racial and ethnic groups must
perceive and have equal standing within the situation, without
asymmetrical power differences, when the individuals meet.

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DIVERSE WORK TEAMS 205

• Having Common Goals: the individuals during the interaction must

share and work toward the same planned or intended outcomes.
• Interpersonal Cooperation: the individuals in the interaction
should be working toward the common goal without competition.
The individuals in the interaction should be working cooperatively
toward the common goal without competition.
• Support of Authorities, Law, and Custom: leaders must formally
accept and actively support the intergroup contact, reinforcing the
norms, laws, and customs of this contact.

While achieving these four conditions were proposed as necessary, a meta-

analysis of 713 independent samples from a total of 515 studies found that all
four of these conditions do not necessarily have to be met in order for preju-
dice reduction to occur (Pettigrew and Tropp, 2006). In addition to generally
achieving these said conditions, the perception of the nature of the interaction
is likely a critical factor in promoting prejudice reduction. Specifically, inter-
group interactions that are perceived as positive have been found to be associ-
ated with greater prejudice reduction (Hewstone, 2015; Laurence et al., 2018).

Empirical Evidence Supporting the Contact Hypothesis

A substantial body of research supports the contact hypothesis as a
mechanism of reducing bias (Pettigrew and Tropp, 2006). For instance,
one recent study incorporated 16 different samples of participants from
five countries. Using a variety of research methods, the study team sought
to examine the effect of intergroup contact on two distinct outcomes.
These included the rates of blatant dehumanization of outgroup individuals
and meta-dehumanization (i.e., perception that ingroup members will be
dehumanized by the outgroup). The results demonstrated that intergroup
contact was associated with a reduction in dehumanization and meta-
dehumanization. While the quantity of intergroup contact was correlated
with the reduction of both dehumanization and meta-dehumanization, it
was found that the quality of that contact was more strongly associated
with both of those outcomes (Bruneau et al., 2021). Whether this translates
for reducing racial bias, as opposed to national stereotypes, is uncertain. In
the age of online communication, intergroup contact through online spaces
is more common. One recent meta-analysis examining 23 studies found a
significant effect of online intergroup contact in reducing race-based and
other forms of prejudice. The authors concluded that our new virtual
contexts may be leveraged to promote prejudice reduction through inter-
group interactions (Imperato et al., 2021). Some support for the contact
hypothesis was also found in another recent meta-analysis (Paluck et al.,
2019); however, the authors caution that while intergroup contact generally

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206 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

reduces prejudice, the contact effects vary, and more research is needed to
help understand which factors can promote a stronger “contact” effect.
The research on leadership provides evidence that providing support
in a way that leads to the benefits of intergroup contact is also a complex
issue. Several recent studies unpack the ways in which diversity rhetoric
may intend to be supportive and positive yet negatively impact organiza-
tions’ diversity goals, such as the attraction, retention, and performance of
minoritized groups (for more on this, see Chapter 6). Therefore, diversity
rhetoric that explicitly articulates why multiple groups are brought together
may yield differential impacts.
These conditions of the contact hypothesis help to shed light on
why STEMM continues to lack representation. In academic and profes-
sional STEMM contexts, at the organizational level, the attributes of con-
tact that decrease prejudice are not common. Minoritized people are more
likely to be in lower status roles (see Chapter 3), and thus equal status is
not present and this may carry over into teams. Further, minoritized people
may come to STEMM with different values and goals, focusing more on
community benefits than individual personal triumphs (see Chapter 5). For
some minoritized groups, their cultures emphasize cooperation, and they
may have variable experience of receiving this from White individuals. In
some cases, the lack of shared culture with White individuals may result
in a mismatch of expectations to guide the team’s work. Finally, there is
no strong evidence that STEMM leadership, which is primarily drawn
from the dominant White racial group, formally accepts and actively sup-
ports intergroup contact that includes equity and acknowledgement of
multicultural values and norms. Instead, there is evidence that gatekeepers
are often working to preserve the White status quo (Chapter 6) and may
be reinforcing the norms, laws, and customs of their own culture. In the
next section, we report on contact research that occurred in the context of
STEMM organizations and other workplaces. Further, we examine what
interventions have been investigated to facilitate intergroup contact. To do
so, we consider evidence from multiple fields.

Contact Hypothesis Tested in Workplaces and STEMM Contexts

Some empirical evidence from organizational science demonstrates that
the contact hypothesis is applicable in STEMM workplaces and educational
settings, although additional research in this area is needed. Many work-
places in the United States are equal opportunity employers, which makes
discrimination based on race illegal (Estlund, 2003). These structures en-
courage a more numerically diverse workforce, and in theory the formation
of diverse work teams, although data show that certain minoritized racial
and ethnic groups continue to be highly underrepresented (see previous
chapters). While teams are often spaces in which individuals are working

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DIVERSE WORK TEAMS 207

cooperatively toward a common goal (Allport, 1954; Pettigrew, 1998), the

research on teams and contact hypothesis have primarily focused on how
White individuals are influenced by contact with people different from them
along factors like race or ethnicity. Additional research examining inter-
group contact in STEMM, from the perspective of minoritized individuals
is also needed.
One recent study sought to examine whether interracial intergroup
contact at work was associated with reductions in racial bias. The research
team utilized 12 years of data from a nationally representative survey and
focused exclusively on 3,359 Non-Hispanic White working adults. After
statistically adjusting for the presence of other confounding variables, the
study found that consistent with the contact hypothesis, White workers with
a Black coworker had significantly less pro-White bias (Darling-Hammond
et al., 2021). Further, using propensity score matching, the researchers found
evidence of a causal association between contact and a reduction of pro-
White bias. The impact on the Black coworker was not measured. Another
study sought to examine the contact hypothesis in the context of medicine.
The researchers focused on the interpersonal patterns of majority-group
hospital workers across several hospitals. The study demonstrated that more
frequent and positive interactions with outgroup immigrant patients were
significantly associated with lower levels of prejudice toward outgroup im-
migrants in general. These findings remained significant after the researchers
controlled for other forms of contact (including contact outside work and
contact via media), suggesting that workplace contact is a meaningful and
independent predictor of prejudice reduction (Pagotto et al., 2010).

Intervention and Exercise Development

Grounded in the contact hypothesis, some scholars have developed and
tested interventions that build cooperation in non-STEMM team settings
with the goal of reducing prejudice. Some evidence indicates that inter-
group contact interventions may be promising, although a more robust
and rigorous empirical investigation is needed (Paluck and Green, 2009),
including those in STEMM contexts. For instance, the “Jigsaw Classroom”
exercise was implemented as a cooperative teaching technique to help
reduce racial bias among K–12 students in a school that had become
desegregated (Aronson, 1978). The Jigsaw method requires that students
work collaboratively and depend on each other to learn the course con-
tent. Each student is assigned to a small diverse team. Each team (about
4–6 teams) is of equal status and is assigned to learn a specific content
area or a single “puzzle piece” of the larger topic. At the end, each team
presents their “puzzle piece” of information to the larger class, and all the
information of the lesson is finally incorporated. Importantly, throughout
this activity, individual students do not suppress their individual racial

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208 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

and ethnic identities. They recognize their individual differences, while

recognizing their superordinate identity of being part of the shared class
(Williams, 2004). The researchers found that this activity helped signifi-
cantly reduce racial bias (Aronson, 1978; Walker and Corgan, 1998). In
higher education, similar course designs have been developed, whereby
students drawn from different fields of interest first engage in individual
design efforts and build the confidence to interact in teams. Team-building
curriculum helps students experience the advantages of a diverse set of
minds as they conduct, develop, and implement a project design (Full et al.,
2021). While this course does not measure prejudice reduction, it does aim
to increase innovation and creativity by building diverse teams.
Despite these optimistic findings, several factors (e.g., differences in
classroom spaces, ages of participants) might limit or vary the effectiveness
of the Jigsaw Classroom exercise in reducing prejudice and contributing
to more innovative outcomes. Therefore, the generalizability of the Jigsaw
Classroom exercise might be limited (Bratt, 2008). Even in contexts in
which the Jigsaw Classroom exercise is effective, scholars have cautioned
against an overreliance on this and other similar mechanisms to reduce bias
(Bratt, 2008) and suggested it should not be used as a replacement of larger
policy changes that work to dismantle systemic racism (Williams, 2004).

Intergroup Contact Contributions to Individuation

Intergroup contact may result in reductions in prejudice toward out-
group members because it provides greater opportunity for individuation
to occur among diverse team members as they get to know each other and
form relationships. Generally, when individuals encounter another person,
they tend to rapidly categorize them based on previous encounters or as-
sumptions, and consequently stereotype them (see the previous chapter for
more on this). This immediate and rapid categorization has been recognized
as a common element of social cognition. Humans tend to be “cognitive
misers,” utilizing as few cognitive resources as possible, and by categorizing
individuals rapidly, limited cognitive resources are used in more streamlined
ways to help expedite the impressions (social categorization, one example
of this, is discussed in Chapter 5). In contrast to categorization, individua-
tion is a process whereby a person consciously considers the unique factors
of a given individual. They may consider their unique beliefs, perspectives,
and intentions of the other (Swencionis and Fiske, 2013). Some research
has demonstrated that this process may reduce bias by focusing attention
on the individual’s specific and unique traits rather than any larger stereo-
typed category (Wilder, 1978). Research suggests that increased exposure
to individuals from other racial and ethnic minority groups via contact
may facilitate this process of individuation (Fiske and Neuberg, 1990;
Swencionis and Fiske, 2013).

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DIVERSE WORK TEAMS 209

Individuation has the potential to be facilitated in STEMM teams. For

instance, individuals who have more frequent and personal contact with
individuals from outgroups may engage in more individuation because they
see more individual variation (unique factors) among individuals who are
part of their outgroup (Heyman and Yazdi, 2019). Frequent contact with
individuals from other race and ethnicity groups can happen on numerically
diverse teams. Further, individuation often occurs when people depend on
each other (Fiske, 2000), as they do on STEMM teams. When a person
needs to rely on a teammate, they may seek individual-level information to
form more nuanced impressions (Swencionis and Fiske, 2013). In particu-
lar, when people’s outcomes depend on someone else, they seek specifically
stereotype-inconsistent information (because it is more informative); they
make dispositional inferences (individuated, not stereotypic impressions);
and they activate brain regions associated with considering the other per-
son’s mind (Ames and Fiske, 2013). Taken together, when people individu-
ate, they are less inclined to rely on generalizing (often negative) stereotypes
(Fiske, 2000) and may perceive members of an outgroup on an individual
basis (thus less homogenous; Dovidio et al., 2017).
Some research has demonstrated that individuating may help people
rehumanize members of outgroups (Swencionis and Fiske, 2013). In fact,
some experimental work has examined whether training people to recog-
nize the faces of outgroup members as specific individuals, also termed
perceptual individuation, may reduce bias (Lebrecht et al., 2009). There is
some evidence that individuation may help reduce implicit racial bias in-
cluding in samples of children (Qian et al., 2017; Xiao et al., 2015). Leaders
and heads of teams might be interested in establishing practices and envi-
ronments that promote individuation, particularly of groups that have been
historically and systemically minoritized. Putting people on interdependent
teams, as in lab or project teams, may help people to overcome group dif-
ferences because everyone contributes a “piece of the puzzle” (cf. Jigsaw
Classrooms; Aronson and Gonzales, 1988). As stated above, cooperation
is one of Allport’s (1954) conditions for successful intergroup contact.
Further, interdependent structures—cooperation rather than individualistic
competition—may be a better cultural fit for some minoritized groups (see
Chapter 5; Nickerson, 2021).

INGROUP FAVORITISM AS A BARRIER TO THE

DIVERSIFICATION OF STEMM TEAMS
Although there is evidence that diverse teams can yield positive out-
comes, diverse teams also require energy from members to communicate
through differences and wrestle with conflicts in values and perceptions
of norms. Teams of ingroup members may be easier for both gatekeepers
and minoritized individuals. In some cases, resegregation can occur and

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210 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

can challenge the formation of diverse teams and the maintenance of posi-
tive team conditions. The phenomenon and process of resegregation has
been demonstrated across several studies (Wharton and Baron, 1987), and
literature exists showing evidence of institutional segregation occurring at
multiple levels, including at the “micro-level” (individual and interpersonal
level; see Kauff et al., 2021) and the team level (discussed below).
Resegregation is a barrier that may also have major implications for un-
derstanding prejudice reduction in the context of STEMM teams. Resegre-
gation by race can occur within larger organizations. This has the potential
to act as a major point of structural racism because interracial intergroup
interactions can then never occur, or would remain rare (McKeown and
Dixon, 2017; Ramiah et al., 2015). Although segregation was outlawed
in the United States, self-segregation among White individuals has been
found to persist and be reproduced in multiple spaces (Anicich et al., 2021).
Bettencourt and colleagues note the following:

Indeed, a growing body of research suggests that the formal policies of

desegregation are typically offset by informal ‘micro-ecological’ (Dixon,
Tredoux, Durrheim, Finchilescu and Clack, 2008) practices of (re)segre-
gation, enacted across a range of everyday and institutional settings (e.g.,
Dixon and Durrheim, 2003; Swyngedouw, 2013; Tredoux and Dixon,
2009) (Bettencourt et al., 2019).

Consequently, organizations can remain largely White, and racially

homogenous White teams may persist. Resegregation, especially in the
highest tiers of occupational groups, contributes to the reproduction of
racial stratification within an organization (Petsko and Rosette, 2022;
Ray, 2019). Most often, Non-Hispanic White men have disproportionality
greater power over STEMM team resources and power in determining the
composition of teams, but routinely reproduce predominately homogenous
teams (Ahmad et al., 2019; Greider et al., 2019; Rodriguez et al., 2021; see
Chapter 6 for more on gatekeepers). Leadership at academic institutions,
particularly research-intensive universities, show a similar demographic
tendency to place a disproportionate number of White males in leadership
positions (see other chapters).
Resegregation may also happen within and impact teams. For instance,
one study investigated the impact of social distance on diversity preferences
in group formations. The researchers found that at an abstract level, par-
ticipants indicated that diversity in groups was desirable. They did, how-
ever, indicate concerns about feasibility. However, when it came to making
decisions, participant’s choices were aligned with segregation. Namely,
participants often selected a collaboration partner who was “dissimilar” for
another person but picked someone similar for themselves. When making

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DIVERSE WORK TEAMS 211

decisions about forming work groups, participants exhibited the same pat-
tern. When establishing a work group for others, the composition of the
group they selected was more diverse; however, when forming a work group
for themselves, the group was less diverse (Jaffé et al., 2019).
Another study examined how racial diversity of local contexts impacted
White participants’ attempts to resegregate local groups to preserve White
majority status. Across five studies, using a mix of methodologies, the re-
searchers found that in the face of increased racial diversity, White individuals
worked to racially segregate themselves from outgroup members by exclu-
sions both geographic and institutional (policies, norms, customs). These
resegregation patterns and preferences of White majority spaces happened
across multiple local environments, including the workplace (Anicich et al.,
2021). Expanding on this phenomenon, biased White individuals are less
likely to have White friends who are known to affiliate with Black individuals.
Therefore, this work suggests that White individuals’ networks can become
increasingly segregated because some individuals may limit even indirect
contact with minoritized individuals (Jacoby-Senghor, 2015).
Ironically, interventions to increase diversity in STEMM fields have
included providing space for minoritized individuals to form affinity groups
(as described in Chapter 5) in which they can experience STEMM research
and training among other minoritized people. Co-curricular activities that
provide STEMM training and professional development in small teams of
other minoritized scholars have been found to be particularly important
to increasing persistence of minoritized higher education and early faculty
scholars (Estrada, 2011). Research examining the advantages and disad-
vantages of having ingroup spaces is not straightforward and deserves
increased research. On the one hand, these spaces can be perceived as
racist and exclusionary when gatekeepers are not sharing resources and
professional benefits with minoritized individuals. Conversely, minoritized
individuals who are experiencing exclusion and lack of equity find ingroup
spaces to be restorative and important for their own ability to persist in
STEMM environments to which they do not generally experience belonging
(the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2016).

MYTHS ABOUT RACIAL PROGRESS

In this chapter, we have summarized the research showing that when
gatekeepers and minoritized individuals come together to form diverse
teams, they encounter both challenges and opportunities. Under ideal con-
ditions, there is opportunity for innovation and creativity that benefits from
team members who have diverse perspectives and experiences. We described
how several conditions of teamwork influence how well these teams function
and produce desired outcomes. Positive intergroup contact between team

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212 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

members can also be an opportunity to help reduce bias. Further, we find

that there are strong cognitive and behavioral tendencies to retreat to in-
group-only spaces that may further perpetuate racial inequities in STEMM.
To help move toward greater inclusion, especially for teams, we must
critically examine the commonly held narrative that racial progress is rapidly,
naturally, and automatically moving in the direction of greater racial equity.
Although widely held, this narrative is not representative of the actual racial
progress landscape (Onyeador et al., 2021). When gatekeepers adhere to the
narrative that inclusion will occur automatically simply by having a diverse
team, a significant barrier toward promoting ADEI remains in place. This is
because if racial progress is believed to be rapid, automatic, and natural, ac-
tive and deliberate efforts that work to improve ADEI do not occur (Kraus
et al., 2022). Thus, gatekeepers who want to make change need to recognize
this myth and actively make efforts to diversify their teams, and create and
manage the ideal conditions that foster inclusion on teams since numeric
diversity alone is insufficient (Smith-Doerr et al., 2017). Passivity in terms of
managing diverse teams will not be adequate.

The Connection of Levels: Gatekeepers, Teams, and Organizations

Here, the committee makes explicit connections between various levels
of analysis covered in the chapters (e.g., teams, individuals, organiza-
tions, society), as they relate to the recommendations. As discussed in the
previous chapter, gatekeepers are unlikely to become change agents them-
selves, but they are still a source of power over ADEI related outcomes in
STEMM. Therefore, the recommendations in the previous chapter were
aimed at establishing systems at the level above individual gatekeepers to
help generate systems of accountability and identify patterns of bias. The
recommendation presented in the current chapter, which is oriented toward
gatekeepers, is meant to follow that of Chapter 6, and is supposed to exist
with the implementation of organizational-level recommendations made
in the upcoming chapter. Which is to say, recommendations covering indi-
vidual and organizational level change are not mutually exclusive. Rather
they exist together, within a multi-level approach, eschews the notion that
individual actors should be the only point of intervention. Importantly, if
individual gatekeepers are intentional about initiating change within their
team, or space, the recommendations provide guidance for implementation.

CONCLUSION 7-1: For teams in science, technology, engineering, math-

ematics, and medicine organizations, increased numeric representation of
minoritized individuals is critical; however, numeric diversity alone is an
insufficient condition to produce positive team performance. Conditions
that foster inclusion are also essential.

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DIVERSE WORK TEAMS 213

RECOMMENDATION 7-1: Gatekeepers who manage teams, including

but not limited to principal investigators and heads of laboratories and
research groups, should be intentional about creating the following con-
ditions. These can help support positive team performance outcomes and
help reduce instances of interpersonal bias.

Increase the numeric representation of minoritized individuals on

• 
teams by working toward building a critical mass, a necessary
but not sufficient attribute of building an inclusive environment.
Create team norms that centralize a positive climate, in which it
• 
is known that all team members, including minoritized individu-
als, are supported, heard, and respected.
Develop interdependent teams in which everyone is cooperating
• 
and working toward an established common goal.
Ensure that team members feel psychologically safe on the team,
• 
and if not identify the specific factors that are preventing psycho-
logical safety and work to address them.
Work to promote equal status among team members. Remove
• 
asymmetric power differentials among team members, especially
between White team members and minoritized team members.
Incorporate greater diversity in developing team roles, and make
• 
sure all team members have clear roles and expectations, in-
cluding access to professional development and pathways to
advancement.

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Understanding Organizations
and the Role of Leadership in
Developing a Culture of Antiracism,
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Previous chapters have emphasized the importance of individual be-

havior and group dynamics. This chapter considers the broader context of
the science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM)
organizations in which individual and group interactions and behaviors
occur.1 STEMM organizations exist in many sizes, containing groups and
individual people working together to achieve common goals. Here, the
committee examines the structural and systemic issues that have contrib-
uted to inequalities; organizational antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclu-
sion efforts; and ways to enact change at this level.
The committee relies on several key concepts throughout the chapter.
An organization’s culture can be defined as the historically and collectively
evolving mix of norms, values, practices, and policies that guides action
(Groysberg et al., 2018). Related to organizational culture, the climate of
an organization is participants’ perceptions and experience of their imme-
diate context within the organization’s culture. An organization’s culture
creates conditions for its structures as well as its climate; in this chapter,
the structures of a particular institution come into focus as systems that can
shape and guide how individuals and groups behave based on the culture
(i.e., norms, values, policies, and practices) that informs decisions. Together,
the culture, climate, and structures affect how people gain access to and
experience educational and professional STEMM settings (­Alvesson, 2002;
the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2018).

1 For the purposes of this report, STEMM organizations include universities, nonprofit

organizations, private funders, professional societies, hospitals, and industry.

219

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220 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

Those experiences are consequential for performance, persistence, belong-

ing, and well-being, all of which can have direct effects on how teams oper-
ate and individual people perform.
One important goal of this chapter is to provide a guide for leaders
who want to accelerate progress in advancing antiracism, diversity, eq-
uity, and inclusion in STEMM organizations and fostering cultures and
climates where all participants can succeed. As discussed in more detail
below, this focus on leadership is in response to evidence showing that
culture change is an essential ingredient for systemic and transforma-
tional change, and that such change begins at the top of an organization
and permeates multiple levels. Leaders, notably those at the very top of
the organization such as presidents and chief executive officers, have the
unique opportunity to shape the culture and climate of an organization
by (re)shaping the norms, values, policies, and practices that comprise
that culture and climate. Without the leadership changing organizational
structures, culture change may not be sustained or may only advance un-
evenly in the organization.
The material in the present chapter intersects with and builds on
points of discussion from previous chapters in the report. As discussed
in Chapter 3, there are fewer people from minoritized racial and eth-
nic groups in positions of leadership in STEMM organizations. More
STEMM organizations are led by non-Hispanic, White men than people
from other races, ethnicities, and genders (see Chapter 6 for more on
gatekeepers). Such racialized disparities in an organization’s leadership,
ones that often reflect the values present in academia and research set-
tings, can cause inequities in the distribution of resources and other
foundational aspects of the organization and thus perpetuate racial
bias (see Chapter 3 for additional data; Ray, 2019). As discussed in
Chapter 5, additional support systems and removal of barriers at the
individual level can allow more people from minoritized groups to
advance in STEMM organizations to diversify leadership ranks (Allen-
Ramdial and Campbell, 2014).
However, as noted in Chapter 6, leaders also have a greater ability to
address racial bias and contribute to change in an organization through
addressing norms, values, policies, and practices. Such changes can be
mutually reinforcing, reflecting the systemic nature of change work. For
example, making substantive changes to hiring, promotion, tenure, and
advancement policies may also shift norms for recruitment, drawing a
more diverse set of participants, which is a condition for the realization
of more equitable outcomes. Reviewing policies and updating practices
through an antiracist lens can create more equitable and inclusive environ-
ments. Furthermore, such structural changes at the institutional level can
have an impact on individual behavior; equally importantly, the collective

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UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONS AND THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP 221

behavior of individuals can change organizational culture (Society for

Human Resource Management, 2016). While organizations, groups, and
individuals have their own patterns of behavior, these different levels are
interconnected. Changes at one level can transfer up, down, or across to
others.
To make large-scale change, leaders need to set forth an agenda that
addresses the organization at multiple levels, including gatekeepers, leaders,
mid-level management, and administration, with the appropriate resources
in terms of person hours and funds. Antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclu-
sion do not serve as compliance metrics, but rather act as goals or concepts
that require sustained effort and learning to maintain. Often, these changes
come with dedicated action from all levels and a sense of collective respon-
sibility across the organization to uphold the values of antiracism, diversity,
equity, and inclusion.
As discussed below, changes related to antiracism, diversity, equity,
and inclusion also come with distinct challenges. Leadership can expect
resistance, both explicit and implicit, to cultural change centered around
antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion, and this chapter provides frame-
works for addressing resistance and supporting the individuals who engage
in the emotional labor of the work (see Chapter 6 for more in implicit bias).
Although the analysis presented here is rooted in the science behind orga-
nizational change, not all of the research has been carried out in STEMM
organizations specifically.
The first section of this chapter elaborates on these key concepts in
an overview of organizations, culture, and climate. The racialization of
organizational structures through specific policies and practices and how
that can impact culture and climate is the focus of the second part of this
chapter. In the third part of the chapter, the committee discusses paths to
change organizational culture and climate to center antiracism, diversity,
equity, and inclusion and reviews research on change at individual or-
ganizations as well as collective change effected by organizations across
a single sector. The fourth part of the chapter discusses barriers to and
challenges of culture change. The fifth part provides some frameworks
for organizational change, setting out key findings and recommendations
on how change can—and must—be brought about at the organizational
level.

AN OVERVIEW OF ORGANIZATIONS, CULTURE, AND CLIMATE

Typically, within an organization, there are structures that define in-
dividual roles and responsibilities, as well as divide people into separate
groups based on function, content area, or level of responsibility. Box 8-1
provides definitions for key terms used throughout this chapter.

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222 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

BOX 8-1
Key Terms and Definitions

• Values: “Organizational values can be defined as beliefs about socially or

personally desirable end states or actions that are explicitly or implicitly
shared by members of an organization” (Society for Human Resource Man-
agement, 2016). Values signal and determine organizational priorities.
• Culture: While there are many ways to define culture, an organization’s culture
can be broadly defined as “the historically, collectively evolving use of tools,
practices, and norms.” Organizational culture is dynamic: “Culture is not best
understood as a homogeneous, cohesive and causal force, but as something
that people do; it is emergent, dynamic, situationally adaptive and co-created
in dialogue” (Alvesson, 2002).
• Climate: In contrast to culture, climate refers to the participants’ perception
of and experiences with the organization, leadership, and actions, including
the policies, practices, and procedures that comprise its culture (the National
Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2018). Climate can help
identify particular issues in an organization, notably when gaps exist between
values and actions.
• Norms: Critical to shaping culture, norms are a set of behavioral expectations
within an organization or group. “Often unspoken, these norms offer social
standards of appropriate and inappropriate behavior, governing what is
(and is not) acceptable and coordinating our interactions with others” (World
Health Organization, 2009).
• Structures: Systems that can shape and guide how individuals and groups
behave based on the culture (i.e., norms, values, policies, and practices) that
informs decisions (Ray, 2019).

SOURCE: Committee generated.

Using Schein’s Iceberg to Understand Organizational Culture

Schein’s iceberg model of culture (Schein, 1992) suggests that there are
different layers to organizational cultures—artifacts, espoused values, and
tacit underlying beliefs—with some visible and others hidden and difficult
for newcomers to an organization or those outside of it to understand and
interpret. Artifacts, such as branding strategy, logos, organizational struc-
ture, job titles, and even décor, are visible indicators of an organization’s
culture. Espoused values are the behaviors, methods for accomplishing
the mission, and other policies and procedures that an organization states
publicly but may not follow on a daily basis. Basic assumptions are tacit
underlying beliefs—the unwritten rules, status, relationships, attitudes and
feelings, people’s fundamental needs, values, and norms—that manifest
themselves in the way an organization actually functions. These assump-
tions are important sources of influence on activities and behaviors that
produce organizational success or failure.

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UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONS AND THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP 223

FIGURE 8-1 Model of organizational culture.

SOURCE: Adapted from Schein, 1991.

Applied to the advancement of antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion

in STEMM organizations, this model proposes that changing culture requires
addressing the tacit underlying beliefs, because that is where racism origi-
nates. Tacit underlying beliefs about racial hierarchy can be institutionalized
in public policies (as discussed in Chapter 2 and Chapter 6) and processes,
and they affect the opportunities and experiences that minoritized groups, in
particular, have within an organization. Any efforts or recommendations to
bring about systemic change, increase the participation of minoritized indi-
viduals, and also improve the quality of experience of minoritized groups in
STEMM disciplines must therefore address the invisible, underlying beliefs
that exist in both academic and non-academic STEMM organizations. While
such values and beliefs are abstract, they are critical to address because mem-
bers of an organization defer to them as justifications for standard practices
and for defining possible responses to organizational challenges (Schein,
2010). Such beliefs and values effectively operate as boundaries on what
changes and solutions to problems are possible within that particular culture.

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224 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

Organizations communicate their values to their participants through

both formal and informal policies, practices, and norms (Society for Hu-
man Resource Management, 2016). Values can help determine importance
or priority amid multiple interests; they vary based on individual judgment,
biases, and prejudices; and they shape personal behavior (Society for Human
Resource Management, 2016). Norms are accepted behaviors or conduct
within a social group, such as an organization, and they serve as the unwrit-
ten guidelines and expectations for individuals while participating in that
group (World Health Organization, 2009). Policies provide documented
structure and guidance for decisionmaking, while practices are the formal
and informal means of completing tasks. Facially race-neutral policies and
norms can end up reinforcing racially unequal outcomes (Ray, 2019). Values
and beliefs that have bearing on antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion
are made visible in ways that include, but are not limited to, practices such as
how an organization defines and applies its goals, what criteria it prioritizes
in making decisions, how it evaluates and socializes new members, and what
expectations it places on its leaders, including how resources are allocated.
STEMM organizations also express and transmit their cultures through
processes such as hiring, admissions, tenure and promotion, and other activities
that identify new members and promote those within. Conceptions of merit
and excellence in doctoral admissions, for example, are not given or objective,
but rather culturally constructed over time within disciplinary communities that
have been mostly non-Hispanic White and mostly male; thus, the metrics of
merit and excellence that institutions privilege in admissions reproduce cohorts
of students who resemble what came before (Posselt, 2016). Faculty hiring and
tenure committees make decisions using inherited norms of legitimate scholar-
ship and scholarly behavior for one’s field, which are often themselves biased
toward qualities that purport to be race neutral (Gonzales and Rincones, 2012;
Posselt, 2018). These norms can mask biases that affect “objective” processes,
which, in fact, are socially and culturally constructed over time within disci-
plinary communities that have been homogeneous in terms of race and gender.
To affect antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion, it is necessary to
understand and change organization-level structures and cultures. Orga-
nization-level analyses can address the problematic environmental factors
that impede individual success as defined by both organizations and its
participants and actors. Leaders who remove organization-level barriers in
the system can allow people to succeed and thrive, for example, rather than
simply struggle and persist.

THE RACIALIZATION OF ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURES

Organizations striving to advance antiracism, diversity, equity, and in-
clusion need to address not only the racial bias and behaviors of individuals,

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UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONS AND THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP 225

but also the institutionalized forms of racism that are embedded in organi-
zational policies, practices, norms, and values, which are structures upheld
by organizational culture. Understanding how structures of an organization
can produce and reproduce inequality is a foundation for understanding
the changes in its culture needed to advance diversity, equity, inclusion,
and antiracism, particularly given that most organizations do not operate
in a “neutral” or unbiased way. Each institution reflects values through a
combination of its mission; expenditures of time and money; membership
and stakeholders; how it describes itself on social media platforms and lit-
erature; the behaviors it promotes in its students or employees; and other
factors. How an organization chooses to distribute resources; hire, advance,
retain, promote, and reward individuals; and enforce policies related to race
and ethnicity reveal the depth of its commitment to antiracism, diversity,
equity, and inclusion (Ray, 2019).
For example, a medical school’s hiring process or admissions criteria
may appear to be race-neutral or colorblind (Tiako et al., 2022). How-
ever, without taking existing inequities into account or analyzing disparate
impacts, selection processes or criteria may produce racially disparate out-
comes (Obermeyer et al., 2019). These differential outcomes reflect—and
can reinforce—the broader race-related history of access and barriers, wealth
accumulation, and discrimination in the United States (see Chapter 2). A
neutral policy or standard cannot erase this history, and ignoring the im-
pacts of race can perpetuate cumulative and inequitable outcomes (Small
and Pager, 2020).
Affirmative action is a class of policies and programs that considers
race among the multiple criteria that are used to assess applicants for edu-
cational and professional opportunities (Cornell Law School, n.d.). It is
intended to promote the inclusion and representation of historically minori-
tized groups, including both women and people of color. Race-conscious
policies may take the form of targeted recruitment and hiring, grants and
scholarships for students from disadvantaged backgrounds, and the for-
mal consideration of an applicant’s race and ethnicity within processes of
holistic review (Posselt, 2020). Introduced by President Lyndon Johnson
in 1965, and extended into federal agencies in 1969 by Richard Nixon,
before diffusing throughout higher education institutions, the parameters
by which colleges and universities can consider race have been narrowing
since the 1978 Regents of the University of California vs. Bakke case de-
cided by the U.S. Supreme Court (U.S. Supreme Court, 1978). At the time
this report was written, two additional U.S. Supreme Court cases are under
review that will have an impact on the future of affirmative action, Students
for Fair Admissions Inc. v. President & Fellows of Harvard College and
Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. University of North Carolina (U.S.
Supreme Court, 2021a,b). The goals of affirmative action may vary and

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226 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

have included compensating for histories of discrimination and inequality,

realizing the educational benefits of diverse learning environments, and cor-
recting for the ways that conventional processes often produce racialized
outcomes (Jayakumar, et al., 2018).
How STEMM and other types of organizations produce racialized out-
comes is a quickly growing area of theory and research (Jayakumar et al.,
2018; Ray, 2019). Leaders in organizations are a key part of both perpetu-
ation and change in that they define and manage the environments in which
individuals and groups operate. One of the most important ways that do
this is through their power to determine the distribution of resources (e.g.,
entry and membership, monetary, opportunities and advancement); finan-
cial and monetary rewards in an organization (Ray, 2019). Decisions about
resource distribution that have implications for racial inclusion and equality
take place across multiple areas in an organization, including:

• Recruitment: where you search for talent

• Hiring: whom you select and through what methods
• Evaluation criteria: how people and their performance are assessed
• Rewards: who gets key assignments, recommendations, leadership
positions, promotions, and higher compensation
• Resources: who gets access to career development, funding, men-
torship and sponsorship, support systems, and peer and profes-
sional networks

The sections below examine how racialized selection criteria, stan-

dards, and processes can impact the composition of an organization.
Selection processes used for admissions as well as those used for hiring,
the typical evaluation criteria used, the biases of decisionmakers, and
other processes all directly institutionalize racial inequality (Ray, 2019).
How STEMM organizations determine who merits access is a powerful
reflection of organizational culture and has been a topic of considerable
research.

Standardized Tests in Undergraduate, Graduate,

and Medical School Admissions
The alarming numeric underrepresentation of persons of color in
STEMM (see Chapter 3) is a powerful indicator of a culture that permits
the differential exclusion of persons along lines of ethnicity and race. Admis-
sions processes are important both as a reflection of that culture and as a
reinforcer of it—they determine access to credentials that affect participation
in STEMM professions. While colleges and universities strive for fairness
in their admissions processes, many rely on criteria and credentials that are
unevenly distributed by race, and therefore produce racialized outcomes.

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UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONS AND THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP 227

Among the criteria that have received the most research attention, standard-
ized admissions tests, such as the ACT and SAT (for undergraduate pro-
grams), Graduate Record Examination or GRE (graduate programs), and
Medical College Admissions Test or MCAT (medical programs) have been
associated with inequalities in results related to the race and ethnicity of stu-
dents (Camara and Schmidt, 1999). There is also a growing body of research
about holistic admissions as an alternative approach that, when thoughtfully
designed and implemented, can better align organizational action with values
of ADEI (Posselt, 2020).

SAT
While the SAT was originally designed to open access to more students
to test into higher education, present-day results show Black and Latine
students score lower, on average, than White and Asian students on both
sections of the exam (Reading/Writing and Math):

The average [math] scores for Black (454) and Latino or Hispanic students
(478) are significantly lower than those of white (547) and Asian students
(632). The proportion of students reaching college-readiness benchmarks
also differs by race. Over half (59%) of white and four-fifths of Asian
test takers met the college readiness math benchmark, compared to less
than a quarter of Black students and under a third of Hispanic or Latino
students. [. . .]

Despite a wide range of efforts to reduce inequality, the racial gap in SAT
scores has scarcely narrowed during the lifetimes of the class of 2020. In
2002, the average white student’s SAT math score was 106 points higher
than the average Black student’s (533 compared to 427); by 2020, the
gap narrowed to 93 points. Still, nearly a third (31%) of white test takers
scored above 600 on the math portion of the SAT, compared to just 7%
of Black test takers (Smith, 2020).

Disparities in college preparedness and readiness manifest in test scores,

and they trace back to unequal access to high-quality pre-K–12 education:
Black and Latine students are more likely to attend schools that do not of-
fer college preparatory courses, such as Advanced Placement courses, and
less than 50 percent of American Indian and Alaska Native students have
access to a full range of math and science courses in high school (United
Negro College Fund; U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights,
2014).2 In addition, research shows the effect of stereotype threat (see
more details in Chapter 5), which “refers to a psychological phenomenon

2 Full range of math and science courses defined as Algebra I, geometry, Algebra II, calculus,

biology, chemistry, physics.

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228 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

in which a member of a negatively stereotyped group underperforms on an

activity because of increased anxiety that they may confirm the negative
stereotype” (U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights, 2014).
The observed effect sizes in one meta-analysis suggest that the SAT Math
and Reading/Writing tests underestimate the intellectual ability of Black
and Hispanic Americans by 39 to 41 points for each group. This underes-
timation of latent ability is a substantial portion of the overall Black-White
and Hispanic-White test gaps typically observed on SATs—199 and 148
points, respectively (Smith, 2020). These results suggest that the psycho-
logical context of common testing environments significantly undermines
real-world performance (Walton and Spencer, 2009).3
The SAT has significant effects on college admissions for students
beyond acceptance letters, contributing also to university decisions about
which students to actively recruit and offer financial aid (Sackett et al.,
2009). As Black and Latine students are less likely to come from house-
holds with generational wealth, the effect of lower SAT scores on finan-
cial aid packages can further exacerbate challenges in funding higher
education (Hernández Kent and Ricketts, 2021). The challenges on the
academic and affordability side can persist into other educational and
financial outcomes:

But significant gaps in graduation rates and test scores remain; representa-
tion is increasing, but success rates have yet to catch up. Half of Asian stu-
dents and 45% of white students graduate college in 4 years compared to
21% of Black students, and 32% of Latino or Hispanic students. Default
rates on student loans tell a similar story; Black and Latino or Hispanic
students are much more likely to default within 12 years of graduation
(Smith, 2020).

This suggests that colleges and universities may be creating barriers to

their services and to financial aid due to the racialized results produced by
standardized tests. As undergraduate education is a major prerequisite for
advanced study and many STEMM careers, the inequities produced by the
SAT are noteworthy. Some colleges and universities have in recent years
decided to drop the SAT as well as the ACT (another standardized test)
from their admissions process. Many did so in response to the COVID-19
pandemic (Nietzel, 2021). For example, the University of California system
decided to remove the standardized tests in 2020 and launched an investiga-
tion to determine whether to reintroduce the exams; it decided to continue
with the test suspension until fall 2024 (Nietzel, 2021). In the years after
the standardized test suspension, the University of California system has

3 In 2009, each section of the SAT was worth 800 points or 1600 for the combined score.

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UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONS AND THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP 229

seen an increased number of applications from students from minoritized

racial and ethnic groups (Nietzel, 2021).

GRE
The GRE has been a significant part of graduate admissions since its
establishment in 1936 (Boykin, 2022). According to the Educational Test-
ing Service (ETS), which administers the GRE, women and people from
minoritized racial and ethnic groups score lower, on average, than White
men and Asian men (Langin, 2019). The disparities have a direct effect
on racial equity in terms of access to STEM doctoral programs: “A 2014
analysis found that a GRE cutoff of 700 eliminated 94.8 [percent] of Black
applicants from the admissions pool in the physical sciences versus 18 [per-
cent] of white and Asian applicants” (Roberts, 2021). While ETS discour-
ages the use of cutoff scores in admissions decisions, research from a variety
of sources suggests that an emphasis on GRE scores play a significant role
in the admissions process and strongly shapes professors’ judgments of
admissibility (Petersen et al., 2021; Posselt, 2016). One study found that
with only undergraduate GPA and physics GRE score, the likelihood of a
person’s admission to physics Ph.D. programs could be predicted with 75
percent accuracy (Young and Caballero, 2021).
Research evidence is mixed concerning the predictive validity of the
GRE across different outcomes, disciplinary and institutional contexts from
which samples are drawn, research methods, and versions of the test. Stud-
ies show GRE scores are associated with first-year grades, but current re-
search does not demonstrate whether GRE scores correspond to longer term
outcomes (Moneta-Koehler et al., 2017). According to one recent study:

Although we did not examine any other indices of success in STEM Ph.D.
programs related to GRE scores, Hall et al. [20] found that neither GRE
V nor GRE Q scores predict the number of first author publications.
Moneta-Koehler et al. [21] found that GRE V scores were moderate pre-
dictors of first semester grades, graduate GPAs and of better subjective
faculty evaluations of some aspects of students’ performance. However,
these predictions did not translate to differences in time to degree, passing
qualifying exams, numbers of conference presentations, or numbers of
individual fellowships or grants (Petersen, 2018).

Since 2018, many STEM graduate programs have dropped the test as
an admissions requirement. These decisions began during the COVID-19
pandemic as graduate programs in most STEM fields decided to suspend
the requirement at least during the public health emergency (Langin, 2022).
Overall, movement away from GRE requirements varies by discipline. Up
to 50 percent of programs in the life sciences had already eliminated GRE

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230 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

requirements before COVID-19 (Langin, 2019). Most graduate schools

have delegated to individual programs the decision about whether to re-
quire scores, but some, such as University of Michigan and Montana State
University, have stopped collecting GRE scores altogether in admissions
processes for all graduate programs (Nietzel, 2022).

MCAT
Introduced in 1947, the MCAT has been assessed for its ability to
predict success in medical education coursework, licensing exams, and
graduation within four to five years (AAMC, 2019; Searcy et al., 2015). An
individual application to medical school includes MCAT scores, in addition
to undergraduate GPA, academic achievements, and personal essays. While
many medical schools have moved to a holistic approach to admissions
that balance these components, lower scores on the MCAT, even those
within the predictive range of success, are associated with lower rates of
acceptance to medical schools (Lucey and Saguil, 2020). In a study of 2009
MCAT scores, White applicants had a higher mean score (26.3) than Black
(20.0) or Latine (21.6) students (Davis et al., 2013).
While there have been differences in mean scores, a comprehensive
study of the MCAT and racial bias found that “Factors other than bias
in the exam might explain differences in performance [on the exam],
such as family, neighborhood, and school conditions, which relate to
academic achievement and differ by group” (Davis, 2013). This study
also found evidence that many admissions committees accept students
at similar rates regardless of race, and they are looking beyond MCAT
data to select students with a wide range of experiences and character-
istics (Davis, 2013).

Yet, in a review of data from the American Association of Medical

Colleges, admission rates for Black and Latine students have not yet
reached parity with their broader representation in the U.S. popula-
tion: “Of accepted applicants, nearly half (49.8 [percent]) were White,
22.0 [percent] were Asian, 7.1 [percent] were Black or African Ameri-
can, and 6.2 [­percent] were Hispanic, Latino, or of Spanish Origin”
(AAMC, 2019).

Here, a tension exists between the available data showing that on one
hand, similar acceptance rates across different racial and ethnic groups,
and on the other hand, that rates have not yet reached parity. Looking at
the data on applicants in the 2021–2022 class, only seven percent of ap-
plicants self-identified as Black, suggesting that while the admissions rates
are similar, the number of total applications has not yet reached parity
(AAMC, 2021).

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UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONS AND THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP 231

The U.S. scientific enterprise has long recognized this minoritization,

which exists also in Ph.D. admissions. Over the past several decades,
STEMM writ large has implemented interventions supported by federal
funding agencies and private philanthropies to increase the representation
of people from minoritized racial and ethnic groups in doctoral and medi-
cal education (National Science and Technology Council, 2021). Efforts
to support STEMM departments in redesigning their selection and recruit-
ment processes are one exception to a general tendency in antiracism,
diversity, equity, and inclusion interventions to reflect a “fix the person”
mindset. That is, rather than changing the organizations and systems that
students and early career scientists must navigate, most interventions pro-
vide students or early career faculty with experiences, support, mentoring,
community, and coaching to better guide them for survival and eventual
assimilation in a STEMM environment that some individuals may find
hostile (Posselt, 2021). In contrast, relatively few programs have focused on
changing the structure of access to STEMM organizations or their learning
and working environments itself, although there are important and promis-
ing exceptions. Thus, despite the work of local champions who lead these
student-centered programs, progress on a national level has been slow.

CONCLUSION 8-1: Although standardized tests, such as the SAT, GRE,

and MCAT, may not be biased as instruments, they often replicate the edu-
cational inequities endured by students from historically minoritized racial
and ethnic groups, and they are not consistent predictors of academic and
professional success. Reliance on standardized test scores can exacerbate
racial inequities in admissions and financial aid decisions for undergradu-
ate, graduate, and medical programs.

Holistic Admissions
In undergraduate, graduate, and medical education, the movement
away from reliance on standardized tests has been coupled with a move-
ment toward holistic review, which is defined as an assessment of “academic
ability coupled with a flexible assessment of applicants’ talents, experiences,
and potential to contribute to the learning of those around them” by evalu-
ating “all of the information available in their file” (U.S. Supreme Court,
2003). There is a growing body of evidence about holistic admissions in
undergraduate, graduate, and medical admissions and the conditions under
which the practice of holistic admissions can serve as a means of improving
diversity and reducing inequalities. Research shows that this approach re-
flects a cultural shift for organizational admissions practices to look beyond
metrics that reinforce racial and other social inequalities; align standards
of quality with expressed commitments to antiracism, diversity, equity,
and inclusion; and formally assess professional skills and socio-emotional

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232 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

qualities that affect professional success and organizational health (Bastedo,

2016; Garces and Jayakumar, 2014; Roca-Barcelo, 2021). Such skills and
qualities include distance traveled, teamwork or leadership, contributions
to the diversity goals of an organization, and prior experience with navigat-
ing challenging situations with regard to antiracism, diversity, equity, and
inclusion (Roca-Barcelo, 2021; Wilson, 1981).
Research on holistic admissions across higher education sectors also
shows that in addition to broadening the criteria that are assessed, changes
must be made to how organizational decisionmakers interpret information
in applications if the goals are to increase diversity and create more equi-
table selection processes (Posselt, 2020). Like test scores, other information
in applications for admissions, such as extracurricular involvement and re-
search experience, may reflect existing inequities; therefore, organizational
evaluations should contextualize information in the application instead of
taking credentials information at face value (Bastedo, 2016; Posselt, 2021;
Rosinger, Meyer, and Wang, 2021). Strategies for contextualization include
considering the error on metrics such as grades and test scores and consider-
ing an applicant’s achievements considering the opportunities they had or
did not have access to (Posselt, 2016).
In addition to conducting more comprehensive and contextualized re-
view, research shows the importance of being systematic and equity-minded
in admissions, particularly in graduate admissions, which is especially sub-
ject to bias because it is decentralized and often lacking in formal policy
(Klitgaard, 1985). There is evidence that utilizing evaluation protocols or
rubrics can support holistic review implementation. When thoughtfully de-
signed, such protocols or rubrics create more consistent evaluations across
applications and among multiple reviewers. They can also make holistic
review of applications more efficient and accountable and result in selection
of more underrepresented racial minority applicants (Roca-Barcelo, 2021).
Research on rubrics in K–12 education indicates that they also reduce im-
plicit bias (Quinn, 2020).

Hiring and Wage Setting

In contrast to research on admissions, which looks mainly at selection
criteria and processes with disparate impacts, there has been a strong focus
on direct racial discrimination in the research on selection for hiring (Liera
and Hernandez, 2021). Major audit studies have demonstrated that racial
discrimination exists in hiring processes across organizations (Eaton et al.,
2020). While not STEMM specific, one meta-analysis covering research
from 1980 to 2015 found that White applicants received 36 percent more
callbacks from employers than African American candidates and 24 per-
cent more than Latines with equal qualifications (Quillian et al., 2017).

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UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONS AND THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP 233

This research suggests that there has been no change since 1972 in terms
of racial discrimination in hiring for African American people, and while
there is a possible decline for Latine people, that decline was not considered
significant.
What does the discrimination look like? One non-STEMM specific
study looking at credentials created identical applications for 350 employ-
ers posting for entry-level jobs, except some noted that applicants had a
criminal record and others did not. Here, the criminal record is meant to be
a negative credential, as it is often correlated with less desirable outcomes in
the labor market. For the White applicants, the impact of a criminal record
was a 50 percent reduction in the likelihood of receiving a callback. Adding
race as a factor, the study showed that an application for a White individual
with a criminal record had a nearly 2.5-fold higher likelihood of receiving a
callback than an application for a Black candidate with no criminal record
(Pager, 2009). Returning to the theory of racialized organizations, White-
ness here serves as a credential for employment without any indication of
additional skill or education. If Black individuals have a lower likelihood of
receiving a callback, they will likely spend more time securing employment.
This has impacts beyond the application process. When Black indi-
viduals do find a job, it is likely that they will spend more time commuting
to their place of employment, reducing their leisure and rest hours (Ray,
2019). Earnings are also negatively impacted. The Bureau of Labor Sta-
tistics notes that once people are hired, there are racialized and gendered
wage gap discrepancies, possibly reflecting that Black and Latine people
may also be in lower-wage positions. According to the U.S. Bureau of La-
bor Statistics, in the first quarter of 2022, the median weekly earnings of
Black people ($840) and Latine people ($799) working full-time jobs for
all employment sectors were lower than those of White ($1,064) and Asian
($1,362) employees. Median weekly earnings for both Black and Hispanic
men were just over 75 percent of the median weekly earnings for White
men, while the median weekly earnings for Black and Latine women were
85 percent and 77 percent, respectively, less than the median weekly wage
for White women. Earnings of Asian men ($1,452) and women ($1,237)
were higher than those of their White counterparts (U.S. Bureau of Labor
Statistics, 2022). Specifically for faculty jobs, the salaries that Asians and
Asian-Americans earn are often higher than for White people and people
from other minoritized groups; however, while they may earn more money,
they often are appointed to leadership positions at a lower rate (Lee, 2002).
As with many phenomena in academia, these patterns and the causes
for them may vary by discipline. A recent study in chemistry found, for
example, that discrimination is responsible for wage differentials between
chemists who identify as White and those who are Asian and Black, whereas
most of the wage differential between White and Hispanic chemists was

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234 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

that result of differences in human capital, such as educational attainment

and experiences (Broyles and Fenner, 2010).

CONCLUSION 8-2: Racial discrimination continues to be a significant

factor in hiring processes and wages. In terms of hiring, Black people are
less likely to receive callbacks than less-credentialed White people. In terms
of wages, across occupations Black people and Latine people have lower
median weekly earnings than their White and Asian counterparts. Analyses
of salary levels and start-up packages by race/ethnicity for science, technol-
ogy, engineering, mathematics, and medicine faculty are limited but recent
data suggest that White men receive higher salaries and larger start-up
packages than scientists who are women or who are not White.

Academic Positions, Advancement, Retention, and Tenure

While many of the major audit studies focus on the labor market
broadly, there has been less research on what happens to individuals once
they have gained employment in terms of promotion and advancement,
especially in non-academic STEMM organizations.
There are well-documented barriers in academia to the advancement
and tenure of individuals from historically minoritized groups in STEMM,
as mentioned previously in Chapter 5. One such area is the long-lasting
and amplifying effect of publication record. For example, one study shows
that a less productive first-author predoctoral publication record, along
with other qualifications, correlates with lower likelihood of obtaining a
faculty position (Tregellas, 2018). Early success in publications can aid an
early scientist’s long-term efforts in a self-reinforcing situation known as
the Matthew effect:

This happens [compounding benefits to early success] because the win-

ner enjoys resource and status advantages over the nonwinner. These
advantages cause differences in future success to further grow, setting
in motion a cumulative advantage process of increasing distinction. To
the extent that luck plays a role in early academic success, the Matthew
effect may undermine meritocracy by allowing an initially fortunate
scientist’s recognition to self-perpetuate, while an equally talented but
initially less fortunate counterpart remains underappreciated (Bol et al.,
2018).

This phenomenon suggests that so called “early winners” may continue

to enjoy the cumulative benefits into the future. Because of disparity along
racial lines related to early career outcomes, White people may enjoy ampli-
fied benefits if there are compound effects, while people from minoritized
groups do not meet success at the same level. This disparity is also evident

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UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONS AND THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP 235

in the proportion of individuals from each group who are able to obtain
tenure track positions, with nearly 50 percent of White doctoral scientists
and engineers employed at four-year colleges having a tenured position as
opposed to 40 percent of Asian employees and 42 percent of employees
from minoritized racial and ethnic groups (National Center for Science and
Engineering Statistics, 2021).
A study of medical faculty found that medical schools promoted non-
White assistant professors at lower rates than their White counterparts. The
promotion gap was largest for minoritized faculty, smaller for Asian and
Pacific Islander faculty, and not statistically significant for Hispanic faculty.
This study also found lower promotion rates for systemically minoritized
associate professors compared to White peers, although the difference was
not statistically significant. There was no evidence that these gaps in promo-
tion rates had narrowed over time. Medical schools have also been noted
as sites of discrimination, with racialized processes shaping admissions,
learning climate, and career trajectory (Xierali et al., 2021).
One review of the literature on barriers for African American indi-
viduals in academia (not STEMM-specific fields) identified the following
factors: microaggressions from White colleagues, no acknowledgment of
Black faculty as credible researchers, Eurocentric work environments, and
higher workload responsibilities compared to White faculty. Studies have
also shown that African American faculty are less satisfied with their jobs
compared to White faculty (Frazier, 2021). It may be that these differences
in job satisfaction and workload distribution result from Black faculty hav-
ing less opportunity to select committees, administrative appointments, or
the courses they teach.
In terms of antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion, organizational
climate and culture can have a profound impact on the experience of partic-
ipating individuals. One term that describes the issues that faculty of color
face is cultural taxation, or, the unique burden placed on them to fit into
the academy, often at the expense of their own cultural identity (Padilla,
2002). One scholar described cultural taxation as the

. . . obligation to show good citizenship towards the institution by serv-

ing its needs for ethnic representation on committees, or to demonstrate
knowledge and commitment to a cultural group, which, though it may
bring accolades to the institution, is not usually rewarded by the institution
on whose behalf the service was performed (Padilla, 2002).

There is growing evidence that for White women and people of color,
both of whom face pressures and expectations outside of their academic
responsibilities, the preset time-clock and vague but high expectations for
promotion may lead to decisions not to progress up the academic ladder.

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236 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

One report referred to this as “bias avoidance” and suggested that many
academics, particularly those who are parents, make choices about their
careers that may be counterproductive to career advancement (Drago et al.,
2006). Current research and campus demographic realities suggest that
women, for example, do not progress in their careers as faculty or in their
progression to leadership positions at the same rate as their male colleagues
(Ceci et al., 2014; Mason et al., 2013; Ward and Wolf-Wendel, 2012). While
the ideal-worker framework, often characterized by a culture where work-
ers center their profession as the primary obligation and have additional
support to attend to their domestic needs (Zhanhour and Sumpter, 2022)
is most often used in relation to White women and work and family con-
cerns, looking at faculty from minoritized racial and ethnic groups through
this lens is also important. This is because they too are impacted by these
systemic norms, not only as a result of personal concerns, but also because
of the demands of cultural taxation. For women of color, the cultural tax
related to race and ethnicity combined with ideal-worker norms associated
with gender represent a double set of pressures (Kachchaf et al., 2015).
Faculty of color can bear quite high professional, psychological, and
emotional costs as a result of experiencing common barriers, including
tokenism, marginalization as scholars, racial microaggressions, devaluation
of their scholarship, and a disconnect between their racial/ethnic culture
and the culture within academia (Settles et al., 2021). Research has found
this is particularly true for STEMM faculty of color leading scholarship in
the diversity, equity, and inclusion space (Clauset et al., 2015; Payton et al.,
2018). These penalties adversely affect faculty advancement, which is closely
tied to psychological well-being. Studies have found that faculty who have
high levels of social support or mentoring, enhanced sense of belonging
within their department, and satisfactory work-life balance are the most suc-
cessful in the academy (Bean et al., 2014; Freel et al., 2017; Stupnisky et al.,
2014). In contrast, faculty penalized because of their race and ethnicity
experience a variety of psychosocial and professional consequences, ranging
from loneliness, race-related stress, decreased job satisfaction, to imposter
syndrome (Allen et al., 2004; Dancy and Jean-Marie, 2014; Niemann, 2011;
Payton et al., 2018).
Particularly for Black women, a welcoming environment may change
over time. In a phenomenon called Pet-to-Threat, which is not limited to
STEMM, Black women, especially those early in their career, may ini-
tially receive support from managers and supervisors, who most often
are White men (Thomas et al., 2013). While at first the mentorship may
go smoothly, as the women grow in their roles and begin to assert them-
selves, the attitudes of the managers and supervisors shift as they perceive
this increased agency as a threat to the status quo in a culture typically
dominated by White males. These women, who once received guidance, can

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UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONS AND THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP 237

BOX 8-2
Black Women, Natural Hair, and Discrimination

Workplace policies and norms that monitor dress, wardrobe, and overall
appearance have a tendency to center the habits of White, Eurocentric styles.
(Rabelo et al., 2020). These policies can contribute to an unwelcoming envi-
ronment for the people affected, overall creating a climate that is hostile to a
part of their identity. For example, policies and norms that restrict natural hair
have a disproportionate impact on Black men and women. This norm reflects
anti-Black hair sentiment dating back to slavery through the Civil Rights move-
ment, and generally impacts Black women the most (Griffin, 2019). At pres-
ent, there are no federal laws that protect against race-based discrimination
related to natural hair as courts cite that it is a characteristic that a person
can change.
In educational and professional settings, these policies and norms signal
to Black women that the White-dominant culture expects them to assimilate to
White-centered standards of care to be accepted and that their natural hair,
often connected to Black culture and community, is not welcome. This choice
to go against the standard Eurocentric values may be thought of as an act of
agency or dominance that threatens White-dominant culture, when in actuality
a Black woman who chooses to wear an Afrocentric hairstyle is displaying a
part of herself that is unique, fulfilling her need to feel distinct (Bell, Nkomo,
and Stella, 2003).
One study provides a theory connecting racial identity, belonging, and
perceived dominance in the workplace that suggests that individuals with minori-
tized identity traits may suppress those traits, and hence their unique identity, to
feel that they belong in the dominant culture and fulfill a need for belongingness.
One result from this study is that Black participants did not demonstrate ingroup
favoritism about Afrocentric hair, suggesting that, “When Black women don Af-
rocentric hair, Black perceivers may have heightened concerns that the Black
women’s dominance display will negatively reflect on all Blacks.” Individuals
may feel alienated and experience increased emotional and cognitive burdens
as they consider how to manage how others perceive them. This may result in
the individual becoming less committed to their organization (Opie and Phillips,
2015; Rosette and Dumas, 2007), while organizations may lose the richness that
diversity provides. In addition, organizations with perceived requirements to sup-
press identity traits may have to deal with lawsuits.
While removing explicit policies that discriminate against natural hair and
other hairstyles might be a first step, there are broader cultural factors that can
continue to contribute to stigma. Building an organization with an inclusive and
welcoming culture that embraces individual authenticity may increase the well-
being and function of the individual and decrease stress and anxiety related to
identity suppression.

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238 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

find those resources retracted and their career trajectories undermined by

their previous supporters. This phenomenon underscores that belonging is
not a binary state, but rather is a continuum that can vary over time and
where one’s place in that spectrum depends on the treatment from others
(Thomas, 2013). (For more on group and team dynamics, see Chapter 7.)
Within academia, one model proposes a dual process for creating epis-
temic exclusion, which occurs when certain areas of scholarship are seen
as outside of a discipline’s dominant discourse. First, it reflects a racial
prejudice that faculty of color do not have the capability or credibility to be
scholars based on stereotypes related to Black, Latine, and Native Ameri-
cans as lacking intelligence, being lazy, and willing to game the system for
their advantage. Asian Americans often suffer from stereotypes of being
foreign. Second, while many disciplines have strong norms for research
topics and methods, faculty of color are more likely to adopt alternative
approaches and conduct studies on topics and groups that fall outside of the
established expectations. This can be seen in the devaluation of scholarship
led by faculty of color that does not appear to fall within the mainstream
of their discipline’s research activities. Those scholars who choose research
outside of the norms are more likely to face delegitimization. At the same
time, faculty of color who chose to study mainstream topics may not nec-
essarily benefit from conforming to the mainstream, as racial prejudice
will negatively impact how their colleagues regard their research. Taken
together, epistemic exclusion serves as a gatekeeper in which bias regarding
certain scholars and specific types of research prevents faculty of color from
being valued as legitimate and credible knowers and scholars. This devalu-
ation has negative consequences for the hiring, retention, and advancement
of faculty of color (Griffin et al., 2013; Patton, 2017; Settles et al., 2021).
Non-tenure-track positions have implications for racial and ethnic bias
as well. These positions are important for understanding the professoriate, as
70 percent of faculty across all academic departments are non-tenure-track
or contingent (American Association of University Professors, 2018). While
departments often promote prestigious tenure-track positions as synonymous
with research and development and the opportunity to contribute to their
disciplines, non-tenure-track positions are more strongly associated with ser-
vice and teaching. Non-tenure-track positions, lacking the security of tenure,
are therefore seen as less acclaimed and often come with fewer support than
their tenure-track peers. Hiring for these positions may follow a different
path than tenure-track positions, opening the door for bias to creep in. In
addition, many non-tenure-track positions are hired outside of traditional
processes, which often excludes them from affirmative-action oversight. De-
partment chairs often do much of the non-tenure-track hiring, and they are
often White men who may unconsciously hire from their own peer groups
and networks (AAUP, 2018). (For more on gatekeepers see Chapter 6.)

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UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONS AND THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP 239

In terms of part-time positions, there has been an increase in the propor-

tion of scholars of color, from nine percent in 1993 to 14 percent in 2013
(Finkelstein et al., 2016; Flaherty, 2016). Faculty of color are less likely to be
at large, research-intensive universities as well, although the reasons behind
this could be multifaceted and result from bias in hiring at four-year schools
or because faculty of color are opting to be at diverse institutions in order to
mentor and support students of color (Bavishi et al., 2010). Some qualita-
tive data suggest that faculty sometimes chose to help their communities and
return to particular types of institutions (Baez, 2000; Stanley, 2006).
In addition to facing discrimination in tenure and promotion, Black
and Asian professors across all academic disciplines face different kinds
of treatment in student evaluations. One study found that students judged
their Black professors to be significantly less competent and legitimate than
their White and Asian counterparts (Bavishi et al., 2010). Students also
judged both Black and Asian professors to have significantly fewer inter-
personal skills than White professors (Kreitzer and Sweet-Kushman, 2022).

CONCLUSION 8-3: People from minoritized racial and ethnic groups

encounter significant race-related barriers in academia that affect their
career advancement and retention, including but not limited to bias in
tenure and promotion, challenges to align with the dominant culture, and
everyday discrimination from colleagues and students including microag-
gressions and tokenism.

Career Development, Mentorship, and Professional Networks

In addition to the research demonstrating that Black individuals are
paid less for the same level of employment as their White counterparts,
White individuals are also shown to be more likely to receive other non-
monetary resources, such as formal and informal mentoring, access to
professional networks, sponsorship from institutional or other STEMM
leaders, and opportunities for professional development. As a result, despite
having similar credentials and working in equivalent positions, it will take
a Black person more time to accumulate wealth, which will affect decisions
related to housing, education, and health (Ray, 2019).
For example, given the low numbers of Black researchers in computer
science and engineering, there are limited opportunities for the Black stu-
dents in those departments to find mentors and advisors who understand
and can advocate against anti-Blackness (the National Academies, 2019).
As a result, Black students in those fields may turn to an unsupportive
advisor who believes the narrative that STEM is colorblind and a meritoc-
racy (McGee, 2020). It is not the case that all Black students, Indigenous
students, and other students from historically minoritized backgrounds

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240 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

require a mentor of the same racial or ethnic background, and it would

be problematic to assume that faculty of color have to be responsible for
mentoring all students of color.
However, professors of all races and ethnicities do need to have cultural
competence to serve as effective mentors to students of color (Chrobot-
Mason, 2003). Emerging literatures on cultural humility and racial literacy
build on the evidence about cultural competence to highlight the impor-
tance of mentors and faculty, as representatives of disciplinary cultures,
engaging with students’ cultures of origin. The same is true for research
advisors, who serve a different role than mentors and who may not other-
wise appreciate a student’s interest in pursuing research topics that come
out of their unique minority experiences. Some advisors may not believe
that antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion issues are legitimate topics
for scholarly study, while others may feel they are protecting their minority
student protégés from the negative judgements of future colleagues who do
not consider such research to be important. In either case, faculty advisors
may steer their graduate students away from diversity research and only
support them if they pursue more mainstream research that future col-
leagues will find credible, advice that limits academic freedom relative to
White graduate students.

CONCLUSION 8-4: Lack of diversity within organizations can limit

access to career resources for people from minoritized racial and ethnic
groups, such as mentorship, sponsorship, and professional networks, that
could support their development.

RECOMMENDATION 8-1: Organizational leaders should take action to

redress both individual bias and discrimination as well as organizational
processes that reproduce harm and negative outcomes for people from
minoritized racial and ethnic groups at critical points of access and ad-
vancement. This action should include a review of evaluation criteria and
decisionmaking practices (i.e., in admissions, hiring and wage and start-up
resource-setting, promotion, advancement) to understand whether and to
what degree existing standards perpetuate underlying racial and ethnic
inequities.

Admissions offices at colleges and universities, as well as admis-

• 
sions decisionmakers in graduate programs, should assess the align-
ment or divergence between their current admissions policies and
criteria and values of antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion
and develop holistic admissions strategies that offer a systematic,
contextualized evaluation of applicants on multiple dimensions.

Hiring managers, directors of human resources, and supervisors

• 
should measure and review the application, offer, and acceptance

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UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONS AND THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP 241

rates in their organization, as well as the salaries, resource pack-

ages, and academic tracks and titles of new hires, for instances of
racial and ethnic discrimination in the hiring process. As a result,
these leaders should, as appropriate, implement proactive out-
reach and recruitment to increase applications from people from
minoritized racial and ethnic groups, trainings and resources to
eliminate bias in the hiring process for managers, and updated
policies to reduce bias and discrimination in setting wages.

Directors of human resources and supervisors should measure,

• 
evaluate, and address the presence of bias and discrimination in
rewards and promotion; the proportion of people from histori-
cally minoritized backgrounds leaving their positions; and their
reasons for doing so, as well as in and the access to culturally
relevant mentorship for students and employees.

CHANGING ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE AND CLIMATE TO

CENTER ANTIRACISM, DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION

How Leaders Change Organizations

As stated at the beginning of the chapter, individuals leading hierar-
chical organizations have the power and responsibility to make decisions
about values and determine priorities on behalf of others in the organiza-
tion. This can be demonstrated through the distribution and allotment of
resources such as financial, material, mentorship, level of comfort, and
prestige (Ray, 2019). These individuals can also shape the application of
rules and bureaucratic procedures in ways that reinforce, or at least do not
undermine, their power. Racism can thus be framed as a differential power
dynamic, in which policies, practices, norms, and values explicitly or im-
plicitly provide one group additional privilege based on race or ethnicity
rather than other factors. Even in organizations that have diverse numerical
representation overall, it matters where individuals are located within the
hierarchical structure. Inequities can arise in organizations where people
from minoritized racial and ethnic groups are limited to entry-level or ad-
ministrative positions (Wilkie, 2018).
For STEMM organizations today, increasing demographic diversity
and increasing sensitivity to equity, inclusion, and antiracism across soci-
ety are motivating changes that many institutions had previously resisted
(Foster, 2016). This trend is consistent with the established open-systems
view of organizations today, a perspective that argues that organizations’
internal activities by necessity evolve with political, economic, and social
forces in the environment (Scott and Davis, 2015). Like other forms of
organizational change, efforts to make changes that advance antiracism,

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242 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

diversity, equity, and inclusion may come from outside the organization
(i.e., exogenous) or from within the organization (i.e., endogenous) fac-
tors. Internal drivers of change might be reflected in low recruitment and
high attrition rates for STEMM professionals from minoritized racial and
ethnic backgrounds. Member demands for greater transparency and equity
in treatment can also reflect internal drivers for change.
There are a number of exogenous factors that can create incentives
for change. A potent example of exogenous change was provided in 2020
during the COVID-19 pandemic, when universities’ very financial survival
depended upon their ability to quickly pivot to online instruction. Funding
agencies and organizations can motivate change by creating new criteria
and can shift norms through policy changes. International and national
events can change the overall environment in which research takes place.
For example, the 2020 murders of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and
Breonna Taylor by law enforcement spurred a broader national movement
and conversation around racism in the United States. Boards, trustees, and
investors can demand greater transparency in antiracism, diversity, equity,
and inclusion; track results; and request meaningful progress over time. In
addition, as organizations compete for talented minoritized students and
scientists, this can provide a powerful motivation for change in order to
attract and retain diverse talent.

Organizations in a Sector Collectively Change

Research and theory have documented how organizations in a field
or a sector may collectively trend toward new, shared forms and values,
including changes that advance antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion
(DiMaggio and Powell, 1983; Posselt, 2020). Organizational theorists call
this institutional isomorphism, and three mechanisms of institutional iso-
morphism have been identified: mimetic, normative, and coercive isomor-
phism (DiMaggio and Powell, 1983).

Mimetic Isomorphism
In some circumstances, notably if an overarching strategy has not been
formed or the organization is at a decision point, organizations may take
actions that imitate or align with those of the most powerful in their field,
sometimes referred to as mimetic isomorphism (DiMaggio and Powell,
1983). Therefore, organizing influential organizations in some sector or
field around changes that support antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclu-
sion can be a powerful lever for field-wide change. In such situations, dif-
fusion of some new practice or policy can reach a tipping point, wherein
what was once a minority viewpoint overturns established consensus

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UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONS AND THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP 243

(Centola et al., 2018). An example of this is the elimination of GRE require-

ments in many U.S. astronomy Ph.D. programs. Through a combination of
equity-minded advocacy from the American Astronomical Society’s presi-
dent and board of directors in 2015, and the coordinated action of several
top-ranked Ph.D. programs in the field, a sea change occurred in the field
in a relatively short time (American Physical Society, 2020). As of summer
2022, across 50 top-ranked universities in the United States, only three
percent of programs required the GRE in psychology, computer science,
physics, geology, chemistry, ecology, neuroscience, and molecular biology
(Langin, 2022). Mimetic influences are widespread and can be leveraged in
support of antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion values when influen-
tial organizations use their privileged position within status hierarchies to
lead their field in challenging the status quo.

Normative Isomorphism
Systems of professionalization and socialization, including advanced
training in STEMM disciplines, are another important potential source of
sector-level changes because it is through professionalization experiences
that students are socialized to community standards. Graduate and profes-
sional education may be an important site for such change. As students are
trained into professional norms, there is an opportunity for changing the
expectations that we associate with the work and performance of scholars,
doctors, engineers, and others relative to the last generation regarding what
it means to uphold their roles with excellence. For example, to the extent
that racial literacy, mentoring, equitable project management, or more
inclusive approaches to teaching are promulgated in graduate and profes-
sional training programs, STEMM organizations can begin to reshape the
culture of whole fields. Disciplinary and professional societies have an im-
portant role in this regard as conveners who shape the collective conversa-
tion and priorities in fields (Greenwood et al., 2002).

Coercive Isomorphism
Coercive isomorphism results from both formal and informal pressures
exerted on organizations by other organizations upon which they are de-
pendent and by cultural expectations in the society (DiMaggio and Powell,
1983). Given the dependence of many STEMM organizations on federal
agency funding, for example, changes in the requirements for federal grants
and contracts can reshape what everyone judges and tries to produce as a
meritorious proposal. When universities change their tenure and promotion
requirements to include effective teaching, mentoring, and contributions to
departmental change efforts, faculty are more likely to dedicate time and

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244 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

energy to this work (Mbuagbaw et al., 2020). Calls to change incentive

structures are effectively calls to leverage the influence of coercive isomor-
phism on professional behavior. However, as evidence from studies of the
Athena SWAN Charter in the United Kingdom have found, institutions that
adopt policies and practices supportive of antiracism, diversity, equity, and
inclusion to align with external standards, without strong internal commit-
ment or mission alignment, may engage in “box-ticking,” performative,
and other contradictory behaviors that can undermine long-term equity,
diversity, and inclusion efforts (Tzanakou and Pearce, 2019).

BARRIERS TO AND CHALLENGES OF CULTURE CHANGE

Although a growing number of organizations are working to create
positive cultural change toward realizing values of antiracism, diversity,
equity, and inclusion, there is also evidence of several common contradic-
tions and barriers that may emerge as organizations begin working on these
issues.

Contradictions in Cultural Change

STEMM organizations that formally espouse values of antiracism, di-
versity, equity, and inclusion might still signal or create hostile or chilly cli-
mates for racial minority groups. There are several reasons this may occur:
(i) a failure to interrogate the outcomes of prior practices and the messages
sent during recruitment; (ii) how people are experiencing the ways that an
organization is operationalizing its commitment to antiracism, diversity,
equity, and inclusion; and (iii) the racialized equity labor that an organiza-
tion often requires of minoritized members as it evolves its organizational
culture toward antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion (Lerma et al.,
2020; Wynn and Correll, 2018). Rather than attracting Black students,
Indigenous students, and other students of color, the STEMM organizations
that publicly embrace antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion values but
struggle with participation, low stay rates, and limited leadership of color
may send messages that they do not prioritize diversity, and that Black stu-
dents, Indigenous students, and other students of color may risk isolation,
alienation, harassment, and discrimination.
Another challenge is that even the STEMM scholars and organizations
that elevate messages of inclusive excellence may perpetuate scientific norms
that marginalize, exclude, or devalue minoritized individuals or groups.
This gatekeeping reality (see Chapter 6) creates a disconnect between the
diversity rhetoric and the realities of diverse scientists who continue to
experience exclusion and fewer opportunities for funding, advancement,
and tenured academic positions. (Fini et al., 2022; Ginther et al., 2011;

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UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONS AND THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP 245

Hofstra et al., 2020). This unevenness has several origins. As noted above,
culture is unlikely to be uniform across an organization and fragmentation
is a common feature in processes of cultural change (Martin, 2001). In
addition, STEMM organizations often operate within incentive structures
whose values are at odds with antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion.
While significant strides are possible with investment and sustained effort,
no organization can instantaneously undo the entire scope of its inherited
racialized practices, beliefs, norms, and policies.

Emotional Dimensions of Organizational Change Theory Related to

Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
For organizations broadly, change related to antiracism, diversity,
equity, and inclusion4 may be experienced as qualitatively different from
many other types of organizational change because it is bound up with
members’ social identities and the emotional and political dimensions
of those identities. Discussions and other activities centered around race
and inequity are often accompanied by feelings such as anger, fear, and
pain (Ahmed, 2004; Zembylas, 2011, 2012). A growing body of research
documents the importance of recognizing and managing racialized emo-
tions, which tend to differ significantly between White individuals, who
enjoy racial privilege, and people of color, who have experienced racism
(Joseph et al., 2015).
For leaders and those within an organization, change management can
feel personal: “Change begins by recognizing the fields of influence in a situ-
ation and identifying the points at which there are ‘gatekeepers’ that impede
the flow of change in a system” (Estrada et al., 2016).5 Disrupting the status
quo, for any reason, calls into question the often-overlooked assumptions
buried in the values and practices of an organization (Southern, 2022).
This can cause cognitive dissonance for White members. It is not uncom-
mon for professionals to feel and believe that they hold values supportive
of antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion while the organizations they
work for may not fully uphold them. This dissonance can prompt individu-
als to confront parts of themselves and biases that may be uncomfortable
or troubling.
It is here that processes happening at the organizational and individual
levels can reinforce one another. While individuals may uphold the principles

4 Research on antiracism as a component of organizational change is newer to the field, and

the findings in this section may not have the evidence on antiracist efforts in the same depth
as diversity, equity, and inclusion.
5 Change management is personal, for both those leading change and those within

organizations.

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246 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

of antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion in theory, the practice of

change may require naming realities of racism in the organization, which
can provoke “White guilt.” It may also require redistributions of power and
resources, which can elicit an emotions-based resistance to change efforts.
At a minimum, White individuals may resist confronting uncomfortable
racialized emotions because they reap frequently unexamined privilege from
systems that prioritize Whiteness. They may therefore resist the personal
transformation that accompanies a journey of antiracism, a reaction that
leaders may reinforce by prioritizing colleagues and their comfort when
setting the pace for their organization’s antiracism, diversity, equity, and
inclusion transformation efforts (Patton and Haynes, 2018; Southern, 2022)
Finally, reiterating issues highlighted earlier in Chapter 5 in relation to
organizational fit and comfort, White members of an organization often
experience a greater level of comfort in the status quo than people from sys-
temically minoritized groups. In particular, if leadership is predominantly
White, the culture, climate, and norms will likely center Whiteness and give
the privilege of comfort to White individuals (Hauge, 2019). In contrast,
cultural change also compels attention to the comfort—or lack thereof—
experienced by Black people, Indigenous people, and other people of color
in work environments that were not designed with their needs in mind, that
may be downright hostile, and that can lead them to be less committed to
and satisfied with the organization (Cady and Valentine, 1999; Greenhaus
et al., 1990; Tsui et al., 1992, 1997).
Additionally, organizational policies and standard practices may dif-
ferentially affect Black scientists, Indigenous scientists, and other scientists
of color. For example, as mentioned earlier in this chapter, policies that
limit or ban natural hairstyles have a disproportionate impact on Black
women in the workplace. The policing of Black women’s appearance sends
the signal that they do not belong in the workplace or educational setting.
Racialized identities are a filter through which people experience racialized
organizations and change processes around antiracism, diversity, equity,
and inclusion. Therefore, how leaders manage both the implementation of
new policies and practices and the experience of the change process and the
emotions that accompany it can be the difference between a change effort
succeeding or failing (Southern, 2022).

Resistance to Change
In thinking about cultural change, particularly in regard to antira-
cism, diversity, equity, and inclusion, it is important for organizations to
anticipate and identify resistance among its members. One definition of
diversity resistance is “a range of practices and behaviors within and by
organizations that interfere, intentionally or unintentionally, with the use

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UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONS AND THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP 247

of diversity as an opportunity for learning and effectiveness” (Plaut et al.,

2014). For STEMM, this can also manifest in arguments that seek to ratio-
nalize inequalities or use logic to delegitimize diversity efforts, in addition
to the emotional dimension to resistance briefly discussed above. Often
these arguments rest upon misperceptions, myths, or otherwise false claims,
such as the claims that people from historically minoritized groups are not
interested in STEMM, that they have not received adequate preparation to
participate in STEMM, that science is a meritocracy so it does not matter
who is conducting the research, that discrimination no longer exists, a lack
of supportive resources for diversity programs, and the argument that there
is not a strong business case for diversity (Plaut et al., 2014).
The widespread presence of such myths in STEMM organizations,
which are ostensibly dedicated to data and truth, makes it clear that learn-
ing must be a critical element of organizational change (Smith, 2020). While
many organizations will offer diversity or implicit bias training for employ-
ees, the literature indicates limited efficacy of mandating participation.

Efforts to moderate managerial bias through diversity training and diver-

sity evaluations are least effective at increasing the share of white women,
black women, and black men in management. Efforts to attack social
isolation through mentoring and networking show modest effects. Efforts
to establish responsibility for diversity lead to the broadest increases in
managerial diversity (Kalev et al., 2006).

Research suggests five reasons why mandating participation may not

necessarily yield the intended results. First, short-term trainings do not
generally have a strong enough effect to change behavior in and of them-
selves (Dobbin and Kalev, 2018). Second, diversity training may activate
thoughts of racial stereotypes, which may be counterproductive (Dobbin
and Kalev, 2018). Third, the training may inspire an unrealistic expectation
that the program eliminated bias when it, in fact, merely raised attention
to its existence (Dobbin and Kalev, 2018). Fourth, efforts to promote mul-
ticulturalism in training may result in White participants feeling left out
or resistant to change (see Chapter 6 on gatekeepers; Dobbin and Kalev,
2018). Finally, research from organizational sciences suggest that people
react negatively when they think that others are attempting to control them.
“Self-determination research shows that when organizations frame moti-
vation for pursuing a goal as originating internally, commitment rises, but
when they frame motivation as originating externally, rebellion increases”
(Dobbin and Kalev, 2018).
As discussed above and in Chapter 6, resistance to change related to
diversity often arises because it can provoke emotional responses related
to power, privilege, and comfort, as well as fears about an uncertain future

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248 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

and losing status and influence. Resistance to change to address antiracism,

diversity, equity, and inclusion issues can manifest itself in emotions such
as anger, fear, anxiety, and mourning perceived loss of power and prestige
(Plaut et al., 2014).
The discussion of race and racism in the United States remains fraught
with tension, making it a challenging issue to discuss freely for fear of being
called a racist or associated with racism. The conversation begs for a deeper
analysis of value and belief systems that rarely get aired, in part a result
of Americans’ strong individualistic value systems (Plaut et al., 2014). The
focus on the individual in the broader U.S. value system overlaps with an
emphasis on individual merit in STEMM. In both instances, the dominant
group has been White men, who may feel that disruption to the status quo
poses a serious risk to their historic access to power and will leave them being
outnumbered by presumably unqualified women and minorities (Plaut et al.,
2014). This belief demonstrates a devotion to the current system as a true
meritocracy, in that those with the most potential and skills will rise to the top
rather than a biased, racialized system that offers opportunities inequitably.
In practice, organizations may experience diversity resistance in blatant
instances of discrimination or harassment, such as the appearance of a hang-
man’s noose or Klu Klux Klan attire, which appear in approximately 5.8
percent of all hostile work environment claims with the Federal Equal Employ-
ment Opportunity Commission (Godhart, 2017). While a member may use
this image as a mark of aggression against a peer, the response to the action can
indicate resistance from the organization as a whole if the action or similar be-
havior is not held accountable through policy and practice. Unintentional ac-
tions, such as microaggressions, may also demonstrate the presence of diversity
resistance, which can be especially pernicious as those who inflict damage may
rely on their good intentions to rationalize their behavior (Plaut et al., 2014).
There are also more subtle ways that individuals can demonstrate their
diversity resistance. Silence or passive reactions when discrimination, ha-
rassment, and mistreatment occur or failing to object to the overt behavior
can be viewed as tacit agreement with it. Other methods include exclusion,
avoidance, and social distancing that create social barriers and can foster a
hostile environment in which Black people, Indigenous people, and people
of color do not feel a sense of belonging (Plaut et al., 2014).
Access and legitimacy issues are a similar form of resistance, and these
are apparent in limited efforts that can, in effect, marginalize people from
minoritized groups into certain roles, divisions, or initiatives without fully
integrating their perspectives into the core and strategic functions of the
organization. Organizations often allow people from minoritized groups
to lead work to advance antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion with-
out providing the appropriate resources or recognition. This disparity in
responsibility, and lack of reward, is also known as the “minority tax” or

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UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONS AND THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP 249

“cultural tax” (Rodriguez et al., 2015). The failure to include efforts to ad-
vance antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion in an organization can be
a way that organizations delegitimize these efforts (Rodriguez et al., 2015).
Finally, organizations can cause secondary victimization when they fail to
provide opportunities for recourse against discriminatory behavior: “This
experience can eventually lead the victimized to accept (and in some cases
rationalize the prejudice directed to them)” (Plaut et al., 2014).
Second-order conflict is one way to describe the more covert and subtle
forms of discrimination that can undermine efforts to address the blatant
acts of “old-fashioned” racism, or first-order conflicts. Second-order con-
flict may represent conflict about how to address workplace discrimination
and harassment, how diversity is defined, and which diversity strategies
to pursue (Plaut et al., 2014). For example, individuals may have differ-
ent views of affirmative action as a strategy but they may not voice these
opinions for fear of conflict (Plaut et al., 2014). This can create an organiza-
tional climate that restricts open and honest conversation about key issues:

What prevents organizations from enacting these efforts? Two explanations

include: (1) organizations rarely engage in reflective (double-loop) learn-
ing, and (2) organizations adopt defensive routines when events occur . . .
when these [harassment and discriminatory] events occur, they deny claims,
defend the organization (and at times justify the organization), and use the
mere existence of EEO [equal employee opportunity] as a rationale for why
discrimination could not possibly occur (Plaut et al., 2014).

There are ways that organizations can counter resistance and that are
most effective when pursued at multiple levels and approaches:

But large corporations and big universities are developing multipronged

diversity initiatives that tackle not only implicit biases, but structural
discrimination. The trick is to couple diversity training with the right
complementary measures. Our research shows that companies most often
couple it with the wrong complementary measures. The antidiscrimination
measures that work best are those that engage decision makers in solving
the problem themselves (Plaut et al., 2014).

Additionally, it is important to think of the issues as linked together:

We find that special college recruitment programs to identify women
and minorities—sending existing corporate managers out to find new
recruits—increase managerial diversity markedly. So do formal mentoring
programs, which pair existing managers with people a couple of rungs
below them, in different departments, who seek mentoring and sponsor-
ship. So do diversity task forces that bring together higher-ups in different
departments to look at the data on hiring, retention, pay and promotion;

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250 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

identify problems; brainstorm for solutions and bring those back to their
departments. So do management training programs that use existing man-
agers to train aspiring managers. All of these programs put existing higher-
ups in touch with people from different race/ethnic/ gender groups who
hope to move up. All of them help existing managers to understand the
contours of the problem. And all of them seem to turn existing managers
into champions of diversity (Dobbin and Kalev, 2018).

One counter-resistance measure is through communication that enables

employees to feel involved in the change process and that provides honest
and straightforward communication about the change, as opposed to hear-
ing about it via rumor and innuendo (Plaut et al., 2014). This approach
can take place in tandem with another strategy, which is the demonstration
and justification of change based on how the status quo does a disservice
to the organization and its members (Plaut et al., 2014). Another measure,
centered more on the implementation of change, includes policies and
practices that hold members accountable for learning and adapting. There
is evidence that employee and member perceptions can shift. In a series
of randomized controlled trials, researchers found that brief interventions
that educate individuals about historical acts of discrimination can lead to
greater understandings of the presence of discrimination in modern society
(Bonam et al., 2019; Nelson et al., 2012). Those with deep resistance may
choose to leave the organization entirely (Plaut et al., 2014).

CONCLUSION 8-5: The process of cultural change toward antiracism,

diversity, equity, and inclusion in science, technology, engineering, math-
ematics, and medicine organizations can be complex, multi-layered, and
uneven in its progress due to the significant demands from leadership and
participants. Cultural change around antiracism, diversity equity, and
inclusion can involve personal reflection, emotional labor, and challenges
to individual beliefs, all of which cause discomfort.

RECOMMENDATION 8-2: Leaders, managers, and human resource depart-

ments in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine organiza-
tions should anticipate resistance to antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion
efforts and investigate with rigorous empirical tools, the impacts of training on
different types of antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion outcomes (hiring,
climate, promotion, retention, leadership roles, resource allocation).

INTERROGATING STEMM VALUES AND BARRIERS TO CHANGE

While this chapter has drawn on some research, theory, and evidence
beyond the STEMM realms, this section will dissect instances specific to
STEMM environments. The committee understands the term “STEMM

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UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONS AND THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP 251

environments” to include a variety of settings in which STEMM education,

training, and work take place: classrooms, labs, administrative settings,
universities, corporations, hospitals, and nonprofit organizations. They help
make up the scientific enterprise, and they all require support in advancing
antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Dominant beliefs about science and the process of research contribute
to the framing of diversity in STEMM. There may be pushback on the value
of antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion; the ways that lived experi-
ence and other ways of knowing can contribute to understanding; and the
superiority of quantitative, experimental research. A prominent theme in
STEMM culture includes an image of a researcher with singular devotion to
the lab or theory, who has the support to put in hours well beyond a nine-
to-five workday, and whose “passion” operates sometimes to the deficit of
other parts of their life (Blair-Loy and Cech, 2022). This norm precludes
the kind of people who cannot see themselves fitting into that role, as many
individuals with family and community responsibilities, broader interests,
and the need for greater work-life balance do not identify with this image
or feel less belonging because of their divergence from it.
Many STEMM environments also lack an accountability and incen-
tive structure for antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion work. While
individuals may feel drawn to the work out of personal interest and dedica-
tion, the extra time and energy devoted to improving antiracism, diversity,
equity, and inclusion may be less sustainable if leadership does not provide
structures to integrate the work into process and practice. On the other
hand, it is rare to find organizations with accountability measures that
ensure that members attend to antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion
goals and priorities (Bersin, 2021).
Many organizations, including those focused on STEMM, often fail to put
into place learning systems for continuous improvement and reinforcement of
key priorities. There are two important terms that can help describe patterns
of behavior. The first is single-loop learning, “When the process enables the
organization to carry on its present policies or achieve its objectives” (Argyris,
1977). This kind of change around the edges, also known as first-order change,
is often limited to direct adjustment of existing processes, and can be seen as
correcting the outcomes or the symptoms of an issue (Argyris, 1977).
In contrast, double-loop learning is a more comprehensive process that
interrogates both existing policies and practices and the underlying assump-
tions, structures, norms, and objectives that have motivated current pro-
cesses. This kind of learning, one that seeks to understand and address the
root causes of an issue, requires an organizational culture with the safety to
identify and talk about core beliefs or structures that are problematic. Re-
search on a group of STEMM Ph.D. programs that all became more diverse
by race and ethnicity over time found that only some were able to sustain

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252 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

that diversity, and that the major difference among those that did and did
not sustain diversity was the presence of double-loop learning and active
questioning of longstanding cultural norms and practices (Posselt, 2020).
Cultural change, one that reaches to affect norms, values, and rules, is an ex-
ample of double loop learning that brings in second-order change, the kind
of transformative shift that impacts the system and the way things are done.

FRAMEWORKS FOR ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE

As stated at the beginning of this chapter, the goal here has been to provide
a guide for leaders who want to accelerate progress in advancing antiracism,
diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEMM organizations. The evidence shows
that culture change is an essential ingredient for systemic and transformational
change, which begins at the top of an organization and permeates multiple
levels. There are a variety of published frameworks designed to guide lead-
ers and organizations that are committed to advancing antiracism, diversity,
equity, and inclusion and creating systemic and impactful change. Highlighted
in Table 8-1 below are 10 recently published change frameworks focused on
antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion in industry and academic settings.
The frameworks encompass multiple levels in an organization and are aimed
at creating ongoing learning and achieving systemic and sustainable results.
While each framework is unique, there are common themes which can serve as
helpful guideposts for leaders looking to advance antiracism, diversity, equity,
and inclusion diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEMM organizations.
Many of the frameworks in Table 8-1 highlight the importance of recog-
nizing and acknowledging the problems at the highest level of an organization
and doing the necessary analytics to uncover the root cause of the problems
and why inequities continue to exist. Most frameworks have an explicit focus
on race and racial inequalities. While diversity representation is key, a critical
emphasis is placed on the experiences of those from minoritized groups who
are facing deeply embedded inequities. The frameworks emphasize the impor-
tance of listening to those individuals and learning from their lived experiences
and about valuing cultural differences. These frameworks also emphasize an
orientation toward action vs. rhetoric. This includes: (i) articulating an anti-
racism, diversity, equity, and inclusion vision of the future; (ii) establishing a
clear set of measurable goals and outcomes; (iii) ensuing ongoing assessment
and evaluation; (iv) engaging individuals at multiple levels to be a part of the
desired change; and (v) ensuring leaders are held accountable for results.
Finally, several frameworks highlight the value of engaging human
resources or others responsible for implementing policies and practices
associated with the professional growth and development of the students,
faculty or members of nonacademic STEMM organizations, especially for
those who have experienced inequities in the past.

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UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONS AND THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP 253

TABLE 8-1 Summaries of Culture Change Frameworks for

Organizations
The Antiracist Organization: Dismantling Systemic Racisms in the Workplace
Daniels, S. (2022)

Four-Factor RACE Model:

1. Recognize the Problem: Do you understand the people most impacted by racism?
2. Analyze the Impact: Organizational analyses should include both quantitative and
qualitative data
3. Commit to Action: Address leaders who are resistant to change
4. Empower for Change: Assist people in feeling a part of the change

How to Promote Racial Equity in the Workplace

Livingston, R. (2020)

Five-Step Plan:
1. Problem Awareness: Do I understand what the problem is?
2. Root-Cause Analysis: Where does the problem come from?
3. Empathy: Do I care about the problem and the people who are impacted?
4. Strategy: Do I know how to correct the problem?
5. Sacrifice: Am I willing to do so?

Elevating Equity: The Real Story of Diversity and Inclusion

Bersin, J. (2020)

Five Essential Strategies for DEI Excellence:

1. Listen, hear and act (listening to employees is a top driver of excellence)
2. Strengthen HR Capabilities in all roles (DEI must permeate the talent supply chain
from hiring, to promoting and helping people grow)
3. Engage senior leader commitment (diversity training has limited value, but leadership
commitment can make a big difference)
4. Set goals and measure success
5. Create accountability for results (drive DE&I across the entire ecosystem)

Advancing Black Leaders

Roberts, L.M. et al. (2019)

1. Move away from the business case and towards a moral one
2. Encourage open conversations about race
3. Revamp DEI programs—promote sustained focus on racial equity
4. Manage career development across all life stages (from early in one’s career and
throughout)

Getting Serious About Diversity: Enough Already with the Business Case
Ely, R.J. and Thomas, D.A. (2020)

1. Promote the Learning and Effectiveness Paradigm

2. Build talent
3. Actively work against discrimination and subordination
4. Embrace a wide range of styles and voices
5. Make culture differences a resource for learning

continued

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254 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

TABLE 8-1 Continued

Organizational Transformation Is an Emotional Journey
White, A., Smets, M., and Canwell, A. (2022)

1. Address the unsustainable status quo

2. Detach from the status quo
3. Develop a purposeful vision
4. Lead emotional transformation
5. Include both the rational and emotional
6. Align KPIs, funding, resources and people
7. Make transformation the new normal

AAC&U’s Committing to Equity and Inclusive Excellence: Campus Guide for Self-Study
and Planning
AAC&U (2015)

Action steps:
1. Know who your students are and will be
2. Commit to frank, hard dialogues about the climate for minoritized students on your
campus, with the goal of affecting a paradigm shift in language and actions
3. Invest in culturally responsive practices that lead to the success of minoritized
students
4. Set and monitor equity goals and devote aligned resources to achieve them
5. Develop and actively pursue a clear vision and goals for achieving high-quality
learning
6. Expect and prepare all students to produce culminating or signature work
7. Provide support to help students develop guided plans to achieve essential learning
outcomes, prepare for and complete signature work, and connect college with careers
8. Identify high-impact practices best suited to your students and your institution’s
quality framework
9. Ensure that essential learning outcomes are addressed and high-impact practices are
incorporated across all programs.
10. Make student achievement—specifically, minoritized student achievement—visible
and valued

From Equity Talk to Equity Walk: Expanding Practitioner Knowledge for Racial Justice in
Higher Education
McNair, TB. et al. (2020)

1. Start asking about why these inequities exist

2. Start to question privilege and biases in the systems and structures that perpetuate
inequities, specifically racial inequities
3. Stop using language that masks who the students really are.
4. Stop believing that the accepted norm should be from the dominant culture’s viewpoint

continued

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UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONS AND THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP 255

TABLE 8-1 Continued

Equity in Science: Representation, Culture, and the Dynamics of Change in Graduate
Education
Posselt, J.R. (2020)

Moving Scientific Institutions Toward Equity:

1. Acknowledging the racialized and gendered beliefs, standard practices, and power
dynamics that are root causes of inequities
2. Coordinating systemic actions in the multiple contexts and levels at which equity is
created or impeded
3. Leveraging bottom-up, top-down, and inside-out forces for change
4. Equity-minded learning and retooling for individuals and organizations, facilitated by
cultural translators who span social, professional, and/or disciplinary boundaries
5. Cultivating, expecting, and rewarding knowledge, skills, and labor that support equity
as new generations are trained and enter the labor market

How Colleges Change: Understanding, Leading, and Enacting Change

Kezar, A. (2013)

Systemic institutional change is best achieved by converging bottom-up (“grass roots”

initiatives) and top-down (individuals in positions of power) efforts. Three phases of culture
change:
1. Mobilize – develop initial awareness of the need for change (data); create vision;
galvanize support for change through discussion; mobilize leadership and collective
action
2. Implement – choose strategies; pilot; change policies; process and structures;
professional development; evaluate results and reorient; celebrate successes; scale-up or
down
3. Institutionalize – disseminate results; review; commit; persist

SOURCE: Excerpts from Daniels, 2022; Livingston, 2020; Berson, 2020; Roberts et al., 2019;
Ely and Thomas, 2020; White, Smets, and Canwell, 2022; AAC&U, 2015; McNair et al.,
2020; Posselt, 2020; Kezar, 2013.

RECOMMENDATION 8-3: Presidents, chief executive officers, and leaders

of science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine organiza-
tions, including those in higher education and the private sector, should use
a framework (such as those listed below) to evaluate the institution’s values
and norms and identify specific ways to address norms that impede diversity
and promote a culture that is genuinely accessible and supportive to all.
These top-level leaders should work with managers, supervisors, and other
mid-level leaders who influence the local culture within organizations and can
be a critical part of implementation. The evaluation should include review of:

institutional policies and practices for instances of bias with

• 
­regard to race and ethnicity;
policies and practices for entrance into the organization
• 
(­admissions, hiring, or nomination), advancement (promotion
and tenure), and other rewards;

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256 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

analysis of resource allocation by race and ethnicity such as wages

• 
and bonuses, mentorship, professional development opportunities,
physical materials or assets, and other items or forms of support;
mentorship, training, and professional development opportuni-
• 
ties to build skills specific to supporting Black students, Indig-
enous students, and students from historically minoritized racial
and ethnic groups;
culturally-aware mentorship and management training for super-
• 
visors, administrators, and other leaders; and
the results of regular climate surveys to evaluate the working
• 
conditions and environment.

The ability to change an organization begins with evaluation of the

institution’s existing norms, values, policies, and practices. Through an in-
vestigation of the organization’s current culture and climate, the leadership
can identify the different areas needed for growth related to antiracism, di-
versity, equity, and inclusion. These issues may begin at the entrance point,
such as with recruitment, admissions, or hiring. Many STEMM practices in
these areas disproportionately disadvantage people from minoritized racial
and ethnic groups. Other areas for review may include wages, curriculum,
promotion, tenure, and advancement, which affect the participants’ experi-
ence, sense of inclusion and belonging, and persistence within an organiza-
tion. Reviewing the underlying criteria for entrance into an organization
and the advancement within an organization can surface biases based on
race and ethnicity in those practices.
Organizational change requires motivation, strategic alignment of
mission and values, leadership commitment, and an understanding of
the current culture and climate. To avoid a compliance-based mentality,
leaders can use antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion as guiding
principles to shape decisionmaking rather than goals in and of themselves.
The process of culture change around antiracism, diversity, equity, and
inclusion can challenge organizations, as the work itself can encourage
individuals to interrogate their own values and behavior. In addition to
the intense nature of the work, culture change can also come with a re-
distribution of resources, which can create feelings of loss for individuals
who previously held privilege. These tensions can contribute to resistance
to antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts in organizations,
which can slow change efforts if not sufficiently addressed by leadership
and management. To encourage this work, this chapter has offered a series
of frameworks that provide multiple perspectives on creating a vision and
strategic plan for culture change centered on antiracism, diversity, equity,
and inclusion.

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UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONS AND THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP 257

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Research Agenda

The preceding chapters have covered many areas of existing research

spanning various levels from the systemic level to individuals, teams, and
organizations. The current chapter pivots from examining extant evidence
to identifying the evidence that is missing. Thus, this chapter sets forth a
research agenda, as directed by the committee’s Statement of Task, which
states that the committee’s final consensus report will “define a research
agenda to address gaps in knowledge in the evidence base to advance anti-
racism, diversity, equity, and inclusion.”
The committee developed this research agenda over the course of the
study process. For each of the report’s chapters, the committee reviewed
relevant areas of empirical research across multiple disciplines. Even though
there is existing and ongoing research in this field, the committee identified
numerous critical gaps. We found there is great need for more evidence-
based research to better understand what produces sustainable antiracism,
diversity, equity, and inclusion change in science, technology, engineering,
mathematics, and medicine (STEMM). In addition to filling the gaps, the
committee envisioned an agenda that could help facilitate a future line of
transformational and groundbreaking work. Taken together, the commit-
tee sought to develop an aspirational research agenda that pushes the field
forward in ways it identified as innovative, necessary, and challenging.
The research agenda includes priority areas for further examination.
The order in which they are presented in this chapter corresponds to the
organizational framework in Figure 9-1. The research agenda is organized
first by the multiple levels that were discussed in previous chapters of the
report, beginning with items that address the historical and contemporary

265

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266 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

FIGURE 9-1 A summarized model of the organization of the research agenda. This
includes the various levels of analysis (I-IV) and the inclusion of the research process
from start to finish.
SOURCE: Committee generated.

societal structures of the United States. Subsequently, the research agenda

covers items that address the organization level; questions around teams;
and finally, the interpersonal and individual levels. There are several in-
stances in which research agenda items may be located within a specific
level, but actually span multiple levels due to the complexity of how these
levels are overlapping. Therefore, the overall organizational structure of
the research agenda by level is meant to help guide the reader; it is not
meant to enforce strict ideological boundaries between the levels. The sec-
ond half of the research agenda addresses the research process. The com-
mittee found that knowledge gaps persist for two primary reasons. First,
the gaps exist because there is a need to expand on what is being studied.
Second, the gaps exist because methodological research practices that are
implemented inform how the research is conducted. Taken together, the
types of research questions asked and the ways in which science is con-
ducted can inform, create, and sustain the evidence gaps in the scientific
literature. The committee believed that to address the knowledge gaps and
develop an innovative agenda, each part of the research process starting

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RESEARCH AGENDA 267

from study development through publication needed to be taken into con-

sideration. The items discussed in the research process are meant to apply
to all levels of analysis from historical structures to the individual level.
By addressing these factors, the body of empirical science would continue
to become a more authentic representation of the human experience and
help to meaningfully advance antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion
in STEMM.
Overall, this chapter has implications for many STEMM stakeholders
who take part in research, including but not limited to students, trainees,
faculty, staff, statistical analysts, ethicists, scientists, administrators, and
leaders. The committee believes that many stakeholders in STEMM may
consider prioritizing the entire agenda as these numerous and multi-level
gaps can be addressed simultaneously.

HISTORY AND CONTEMPORARY STRUCTURES

Based on its examination of the historical context, the committee found
that there needs to be a more complete and comprehensive national and
international investigation of reparations from national governments to
groups of people who have been harmed by historic policies and practices
(Darity and Mullen, 2020; U.S. Congress, 2021). Part of the investigations
could include how a system could be implemented, and ultimately test
what kind of impact reparations may have on minoritized individuals and
their ability to enter into and thrive in STEMM, as well as the impact on
the White majority group. There needs to be greater examinations of the
following (Darity and Mullen, 2020; U.S. Congress, 2021):

1. Historical forms of reparations in the United States and interna-

tionally, and determining their impact on aiding minoritized indi-
viduals in entering spaces in which they remain underrepresented,
including STEMM.
2. The range of outcomes associated with the implementation of
reparations. Outcomes include, but are not limited to, reducing
disparities and systemic racism across multiple sectors that underlie
entry into STEMM:
a. Health outcomes and other metrics of quality of life
b. Educational outcomes in STEMM
c. Wealth—current and generational
d. Career opportunities in STEMM
3. Identification of the multiple institutions, including those in
STEMM education and industry, that worked to support slavery,
genocide, and continued White supremacy. The goal is to determine
the institution(s) that are responsible for making reparations.

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268 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

4. Identification of the full population of recipients. Identifying the

complete population of individuals in the United States who have
been harmed by slavery, genocide, and continued White supremacy.
a. Examinations of additional and significant damages accrued
from post-slavery forms of systemic racism. For instance, this
may include considering the impacts of legalized segregation
(Coates, 2014).
5. Identifying what form reparations may take, and quantifying
what could be given directly to those impacted, including those in
STEMM contexts.

There needs to be a greater examination of the impact of structural fi-

nancial investments in communities of minoritized individuals in the United
States. As these sectors underlie entry into STEMM, it is important to exam-
ine whether financial investments in areas in which minoritized individuals
have faced systemic disinvestment and disadvantage would ultimately help
improve wether presentation and their ability to thrive in STEMM for gen-
erations to come. There needs to be greater examinations of the following:

1. Novel or emerging investments to understand their scalability and

impact on minoritized individuals.
2. Historical investments to understand their impact on minoritized
individuals.
3. Structural investments that serve to address various inequalities
that directly map onto the empirically supported historical and
current legacies of structural racism. These are inclusive of, but not
limited to the following:
a. Community health investments: in both mental health and
physical health resources.
b. Neighborhood investments: in housing and living conditions of
minoritized individuals’ neighborhoods.
c. Educational investments: in schools, colleges, and universities
that may still face inequities in funding.
d. Climate change investments: in minoritized individuals’ neigh-
borhoods and regions that may face a disproportionate burden
of suffering from the consequences of climate change.
e. Industry investments: in STEMM businesses that are owned
and run by minoritized individuals. Investments may include
entrepreneurial resources, and other financial mechanisms that
support ownership and longevity of these STEMM businesses
(McGee, 2020).

Similar to the previous point, there needs to be a greater examination

of the impact of novel, emerging, existing, and historical policies that are

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RESEARCH AGENDA 269

developed with the purpose of helping reduce racial hierarchy and remove
structural barriers for minoritized individuals (e.g., Bailey et al., 2021). As
these sectors listed below underlie entry into STEMM, it is important to ex-
amine whether policies that aim to help reduce inequality would ultimately
help improve representation and ability to thrive in STEMM for genera-
tions to come. There needs to be greater examination of the following:

1. Policies that directly map on to the empirically supported historical

and current legacies of structural racism. These are inclusive of, but
not limited to the following:
a. Policies that reform incarceration
b. Policies that reform policing
c. Policies that reform healthcare
d. Policies that reform housing
e. Policies that reform education
f. Policies that reform wealth accumulation and distribution

As stated previously in the report, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of
1964 was a milestone in helping promote antiracism, diversity, equity, and
inclusion in STEMM organizations. It made discrimination on the basis
of race, along with other protected “classes,” unlawful. The committee
encountered literature suggesting there may remain an exemption for small
businesses, such that specific subsets (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission, n.d.) of small businesses may be exempt from following Title
VII, and this may include small businesses in STEMM (Carlson, 2006;
Chay, 1998; Lewallen, 2014; Roberson, 2019). There needs to be a greater
empirical examination of the following:

1. What fraction of the STEMM workforce is in small businesses, and

what is the fraction of minoritized individuals in these spaces?
2. Are there patterns of racial and ethnic discrimination over time in
small exempt STEMM businesses?
3. What are the workplace conditions like in small exempt STEMM
businesses?
4. Are there gaps between different levels and forms of discrimina-
tion protection? For example, federal-level, state-level, and other
potential mechanisms?

ORGANIZATIONS
There needs to be a greater examination of how federal agencies, such
as but not limited to the National Science Foundation and National In-
stitutes of Health, could use their convening and grant-making powers to
support fundamental change in STEMM organizations that use and depend

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270 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

on their resources. There needs to be a greater empirical examination of

the following:

1. Tying federal financial resources to antiracism, diversity, equity,

and inclusion goals to help increase institutional transparency and
incentivize change.
2. Assessment of the impact and sustained effect of prior and current
programs aimed at increasing antiracism, diversity, equity, and
inclusion in STEMM.
3. Making funding requirements and terms of receiving research fund-
ing contingent on STEMM organizations and principal investigators
achieving specified antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion goals.
a. This may include rewards over penalty focus.
b. This may also include penalties for non-compliance with limi-
tations on acquiring future funding.
c. Funding requirements may include expectations on continu-
ous reporting and tracking of antiracism, diversity, equity, and
inclusion efforts and outcomes.

As discussed in Chapter 2, the committee found that while minority

serving institutions (MSIs) have faced significant underfunding, they have
advanced representation by helping minoritized students obtain STEMM
degrees. Since MSIs are a critical asset, there needs to be a continued and
more robust empirical investigation that helps better understand the ways
in which the strengths of MSIs can be advanced and leveraged. There needs
to be a greater empirical examination of the following:

1. Development and testing of interventions that help bring MSI-based

programs and practices that are successfully helping minoritized indi-
viduals achieve STEMM degrees to predominantly White institutions.
2. If continued or increasing financial investments to support MSIs
help further increase the percentage of minoritized individuals who
persist in acquiring a STEMM education.

There needs to be a greater assessment of persistence of students in

the STEMM degrees, across all STEMM disciplines. This includes a strong
focus on minoritized individuals. To accomplish this, it will be essential to
know the demographics of the students entering college intending to study
STEMM and their educational outcomes. There needs to be a greater em-
pirical examination of the following questions:

1. How many graduated with a STEMM bachelor’s degree?

2. How many switched to a non-STEMM major?
3. How many left college with no degree?

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RESEARCH AGENDA 271

Minoritized individuals with STEMM training who have left STEMM

at various points may represent an unused and yet valuable workforce
(Rahman et al., 2020). However, there is not much research focused on how
to reintegrate these individuals back into the STEMM workforce. There
needs to be a greater examination of these minoritized individuals who have
left with the goal of facilitating their reentry and retaining the pool of lost
talent. There needs to be a greater empirical examination of the following:

1. What are the factors, programs, policies, and practices that may
help promote the reinclusion and reincorporation of minoritized
individuals who have left?
2. Development and empirical testing of interventions that may help
promote reinclusion and reincorporation of minoritized individu-
als. Interventions could potentially be designed to target groups of
individuals who left at different points (e.g., undergraduates who
left, Ph.D.’s who left).
3. What are the strengths, skills, resources, and perspectives that
minoritized individuals bring back with them into the STEMM
workforce?

Additional organizational psychology research is needed to examine

the organizational systems, dynamics, and incentives that inform advance-
ments in antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion across several STEMM
contexts, including STEMM departments within universities and various
business units within industry settings. There also needs to be greater in-
vestigation on the role of community accountability in helping advance and
sustain antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion.
The committee encountered some scholarship that has supported the
greater or more systematic use of positionality statements in research-
based spaces (e.g., Roberts et al., 2020). Positionality is defined broadly
as a reflexive practice, during which an individual conducts an internal
self-examination to critically consider how their unique “position” informs
the way they conduct science, research, and other STEMM activities. This
may include a complete examination of an individual’s own identities (e.g.,
demographic identities), political leaning, worldviews, experiences, and
relations to systemic privilege as well as their relations to marginalization
(Secules et al., 2021).
Scholars have noted that during the practice of determining an indi-
vidual’s positionality, the person is considering their unique social location
and their unique perspective, as it informs the entire process of science,
from developing research questions, to selecting and interacting with par-
ticipants, to interpreting and analyzing the results (Hampton et al., 2021).
While emerging as a potential tool of helping fostering antiracism, diver-
sity, equity, and inclusion, it remains an empirical question whether these

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272 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

statements have a measurable impact in improving antiracism, diversity,

equity, and inclusion in STEMM. There needs to be a greater empirical
examination of the following:

1. Are positionality statements effective in helping gatekeepers reflect

on, address, and ultimately reduce bias at the individual level?
2. Are positionality statements effective as a teaching tool in helping
promote structural racism awareness, increase knowledge of racism
in STEMM, and foster ongoing antiracism, diversity, equity, and
inclusion learning?
3. Are positionality statements effective in promoting structural rac-
ism awareness at the leadership level, and a tool in helping initiate
larger organizational culture change?

There needs to be a continued investigation focused on identifying

which organization-level interventions, including policies, practices, proce-
dures, opportunity structures, trainings, and interventions, work in produc-
ing measurable and sustainable change in advancing antiracism, diversity,
equity, and inclusion in STEMM organizations. There needs to be a greater
empirical examination of the following:

1. Which novel interventions are effective in producing meaningful

change in the short term? In the long term? And for whom?
2. Under what conditions can diversity training be effective and for
whom?
3. How might different interventions target different groups of mi-
noritized individuals over the course of their career trajectory to
maximize antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEMM?
4. How personnel who hold power in these organizations can help
advance antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEMM.
a. There needs to be increased research examining different mod-
els of leadership that work to de-center White individuals
in power and help increase antiracism, diversity, equity, and
inclusion in the highest ranks of STEMM. For instance, re-
search could examine whether leadership term limits increase
representation at the highest levels of STEMM (Beeler et al.,
2019).
b. Understanding how leadership roles are defined in different
STEMM organizations may inform accountability for advanc-
ing antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion.
c. What are the conditions and resources that DEI officers need
to help promote measurable antiracism, diversity, equity, and
inclusion change in a given organization?

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RESEARCH AGENDA 273

d. What are the conditions and resources that human resource

departments need to help promote measurable antiracism, di-
versity, equity, and inclusion change in a given organization?
e. How can leadership of organizations examine incentive struc-
tures at different levels of power? Along with research, teaching,
and service, adding antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion to
regular faculty responsibilities, with salaries dependent on qual-
ity of results, may potentially incentivize antiracism, diversity,
equity, and inclusion efforts. This includes understanding how
upper-level administrators could also be incentivized by adding
antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion to their accountability.

There needs to be a more comprehensive examination of the organi-

zation-level White-centered “professionalism” standards that impact mi-
noritized individuals. For instance, as discussed in Chapter 5, research
has demonstrated that many minoritized individuals codeswitch in pre-
dominantly White contexts. However, further investigation into STEMM
contexts is needed. There needs to be a greater empirical examination of
the following:

1. What are the conditions like in STEMM contexts that strongly

adhere to White-centered “professionalism” standards?
2. How minoritized individuals codeswitch and navigate within
White-centered STEMM workplaces, and what impact this has on
them.
3. Examining hair (e.g., Powell, 2018) and hair covering discrimina-
tion as a mechanism of upholding White-centered professionalism
standards in STEMM.
a. Researchers could conduct a robust examination of this form
of discrimination occurring within STEMM contexts to de-
velop a broader understanding of the prevalence.
b. How do hair and hair covering discrimination vary by states,
STEMM institutions, and STEMM companies across the
United States with differing levels of protection for minoritized
individuals?

TEAMS
More robust investigations are needed to focus on identifying which
team-based interventions—including policies, practices, procedures, oppor-
tunity structures, trainings, and interventions—are most effective in produc-
ing measurable and sustainable change that advances antiracism, diversity,
equity, and inclusion in STEMM teams. Specifically, there needs to be a

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274 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

greater examination of the contact hypothesis in STEMM organizations.

Namely, researchers should continue to identify the team-based factors that
help facilitate bias reduction and increase experiences of inclusion within
STEMM teams.
Additional research is needed from the perspective of minoritized indi-
viduals. Furthermore, there needs to be an examination of what it means to
build a critical mass of minoritized individuals on STEMM teams, and the
impact that has on team performance and minoritized individuals.

INTERPERSONAL AND INDIVIDUAL DYNAMICS

Chapters 5 and 6 articulated how racism is experienced or perpetuated
at an individual level. However, there are likely conditions under which a
given individual may experience racism and also perpetuate it. There needs
to be a greater examination of this phenomenon.

1. What are the conditions under which individuals may perpetuate

racism, and the conditions under which individuals may actively
engage in antiracist behaviors?

The phenomenon of racism denial, while not a central focus of the

report, needs a more robust examination as this may inform how interven-
tions and strategies toward promoting antiracism, diversity, equity, and
inclusion in STEMM are formed. There needs to be a greater empirical
examination of the following:

1. The incidence and impact of racism denial across various STEMM

sectors.
2. Racism denial among a range of STEMM leaders and stakeholders
including those in universities, colleges, communities, industries,
and funding agencies.
3. The predictors and mechanisms that give rise to racism denial and
how it resembles or differs from existing research and theory on
aversive racism and modern racism.
4. How racism denial beliefs at the individual level may inform inter­
personal interactions, again relative to what is known.

In addition, there needs to be a continued, more robust, and more

in-depth understanding of minoritized individuals’ sense of belonging and
inclusion, beyond what is already known.
The committee determined that a continued examination of the factors,
conditions, and mechanisms that predict a greater sense of belonging and
inclusion across multiple STEMM contexts. Furthermore, there needs to

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RESEARCH AGENDA 275

be a more robust body of qualitative and mixed-methods research captur-

ing the lived experiences of minoritized individuals. This research should
prioritize individuals that are not only minoritized in STEMM, but also
minoritized in the empirical literature. These more in-depth data collection
efforts may help provide a better understanding of the unique sets of barri-
ers, opportunities, and points of interventions for specific individuals who
remain at the furthest margins in STEMM.
Finally, there needs to be a more robust body of research examining
both White identity and the emotions of White individuals. There needs to
be a greater empirical examination of the following:

1. How identity and various emotions are associated.

2. How emotions inform intergroup contact, mentorship in STEMM,
team cohesion and performance, developing and fostering ally ship
in STEMM, and leadership quality.
3. Do White identity and emotions operate to uphold systemic racism
in STEMM?

The committee notes that additional research is needed to examine the

potential impact of other high-status individuals beyond senior mentors, in-
cluding sponsors and champions, in helping promote greater representation
and inclusion of minoritized individuals in STEMM contexts. This includes
research that examines which specific features of a physical environment are
most inclusive for minoritized individuals. Furthermore, additional research
is needed to identify the specific components of summer bridge programs
that may be significant factors in producing specific positive outcomes for
minoritized individuals.
The committee found that additional research is needed to examine the
psychological impacts of perpetuating racism from the perspective of the
gatekeeper in STEMM. In addition, additional research is needed to identify
ways to reduce the negative impacts of racialized trauma.
The body of research on Indigenous individuals’ experiences in STEMM
education spaces and the workforce is scarce. A much more robust program
of research is needed.1 Specific points of empirical investigation based on
the committee’s review of the literature are included below:

1. There needs to be additional research that includes and examines

the experiences of Indigenous individuals in a variety of STEMM
contexts.

1 This section draws on an expert review commissioned by the committee (Smith, 2022).

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276 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

2. Deeper examinations of the factors that discourage Indigenous in-

dividuals from pursuing STEMM, and a deeper examination of fac-
tors that promote their full participation in STEMM environments.
a. Greater examination of these factors across a range of STEMM
disciplines.
3. Continued examinations of the impact of Indigenous-centered
mentoring programs on persistence and advancement in STEMM
contexts.

A much more robust and nuanced body of research focused on Asian

Americans in STEMM contexts is needed.2 Asian Americans are not a
monolithic group, and persons who identify as Asian American may claim
many different geographical, ethnic, and immigrant roots. There needs to
be a greater empirical examination of the following:

1. The representation in STEMM of different Asian American ethnic

groups and nationalities.
2. Identify and better understand the factors that can contribute to
attrition and retention of Asian Americans in STEMM contexts,
with a focus on the role of feelings of belonging and inclusion.
3. Examinations of the experiences of Asian Americans in additional
STEMM educational contexts, including public universities and
community colleges (Kim et al., 2022).
4. Continued research identifying the specific sectors and positions in
STEMM that Asian Americans remain numerically underrepresented.
5. Examinations of how immigration laws and immigration status
may impact Asian American’s experiences in STEMM contexts.

In addition, a much more robust and nuanced body of literature focus-

ing on Latine individuals in STEMM contexts is needed.3 Latine is not a
monolithic identity, but rather a group that comprises persons who iden-
tify as Latine claiming many different geographical, racial, and immigrant
roots. There needs to be a greater empirical examination of the following:

1. Literature reviews and meta-analyses focusing on the experiences

of Latine individuals navigating STEMM career pathways. These
should be a priority in order to be able to track trends over time
and identify whether policy advances have affected practices and
outcomes.

2 This section draws on an expert review commissioned by the committee (Cobian et al.,

2022).
3 This section draws on an expert review commissioned by the committee (Trujillo, 2022).

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RESEARCH AGENDA 277

2. Deeper examinations of the factors that deter Latine individuals

from pursuing STEMM, and a deeper examination of factors that
promote their full participation in STEMM environments.
a. Greater examination of these factors across a range of STEMM
disciplines.
3. More studies focusing on how Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs)
impact Latine individuals’ experiences of belonging and persistence
outcomes in STEMM.
4. More research focused on the Latine individual’s workforce experi-
ence in STEMM industry spaces outside the academy.
5. More studies on how immigration policy impacts retention and
persistence of Latine individuals, with special attention to first-
generation students.

A much more robust and nuanced body of literature focused on Black

individuals in STEMM is needed. There needs to be a greater empirical
examination of the following:

1. The benefits of optimizing Black individuals’ sense of belonging

and inclusion.
2. The costs of not optimizing Black individuals’ sense of belonging
and inclusion.
3. The policies, practices, procedures, opportunity structures, train-
ings, and interventions that work in producing measurable and
sustainable change in increasing Black individuals’ representation
across all STEMM sectors.
4. The Black experience in STEMM careers. This research would
benefit from quantitative and qualitative accounts that capture the
full range of professional outcomes in different roles, career stages,
and in different sectors.

RESEARCH PROCESS: ITEMS FOR ALL LEVELS

As discussed previously, the second half of the research agenda ad-
dresses the research process. The items discussed in the research process are
meant to apply to all levels of analysis ranging from historical structures
to the individual level.

Evaluation
Federal agencies have supported many programs aimed at increas-
ing diversity in STEMM. What is needed is a retrospective evaluation of
the effectiveness of these programs—under what conditions were goals

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278 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

achieved or not achieved? What is the effectiveness tradeoff between term

(e.g., number of years) of support and sustainable effect? Similar reports
or research publications at the same magnitude of the current report are
needed for each minoritized group (Latine, Indigenous, and Asian American
groups) in STEMM.

Additional Populations
Much of the research examining minoritized individuals in STEMM
(see Chapter 5) focuses heavily on those in the early training/career stages.
Additional research examining the experiences and the consequences of
racism among minoritized individuals in middle-stage and late-stages of
their careers is needed.
Learners from minoritized populations may be likely to exit and re-
enter academic degree programs and start careers later in life. More robust
data collection methods are needed to track minoritized individuals’ career
pathways across institutions and life circumstances.

Theoretical Frameworks
Many gaps in the antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion STEMM
literature persist, in part, because of the ways in which certain theoretical
frameworks are used. The incorporation of more of the suggested frame-
works below will help permit certain research questions to be asked and
necessary data to be collected.
Many existing studies on minoritized individuals use a deficit-based
framework to understand existing challenges (see Chapter 5). While deficits
and challenges are important to understand, there are also many assets that
exist in these populations that are ignored and underutilized as a resource.
There needs to be a greater shift from an overreliance on the deficit frame-
work to an asset-based framework in the production of new research. There
also needs to be a shift away from the framework of the hero’s journey (of
individual resilience) to a framework that focuses more on relevant struc-
tures and conditions that promote antiracist systems.
In addition, there needs to be greater use and inclusion of an intersec-
tional framework (Crenshaw, 1989, 2012).

1. Researchers need to consider the connections between identities

and systems, and their implications for minoritized individuals in
STEMM. This includes how multiple systems and structures of
privilege and oppression that are connected to individuals’ multiple
identities inform the lived experiences of minoritized individuals
across various STEMM contexts.

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RESEARCH AGENDA 279

Finally, the “leaky pipeline” metaphor is both false and harmful, and
this framework should be abandoned (e.g., Cannady et al., 2014). Persons
have agency and are not a commodity. Furthermore, the system through
which the persons travel is not inert; rather, leaders have the responsibil-
ity for actively creating an inclusive environment. The “leaky pipeline”
framework frequently describes the points where minoritized individuals
exit STEMM. While it is critical to understand the factors that contribute
to attrition and the points in which they occur, this framework limits
empirical investigation. Like a leaking pipe, it is presumed that these
individuals are lost forever, and there are no possibilities of reentry into
the pipeline.

Ways of Conducting Science

There needs to be a greater consideration of how antiracism, diver-
sity, equity, and inclusion STEMM researchers can shift their structures
and paradigms of science and science education to be inclusive of Indig-
enous ways of knowing.4 This will help increase inclusive participation,
advancement, and creation and education of science across STEMM
sectors.

1. In an effort to create dedicated and reciprocal relationships with

tribal communities, researchers need to be transparent in their
intentions in developing collaborations with them.
2. There needs to be increased efforts that identify research practices
of holism that capture the strengths of utilizing multiple knowledge
systems. In doing so, this may help build capacity for tribal sov-
ereignty and improve research practices for the broader research
community.
3. Researchers need to develop research questions that are central and
important to Indigenous communities; they must focus on building
lasting relationships with community members, and work on co-
creating knowledge and science with these members.

Researchers need to examine how they can actively amplify alternative

perspectives such as critical methodologies and standpoint epistemologies
that actively center on challenging systems of oppressions in STEMM.
Furthermore, antiracism is an emerging construct, and additional method-
ological research is needed to understand how to empirically measure this
construct.

4 This section draws on an expert review commissioned by the committee (Smith, 2022).

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280 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

Survey Building and Analytic Techniques

Researchers who want to conduct racial and ethnic antiracism, diver-
sity, equity, and inclusion-related STEMM research should center race and
ethnicity as a primary lens of their research plan.

1. There is a greater need to make race and ethnicity central in the

data collection and analysis of the research. Other factors by which
diversity can occur on (personality, geography, etc.) should not
necessarily be a central focus in these contexts.
2. These studies need to include questions that permit the collec-
tion of demographic data, including various racial and ethnic
identities.
3. Qualitative measures can help give space for individuals to write in
how they describe their own identities (Roberts et al., 2020). This
may help permit greater nuance in data collection efforts.

In addition, there needs to be a greater incorporation of factors that

may vary by race and ethnicity. These are essential in understanding mi-
noritized individuals’ experiences, barriers, and opportunities in STEMM
contexts. Researchers should consider including measures that assess the
following factors:

1. Skin color and other physical features

2. Immigration status, national origin
3. Perceptions of academic ability
4. Language and other culturally relevant factors
5. Family, social support, and tribal community ties/support
6. Accessibility to important STEMM networks
7. Socioeconomic status and or class
8. Gender identity
9. First-generation academic status

Data in STEMM contexts should be disaggregated by the following

factors, when possible, to better understand the phenomenon of antiracism,
diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEMM:

1. Race and ethnicity

2. Discipline or sector (physical sciences, life, math, engineering, etc.)
3. Within race and ethnicity groups. Each group is not a monolith,
and greater examination of patterns within a given minoritized
group is needed.
4. Immigration status

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RESEARCH AGENDA 281

Additional research is needed that moves beyond using White partici-

pants as the only or primary comparator group. Many gaps would be filled
if researchers in the areas of antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion and
STEMM would include a robust description of the demographic data in
sections of scientific papers (Roberts et al., 2020). Cross-sectional and lon-
gitudinal studies should continue to be conducted at each level of analysis
(historical to individual).

Ethical Approval and Considerations

To accurately fill the gaps in the evidence base, there needs to be a criti-
cal consideration of research ethics and how they factor into the production
of knowledge. Researchers also need to critically consider how missing data
for race and ethnicity are handled. The implications, risks, and benefits, of
conclusions drawn from imputed race and ethnicity data should be consid-
ered carefully (Randall et al., 2021).
When collaborating and working with minoritized communities
(Randall et al., 2021), there needs to be ongoing communication about the
data collection, ownership of data, and transparency of the outcomes. Ef-
forts to prevent harm to minoritized communities should be built into the
ethical practices of the research studies.
In addition, researchers need to critically consider and minimize the
potential risk of identifying single minoritized individuals (Randall et al.,
2021), including when studying non-numerically diverse STEMM spaces.
For example, there may only be one Black woman in a given department
of interest. In these cases, methods may be employed to examine more ag-
gregate patterns and protect individuals.
Study leaders who are examining antiracism, diversity, equity, and
inclusion across a variety of STEMM contexts need to develop diverse
research teams when studying these issues, as research team representation
informs the knowledge gaps that are being filled.

1. There needs to be a critical and careful examination if an all-White

research team is developing conclusions, recommendations, and/or
speaking on behalf of a minoritized group of which they are not
part (Roberts et al., 2020).
2. There needs to be increased cross-disciplinary collaborations be-
tween social scientists who are experts in the fields of antiracism,
diversity, equity, and inclusion, and those within STEMM fields
who are not experts in antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion.
This will help guide the formation of study designs that include
valid, reliable, and gold-standard measures, and incorporate the

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282 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

necessary considerations of conducting antiracism, diversity, equity,

and inclusion research in this area.

Publication and Distribution of Knowledge

Gaps in the body of literature can only be filled if spaces are actively
constructed that allow these very gaps to be filled. These spaces exist in
publication and distribution structures (see also Roberts et al., 2020).

1. Journal editors and field leaders can generate more outlets for re-
search on antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEMM to
be published.
2. Space in existing mainstream STEMM and social science journals,
especially those with the highest impact factors, can be allocated to
the dedication of antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion-related
research. Journal editors can consider what proportion of space
could be dedicated.
3. At the same time, journal editors can decrease space for research
that perpetuates harm to minoritized communities in STEMM. Edi-
tors could consider how journal requirements and standards could
be implemented to best achieve this.
4. There needs to be greater federal infrastructure and outlets that
permit the publication of federally supported research on antira-
cism, diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEMM.

CONCLUSION
The scientific evidence and lived experiences presented in this report
offer critical insights and form a strong foundation for the committee’s re-
search agenda. Stakeholders who conduct and fund STEMM research can
use this research agenda to fill critical gaps in the empirical evidence base
and improve how research is conducted. Attention to each of the priority
areas identified by the committee will contribute to a more robust evidence
base that is needed to advance antiracism, diversity, equity, and inclusion.

REFERENCES
Bailey, Z.D., Feldman, J.M., and Bassett, M.T. (2021). How structural racism works—racist
policies as a root cause of US racial health inequities. New England Journal of Medicine,
384(8), 768–773.
Beeler, W.H., Mangurian, C., and Jagsi, R. (2019). Unplugging the pipeline—a call for term
limits in academic medicine. The New England journal of medicine, 381(16), 1508–1511.
Cannady, M.A., Greenwald, E., and Harris, K.N. (2014). Problematizing the STEM pipeline
metaphor: Is the STEM pipeline metaphor serving our students and the STEM work-
force?. Science Education, 98(3), 443–460.

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

RESEARCH AGENDA 283

Carlson, R. (2006). The small firm exemption and the single employer doctrine in employment
discrimination law. St. John’s Law Review, 80, 1197.
Chay, K.Y. (1998). The impact of federal civil rights policy on black economic progress: Evidence
from the equal employment opportunity act of 1972. ILR Review, 51(4), 608–632.
Coates, T. (2014). The case for reparations. https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/
2014/06/the-case-for-reparations/361631/
Cobian, K., Fang, J., and Poon, O. (2022). A Call for a Critical Intersectional Lens for DEI
and Anti-Racist Strategies to Include Asian Americans. Unpublished paper commis-
sioned by the Committee on Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in
STEMM Organizations, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.
Crenshaw, K.W. (2012). From private violence to mass incarceration: Thinking intersectionally
about women, race, and social control. UCLA Law Review, 59, 1418.
________. (1989). Demarginalizing the intersection of race and sex: A Black feminist critique
of antidiscrimination doctrine, feminist theory and antiracist politics. University of
Chicago Legal Forum, 139–167.
Darity Jr, W.A., and Mullen, A.K. (2020). From here to equality: Reparations for Black
Americans in the twenty-first century. UNC Press Books.
Hampton, C., Reeping, D., and Ozkan, D.S. (2021). Positionality statements in engineering
education research: A look at the hand that guides the methodological tools. Studies in
Engineering Education, 1(2).
Kim, V., Alcantar, C.M., and Teranishi, R.T. (2022). The AANAPISI-funded STEM Program:
An institutional response to the needs of Asian American community college students.
Community College Journal of Research and Practice, 1–15.
Lewallen, D. (2014). Follow the leader: Why all states should remove minimum employee
thresholds in antidiscrimination statutes. Indiana Law Review, 47, 817.
McGee, E.O. (2020). Interrogating structural racism in STEM higher education. Educational
Researcher, 49(9), 633–644.
Powell, C. (2018). Bias, employment discrimination, and Black women’s hair: Another
way forward. BYU Law Review, 933. https://digitalcommons.law.byu.edu/lawreview/
vol2018/iss4/7
Rahman, F., Billionniere, E., Brown, Q., and Gates, A.Q. (2020). RESET (Re-Enter STEM
through Emerging Technology) finding re-entry pathways for women. Proceedings of the
51st ACM Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education, 173–174.
Randall, M., Stern, A., and Su, Y. (2021). Five ethical risks to consider before filling missing
race and ethnicity data. Urban Institute.
Roberson, A.B. (2019). The migrant farmworkers’ case for eliminating small-firm exemptions
in antidiscrimination law. Texas Law Review, 98, 185.
Roberts, S.O., Bareket-Shavit, C., Dollins, F.A., Goldie, P.D., and Mortenson, E. (2020).
Racial inequality in psychological research: Trends of the past and recommendations for
the future. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 15(6), 1295–1309.
Secules, S., McCall, C., Mejia, J.A., Beebe, C., Masters, A.S.L., Sánchez-Peña, M., and
Svyantek, M. (2021). Positionality practices and dimensions of impact on equity research:
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110(1), 19–43.
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Organizations, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.
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emies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

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284 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

U.S. Congress (2021). H.R.40 - Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Propos-
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bill/40
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­business ­information. https://www.eeoc.gov/publications/get-facts-series-small-business-
information

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Appendix A

Increasing Participation of
Underrepresented Groups in STEM:
Themes from Four Recent
National Academies Reports

The National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine has a

long history of tackling diversity, equity, and inclusion in science, technol-
ogy, engineering, and mathematics. Many reports have focused on various
aspects of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) relevant to this report. Of the
reports that have been released, four consensus studies highlight significant
recommendations that address increasing inclusivity in STEM:1 Expanding
Underrepresented Minority Participation: America’s Science and Technology
Talent at the Crossroads (the National Academy of Sciences, National Acad-
emy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine, 2011); Minority Serving
Institutions: America’s U ­ nderutilized Resource for Strengthening the STEM
Workforce (the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine,
2019); Transforming Trajectories for Women of Color in Tech (the National
Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2022a); and Defense
Research Capacity at Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Other
Minority Institutions: Transitioning from Good Intentions to Measurable
Outcomes (the National Academies, 2022b).
The spotlighted consensus studies address common themes such as develop-
ing a culture of inclusive leadership, providing social and emotional support for
underrepresented/underresourced individuals, support for pathway programs,
and further utilization of data collection and evaluation toward measurable
outcomes. Below are summaries of themes that exist across two or more of the
consensus studies and a list of the recommendations included in the respective
reports. The full text of each report is available for download at NAP.edu.

1 STEM is used intentionally, as medicine is not a core subject for the four reports analyzed.

285

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286 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

THEME I: DEVELOP AND INSTITUTE INCLUSIVE

LEADERSHIP PRACTICES IN STEMM INSTITUTIONS
Given the significant impact that individuals in positions of leader-
ship in academia, nonprofit organizations, scientific societies, government,
and industry have on the trajectory of the workforces that they support,
if an organization is devoted to increasing the number of people from
minoritized groups, then targeting its leadership practices is paramount.
Intentional inclusive leadership practices assist in developing a new cadre
of diverse leaders in STEM institutions and provide a visual representation
of an organization’s commitment to DEI. Further, implementing inclusive
leadership mechanisms ensures that on-ramps undergird investments made
at the beginning of an individual’s education and training toward positions
of influence that will provide new voices and strategies for further inclusion
of people from minoritized groups.
The report on Transforming Trajectories for Women of Color in Tech
highlights the need for expanded recruitment efforts that target disciplines
and organizations with low numbers of people from minoritized groups.
By incorporating community colleges and Minority Serving Institutions
(MSIs) into recruitment searches to directly connect to training programs
that primarily serve people from minoritized groups, institutions can di-
rectly connect with the populations they intend to serve. Additionally, pro-
viding financial assistance for undergraduate and graduate students from
minoritized groups coupled with recruitment and retention strategies will
support their transition from two-year and MSIs into larger institutions for
postgraduate education and industry.
It is increasingly essential to incorporate evidence-based, outcome-
driven programs and strategies as leadership at institutions creates a culture
of intentionality through the development of policies, infrastructure, and
practices. The report Minority Serving Institutions: America’s Underutilized
Resource for Strengthening the STEM workforce argues that an integral
aspect of developing this intentional culture revolves around investing in
succession planning and professional development training programs for
the next generation of diverse STEM leaders.
While increasing the number of people from minoritized groups in lead-
ership at STEM institutions will provide a step in the right direction, solidi-
fying the role of DEI in an institution’s organizational structure will fortify
long-term actions. The Transforming Trajectories for Women of Color in
Tech report directs organizations that are serious about inclusive leader-
ship and DEI in their workforce and training to elevate DEI professionals
into executive leadership positions. These professionals can use the power
of financial and human resources with evidence-based strategies to imple-
ment innovative strategies, track outcomes, and provide accountability.

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APPENDIX A 287

Incorporating continuity in these leadership positions will support con-

sistency in metric gathering and assessment and the sustainability of the
organization’s efforts.
Related Recommendations:

• Minority Serving Institutions: America’s Underutilized Resource for

Strengthening the STEM Workforce: RECOMMENDATIONS 1 and 2
• Transforming Trajectories for Women of Color in Tech: RECOM-
MENDATIONS 3-3 and 4-2

THEME II: FOSTER AN ENVIRONMENT THAT

PROVIDES SOCIAL AND BEHAVIORAL SUPPORT FOR
UNDERREPRESENTED/UNDERRESOURCED INDIVIDUALS
ACROSS STEM EDUCATION AND CAREERS
Expanding social and behavioral support for people from minoritized
groups in STEM provides a mechanism for retention and recruitment. The
necessary support system, however, is multisectoral and involves stake-
holders from academia to industry to be successful. The report Minority
Serving Institutions: America’s Underutilized Resource for Strengthening
the STEM Workforce emphasizes the vital role that funding organizations
have in developing programs that target social and behavioral support for
people from minoritized groups. Specifically, the report calls on funders to
create new and expand grant opportunities for evidence-based research on
socio-behavioral and socio-cultural approaches for intervention programs
at STEM institutions. Moreover, federal agencies, such as the National Sci-
ence Foundation (NSF), have seen moderate success in incorporating review
criteria like its broader impacts as a mechanism for ensuring that grants
that support the training of students and postdocs focus on broadening
participation. Other federal agencies should consider broader impacts as a
template for their grant-making and diversity goals.
An adaptation of successful federal programs like the NSF ADVANCE
program, which tasks STEM organizations with addressing an academic
and institutional culture that has prevented or stagnated the advance-
ment of people from minoritized groups, should be explored across gov-
ernmental, nonprofit, and academic STEM organizations. These reports
also recommend that federal agencies that support training should also
require mentoring plans as part of grant applications, evaluations, and
reporting.
Among higher education institutions, a campus-wide initiative focused
on inclusiveness that manifests through funded programs and reformations
to university missions and affairs is also necessary. These actions should

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288 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

precipitate targeted activities such as orientations, professional develop-

ment, career coaching, and peer mentoring with facilitators and leadership
required to maintain regular training in culturally responsive education,
racial awareness, and intersectionality. Furthermore, faculty who partici-
pate in the development of students and trainees from minoritized groups
should receive an acknowledgment from their institution through profes-
sional development opportunities and attribution during the promotion
and tenure process.
Professional and academic societies and industries can incorporate
many of the aforementioned strategies like peer mentoring and leadership,
cultural coaching, and faculty mentorship. To better leverage resources
across stakeholder groups, the report on Transforming Trajectories for
Women of Color in Tech suggests the creation of cross-sector coalitions
to encourage and support ongoing activities and promote effective recruit-
ment, retention, and advancement strategies across stakeholder groups. The
recommendations also identify ways that industry should also incorporate
practices that provide adequate work-life balance through remote work,
flexible hours, parental and family leave, and career counseling.
Related Recommendations:

• Expanding Underrepresented Minority Participation: America’s Science

and Technology Talent at the Crossroads: RECOMMENDATION 6
• Minority Serving Institutions: America’s Underutilized Resource
for Strengthening the STEM Workforce: RECOMMENDATION 7
• Transforming Trajectories for Women of Color in Tech: RECOM-
MENDATIONS 3-3, 4-3, and 4-4

THEME III: SUPPORT AND INCREASE PATHWAY

PROGRAMS THAT TARGET UNDERREPRESENTED/
UNDERRESOURCED INDIVIDUALS
Interest in STEM has been shown to start at an early age. Providing
opportunities that engage individuals as young as possible will help nur-
ture natural curiosity and competency for STEM concepts. The report on
Expanding Underrepresented Minority Participation encourages stakehold-
ers to prepare the workforce beginning in preschool and continuing through
third grade by providing reading readiness, early math skills, and basic
concepts of creativity and discovery. As students matriculate through pri-
mary school, improvements in K–12 mathematics and science education will
support the student readiness for secondary and postsecondary education.
To further support these activities, the report notes that stakeholders across
sectors should prioritize developing and expanding collaborative partner-
ships that support education, research, and workforce training.

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APPENDIX A 289

The federal government should seek to expand its programs and

investments toward additional on-ramps for people from minoritized
groups in STEM. The report on Defense Research Capacity at Historically
Black Universities and Other Minority Universities recommends that
federal agencies direct current workforce development scholarships and
fellowships like the Department of Defense’s SMART program to increase
the representation of MSIs as a proportion of these programs by fiscal
year 2025. Interagency collaborations on programs like the ASSURE
program will also provide resources for MSI principal investigators to
support the training of students at their institution, where resources may
be challenging to attain.
As STEM pathways diversify, a look at the adaption of credentialing
toward further education and careers should be explored. Extensive incor-
poration of certification and training programs administered by community-
based programs and institutions as supplements for undergraduate and
graduate admission and job requirements will help expand opportunities
for individuals seeking to (re)enter STEM programs and workforces.
Related Recommendations:

• Expanding Underrepresented Minority Participation: America’s

Science and Technology Talent at the Crossroads: RECOMMEN-
DATIONS 1, 2, and 5
• Minority Serving Institutions: America’s Underutilized Resource
for Strengthening the STEM Workforce: RECOMMENDATION 3
• Transforming Trajectories for Women of Color in Tech:
­RECOMMENDATIONS 6-1, 6-2, 6-3, and 6-4
• Defense Research Capacity at Historically Black Colleges and Uni-
versities and Other Minority Institutions: Transitioning from Good
Intentions to Measurable Outcomes: RECOMMENDATION 8

THEME IV: FORTIFY DATA COLLECTION,

EVALUATION, AND ACCOUNTABILITY OF DIVERSITY,
EQUITY, AND INCLUSION PROGRAMS
As federal agencies, academic institutions, industry, and professional
societies incorporate diversity, equity, and inclusion metrics into their mis-
sions and programs, robust tracking, evaluation, and accountability will
ensure that the initiatives are effective and evolve to better address chang-
ing demographics and intersectionality. The Minority Serving Institutions
report recommends that stakeholders reassess and refine methods of mea-
suring outcomes that consider missions, faculty loads and investments,
population needs, and institutional resource constraints. The Defense
Research Capacity at Historically Black Colleges and Universities and

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290 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

Other Minority Institutions report recommends continual and consistent

data collection and analysis across federal agencies to ensure compatibility
with national databases. Given reporting structures across the federal gov-
ernment, agencies should, as best as possible, develop interagency guide-
lines for data collection and evaluation to improve tracking and annual
assessments.
The report on Transforming Trajectories for Women of Color in Tech
provides direction for increasing the accountability of federal agencies and
recipients of federal funds that support the recruitment, retention, and ad-
vancement of people from minoritized groups. Recommendations include
submitting an overview of the outcomes of DEI programs and initiatives as
part of the annual budget request to Congress, requiring additional review
panels for proposals that plan to promote DEI, and incorporating an evalu-
ation of the grantee outcomes in annual reports and funding renewal, and
conducting periodic “equity audits” on metrics such as gender and racial
disparities in recruitment, retention, and advancement. These equity audits
should reflect an individual institution’s specific context, geography, and
resource limitations and should track an institution’s progress over time in
improving the inclusion of people from minoritized groups.
Related Recommendations:

• Minority Serving Institutions: America’s Underutilized Resource for

Strengthening the STEM Workforce: RECOMMENDATION 10
• Transforming Trajectories for Women of Color in Tech:
­RECOMMENDATIONS 5-2, 5-3, and 5-4A, B, C
• Defense Research Capacity at Historically Black Colleges and
­Universities and Other Minority Institutions Transitioning from Good
Intentions to Measurable Outcomes: RECOMMENDATIONS 3A,
3B, and 3C

REFERENCES
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. (2022a). Transforming
Trajectories for Women of Color in Tech. The National Academies Press. https://doi.
org/10.17226/26345
________. (2022b). Defense Research Capacity at Historically Black Colleges and Universi-
ties and Other Minority Institutions: Transitioning from Good Intentions to Measurable
Outcomes. The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/26399
________. (2019). Minority Serving Insti­ tutions: America’s Underutilized Resource for
Strengthening the STEM Workforce. The National Academies Press. https://doi.
org/10.17226/25257
National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medi-
cine. (2011). Expanding Underrepresented Minority Participation: America’s Science
and Technology Talent at the Crossroads. The National Academies Press. https://doi.
org/10.17226/12984

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

Appendix B

Comparison Tables of Science and

Engineering Degrees Earned by Race and
Ethnicity and Gender in 2011 and 2019

TABLE B-1 Comparison of Science and Engineering Associate’s Degrees

Earned by Race and Ethnicity and Gender in 2011 and 2019

SOURCE: Woman, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering
(NCSES, 2021).

291

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292 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

TABLE B-2 Comparison of Science and Engineering Bachelor’s Degrees

Earned by Race and Ethnicity and Gender in 2011 and 2019

SOURCE: Woman, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering
(NCSES, 2021).

TABLE B-3 Comparison of Science and Engineering Master’s Degrees

Earned by Race and Ethnicity and Gender in 2011 and 2019

SOURCE: Woman, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering
(NCSES, 2021).

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APPENDIX B 293

TABLE B-4 Comparison of Science and Engineering Doctoral Degrees

Earned by Race and Ethnicity and Gender in 2011 and 2019

SOURCE: Woman, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering
(NCSES, 2021).

REFERENCE
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES). (2021). Women, Minorities,
and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering. https://ncses.nsf.gov/pubs/
nsf21321/

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

Appendix C

Process for Panel’s Interviews

This appendix details how the committee carried out the interviews
reported in Chapter 4. The committee designed the general method,
and it was approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) of the Na-
tional Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (the National
Academies).

INTERVIEW APPROACH AND INTERVIEWERS

Interviews were conducted on Zoom, using both audio and video. The
audio was transcribed, and those transcripts are confidential and have been
de-identified.
The interviews were conducted by five project research assistants. Be-
cause identities inform perceptions, their positional identifications are in-
cluded below. From the perspective of the interviewees, all five would be
visually identified as young Black women; they introduced themselves as
recent Princeton graduates who completed senior theses with Susan Fiske,
co-chair of the committee.

• Ogechi Adele identifies as Black (100% Nigerian), age 22, cis-

gender straight woman, from Atlanta and New York, attending
Columbia Law School.
• Yolore Airewele identifies as African American (Nigerian), age 23,
from upstate New York, cisgender straight woman, working as
research staff at Princeton University.

295

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296 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

• Jessica Brice identifies as Black/African American, age 22, cisgen-

der woman, from New Jersey, currently pursuing a Ph.D. in social
psychology at the University of Washington.
• Dana Harris identifies as an African American, age 23, cisgen-
der queer woman, from Cleveland, Ohio, currently living in
New Haven, Connecticut, working as a research analyst with
ThinkNow.
• Leezet Matos, M.A., identifies as a Black Afro-Latinx (Haitian-
Dominican/Puerto Rican), age 26, cisgender queer woman from
Dallas, Texas, currently living in Los Angeles, California, attending
the University of California at Los Angeles.

The selection of the quotations in Chapter 4 was made by these in-

terviewers, committee staff member André Porter, and committee co-chair
Susan Fiske. Because their identities likely inform their perceptions, their
positional statements follow:

• André Porter, identifies as a Black/African American, age 34, cis-

gender man from Washington, D.C.
• Susan T. Fiske identifies as White (25% German Jewish, 75%
British Isles), age 70, mobility challenged, cisgender straight
woman, from Chicago and New England, teaching at Princeton
University.

The interviewers uploaded their audio interviews to a secure storage

site, and the audio files were then transcribed by either an agency or an
automated transcription site. A research assistant then removed any iden-
tifying information in the transcripts before uploading the documents onto
the secure storage site for later use. Finally, committee and staff informally
coded the information by interview questions.
The quotations that appear throughout the report were vetted by the
entire committee and approved by the individual interviewee.

INTERVIEW SCRIPT
Committee members and the five interviewers developed a structured
interview. The rest of this section reproduces that script. (Note that the
National Academies are referred to as NASEM in the script.)

“I am [name], working as research staff with the NASEM committee

on Anti-Racism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM. Just for
context, I have a B.A. in Psychology from Princeton, having completed
a senior thesis on [topic] in Susan Fiske’s lab. So I have human subjects

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APPENDIX C 297

training. I will follow an interview script, developed by a subcommittee

of c­ ommittee on Racism, Anti-Racism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in
STEMM Careers, as approved by the NASEM IRB.

I am so grateful for your time today. This should take about half an
hour. In case it looks like we might run over, do you have a hard stop
afterwards? [Respect their time.]

I’m going to ask some questions about your lived experience as a [scientist,
engineer, medical professional]. As the letter from Dr. Barabino and
Dr. Fiske [the committee co-chairs] noted, the research staff will aggre-
gate most of the data for the committee’s report, so in those cases, you
would be anonymous. If we want to use any direct quotations, we would
ask you, and your identity will still be confidential; although I know who
you are, the quote would be attributed generically (e.g., Black member of
NAM [National Academy of Medicine]). The whole process has NASEM
IRB approval.

Would you mind if we audio record this, so I can concentrate on listening

to you? You can ask me to turn off the Zoom audio recording or the video
picture at any time. You can also skip any question. When I turn on the
recording, your participation implies your consent to be recorded.

After we are done, a transcription service will transcribe your interview.

We will keep the recording and transcript in secure NASEM storage and
destroy it 12 months after the committee releases its report. Is it okay for
me to turn on the audio recording? And thanks again for your time.

Could you tell me how you identify your NASEM field? And what is your
racial identity?

So, tell me about being a [race and specialty]. What’s your experience?
[After a few backchannels—uh huh, I see, wow, great—try “anything
else?” Elicit concrete details: “Tell me more about that.”]

I’d appreciate if you could say more. For example: Did you feel like you
belonged—or not?

How much did you feel supported—or not?

What were the sources of your own resilience?

Now I’d like to home in on these questions at different career stages,

regarding experiences of belonging or not, being supported or not, and
resilience.

How did you experience training in your college STEMM major?

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298 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

How about graduate school? What was that like?

Time in lab or research team?

First job?

Promotion?

Lately?

Overall, what lessons have you learned from the journey over your career?

If you have a little more time, what advice would you give someone just
starting out?

What advice would you give the NASEM panel assembling this report?

What else should I be asking you?

And finally, a little more about you. Please note that your answers will be
kept separately from your transcript. We simply want to describe gener-
ally the kinds of people who gave us interviews: In what year did you get
your highest degree?

How do you identify your gender? [Or, if it seems too awkward:] I’ll
record your gender as [m/f], if that’s OK, unless you prefer a nonbinary
identity.

Where were you born?

Where were your parents born? [If they ask, this records immigration
history.]

Thank you for giving your time to this important project. The report
should be coming out by early fall.”

RECRUITMENT AND DEMOGRAPHICS

To recruit participants, the committee emailed the 33 members of the
Roundtable on Black Men and Black Women in Science, Engineering, and
Medicine who identify as Black or African American. Additionally, to
increase the number of interviews with Black elites in STEMM careers,
the committee sent a recruitment email to 30 randomly selected members
of the National Academies who identify as Black or African American; a
second round of recruitment following the same procedure yielded 30 more

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APPENDIX C 299

National Academies’ members, for a total number of 60 members of the

National Academies. The final recruitment effort was directed at members
of the committee itself. The rate of response from the roundtable was
51.5 percent (17 members), from the membership of the National Acad-
emies, 13.3 percent (eight members), and from the committee, 57.1 percent
(four members). Thus, the total number of interviewees was 29.
Of the 29 interviewees 12 identified as female (41.4%) and 17 identi-
fied as male (58.6%); 21 of the interviewees were born in the United States
(72.4%) and three were second-generation immigrants (10.3%).

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Appendix D

Glossary

American Indian or Alaska Native

a person having origins in any of the original peoples of North
and South America, including Central America, and who main-
tains tribal affiliation or community attachment.

Antiracist
to engage in an active, intentional, and dynamic set of actions
that dismantle and disrupt the policies, practices, attitudes,
cultures, and systems that confer power and privilege to White
people over others.

Asian
a person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far
East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent; for example,
Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the
Philippine Islands, Thailand, and Vietnam. These individuals
remain citizens of their home countries in Asia.

Asian American
a person who has Asian ancestry and who is now a U.S. citizen
or a U.S. permanent resident.

Black or African American

a person having origins in any of the Black racial groups of
Africa.

301

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302 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

Climate
refers to the participants’ perception of and experiences with
the organization, leadership, and actions, including the policies,
practices, and procedures that comprise its culture. Climate can
help identify particular issues in an organization, notably when
gaps exist between values and actions (see also Culture).

Colorblind
an ideology in which the evaluation, perception, and treat-
ment of individuals is equal without the consideration of race
and ethnicity information of those individuals. It assumes that
all individuals are on a level playing field, and often ignores
experiences of individual racism, structural racism, and other
unique factors that occur on the basis of race.

Culture
broadly defined as “the historically, collectively evolving use of
tools, practices, and norms.” Organizational culture is dynamic:
“Culture is not best understood as a homogeneous, cohesive and
causal force, but as something that people do; it is emergent,
dynamic, situationally adaptive and co-created in dialogue.”

Discrimination
treatment of others based on stereotypic assumptions or emo-
tional prejudices. This includes both active harm and passive
harm, as well as active help and passive help.

Diversity
the fair representation of all different aspects of human char-
acteristics, identities, and perspectives in the composition of a
group. Diversity is contextual and benefits from specific defini-
tions for the areas to which it applies. It can be a product of
antiracist actions as well as a measure against racism.

Equality
the treatment of all individuals in the same manner regardless
of their starting point.

Equity
an outcome from fair conditions (policies, practices, structures,
cultures, and norms) in which all individuals and groups have
the opportunities and resources they need for general well-being
or success in specific metrics (such as pay or advancement).

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APPENDIX D 303

Equity is aligned with justice and may require the systemic redis-
tribution of power, access, and resources. Equity should not be
confused with equality, which is the treatment of all individuals
in the same manner regardless of their starting point.

Ethnicity
in contrast to race, has a stronger relationship to place: “a
grouping of persons according to a shared geographic, na-
tional, or cultural heritage.” Ethnicity is a human-invented
term used to describe people from a similar national or re-
gional background who share common cultural, historical, and
social experiences. An ethnic group likely contains a subgroup
of people who share distinct beliefs, values, and behaviors.
Race, even though as mentioned below is not a valid biological
construct, does contain reference to biological features, while
ethnicity addresses social, cultural, and historical commonali-
ties (see also Race).

Explicit bias
blatant expressions of prejudice and explicit endorsement of
stereotypes.

Gatekeeper
defined simply as any individual who possesses power in a given
STEMM context or situation, where power includes the control
over valued outcomes and resources. Gatekeepers in STEMM
can exert their power across a range of everyday behaviors. For
example, they can define boundaries, decide who does or does
not get tenure, decide who should be hired, decide who gets rec-
ognition and praise, and direct the flow of and use of resources.
Individuals such as managers, supervisors, admissions officers,
principal investigators, heads of laboratories and research groups,
deans, university presidents, and chief executive officers represent
some of the most common gatekeepers in STEMM.

Hispanic or Latine
ethnicity categories referring to a person of Cuban, Mexican,
Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish
culture or origin, regardless of race. “Hispanic” does not in-
clude individuals of Brazilian heritage, whereas Latine refers
to people from Latin America regardless of language. Both are
gender neutral. The committee elected to use “Latine,” unless
the data source specifically denotes Hispanic.

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304 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

Ideal-worker framework
characterized by a culture where workers center their profes-
sion as the primary obligation and have additional support to
attend to their domestic needs.

Implicit bias
stereotypic beliefs and negative evaluations about groups that
pop into mind quickly, often with little awareness or intention.

Inclusion
the feeling or sense of belonging in an environment in which
all individuals, regardless of and with respect to their back-
grounds, feel that they have a voice and the support for full
participation in that environment. An inclusive culture is rein-
forced with equitable policies, practices, programs, and struc-
tures. In an inclusive environment, leaders take an active role
in reflecting, learning, and listening to all members of the
community to sustain a culture of dignity, respect, and trust.

Indigenous
a term that represents the racial categories of American Indian
or Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific
Islander.

Individuation
a cognitive process whereby a person consciously considers
the unique beliefs, perspectives, and intentions of another
individual.

Institutional racism
policies and practices within and across institutions that, in-
tentionally or not, produce outcomes that chronically favor
White individuals and put individuals from minoritized racial
and ethnic groups at a disadvantage.

Meritocracy
a system in which individuals advance based on their ability
alone.

Minoritized individuals
Black people, Indigenous people, Latine people, and people
from groups that have been historically and systemically mar-
ginalized based on their race or ethnicity.

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APPENDIX D 305

More than one race

respondents who select one or more racial designations on
forms or surveys in which race is asked.

Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander

a person having origins in any of the original peoples of
­Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific islands.

Norms
are a set of behavioral expectations within an organization or
group. “Often unspoken, these norms offer social standards
of appropriate and inappropriate behavior, governing what is
(and is not) acceptable and coordinating our interactions with
others.”

Policies
the documented structure and guidance for decisionmaking in
organizations.

Postsecondary
referring to formal education taking place after high school.

Practices
the formal and informal ways in which an organization com-
pletes a task.

Prejudice
an evaluative and affective bias of groups of people. This can
range from simple negative-positive attitudes to complex emo-
tions, such as envy, resentment, scorn, pity, and fear.

Race
a human-invented, shorthand term used to describe and cat-
egorize people into various social groups based on character-
istics like skin color, physical features, and genetic heredity.
Race, while not a valid biological concept, is a real social
construction that gives or denies benefits and privileges.

Racial bias
refers to the collective of stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimi-
nation, and how they can unfairly advantage or disadvantage
individuals based on race.

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306 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

Racialized
the extension of racial meaning to resources, cultural objects,
emotions, bodies and organizations that have previously been
seen as non-racial.

Racism
the combination of policies, practices, attitudes, cultures, and
systems that affect individuals, institutions, and structures un-
equally and that confer power and privilege to certain groups
over others, defined according to the social constructions of
race and ethnicity.

Stereotype
refers to a generalized belief regarding the characteristics and
traits of a group of people.

Structural racism
cultural values in society that are so ingrained in daily life that
they are seen simply as the way things are. This includes the
wider political and social disadvantages within society.

Systemic racism
perpetuated discrimination within a system that was founded
on racist principles or practices. Systemic racism focuses on
the involvement of whole systems, and often all systems—for
example, political, legal, economic, healthcare, school, and
criminal legal systems—including the structures that uphold
those systems.

Team
a small number of individuals with different roles and respon-
sibilities that interact independently to perform tasks and ac-
complish shared goals.

Values
a set of priorities amid multiple interests. Values may vary
based on individual judgement, biases, prejudices, and shape
personal behavior.

White
a person having origins in any of the original peoples of
­Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa.

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Appendix E

Committee and Staff Biosketches

David J. Asai (he/him/his) is senior director in the Center for the Advance-
ment of Science Leadership and Culture at the Howard Hughes Medical
Institute. He directs the Inclusive Learning Group (ILG), which designs and
leads grants and fellowships programs aimed at the development of stu-
dents in the domain of formal education (http://www.hhmi.org/developing-
scientists). ILG’s initiatives are centered on inclusion and founded on the
belief that the responsibility for creating equitable learning environments
rests primarily with the faculty, staff, and administrators. Current ILG ini-
tiatives include: (i) Inclusive Excellence, (ii) Driving Change, (iii) Gilliam
graduate program, (iv) the Science Education Alliance, (v) the HHMI Pro-
fessors, and (vi) the Scientific Mentorship Initiative. Asai has served on
diversity-focused advisory committees of the National Science Foundation,
National Institutes of Health, the American Association for the Advance-
ment of Science, and the Wellcome Trust. He is an elected fellow of the
American Association for the Advancement of Science and an elected fel-
low of the American Society for Cell Biology. Asai received his bachelor’s
degree in chemistry from Stanford University and his Ph.D. in biology from
Caltech.

Gilda A. Barabino (she/her/hers) is president of Olin College of Engineer-

ing and professor of Biomedical and Chemical Engineering. She previously
served as Daniel and Frances Berg Professor and dean at The City College
of New York’s (CCNY) Grove School of Engineering. Prior to joining
CCNY, Barabino was associate chair for Graduate Studies and professor in
the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia

307

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308 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

Tech and Emory. At Georgia Tech she also served as the inaugural vice pro-
vost for Academic Diversity. Barabino is a noted investigator in the areas of
sickle cell disease, tissue engineering, and the role of race/ethnicity and gen-
der in science and engineering. She is president of the American Association
for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the world’s largest interdisciplin-
ary scientific society. Barabino is a fellow of AAAS, the American Academy
of Arts and Sciences, the American Institute of Chemical E ­ ngineers, the
American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering, and the Bio-
medical Engineering Society. She is also an elected member of the National
Academy of Engineering and the National Academy of Medicine. Barabino
chairs the National Academies’ Committee on Women in Science, Engineer-
ing and Medicine and is a member of the National Academies’ Roundtable
on Black Men and Black Women in Science, Engineering and Medicine,
and the National Academy of Medicine’s Health and Medicine Division
Committee. She consults nationally and internationally on STEM education
and research, diversity in higher education, policy, faculty development, and
workforce development. Barabino serves on a number of advisory boards
and committees including the congressionally mandated Committee on
Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering, the National Institutes
of Health National Advisory Council for Bioimaging and Bioengineering,
and the Defense Innovation Board, an independent advisory board for
the Department of Defense. She received a B.S. from Xavier University of
Louisiana and a Ph.D. from Rice University.

Susan T. Fiske (Co-Chair, she/her/hers) is the Eugene Higgins Professor,

Psychology and Public Affairs, Princeton University, where she has studied
diversity for more than 40 years. Groups relate along universal dimensions
of perceived warmth (trustworthy intentions) and competence (capability).
Interdependence and power dynamics determine these group images,
which (i) form distinct stereotypes (e.g., warm but incompetent old per-
son vs cold but competent rich person); (ii) generate predictable emotional
prejudices (e.g., pity, envy, contempt, admiration); and (iii) result in dis-
tinct behavioral discriminatory behavior (e.g., attack, neglect, associate,
help). Different racial and ethnic groups get treated in predictable pat-
terns across 50 countries, 90 years, and evidence from surveys to neural
activation. Fiske testified in Clinton’s race initiative and in landmark cases
related to gender, age, and LGBTQ+. A Harvard Ph.D. and member of
the National Academy of S­ ciences, she recently won the BBVA Frontiers
of Science Award. Her National Academies service includes chairing the
Board on Behavioral, Cognitive, and Sensory Sciences, which proposed
this panel and serving on several consensus reports as member (measuring
discrimination, scientific workforce) or as chair (human subjects, aging
workforce).

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APPENDIX E 309

Jacqueline Cole (she/her/hers) is a senior program assistant with the Board

on Behavioral, Cognitive, and Sensory Sciences. Prior to her position at the
National Academies, she worked for The GW Medical Faculty Associates as
the residency program administrator for the George Washington University
Internal Medicine Residency Programs and as coordinator for the Under-
served Medicine & Public Health Concentration designed for residents in-
terested in careers in public health and serving the underserved. Prior to her
position as the residency program administrator, she worked as the assistant
to the founder and president of the Rodham Institute. She also worked for
the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory, a forensics laboratory
specializing in DNA profiling run by the United States Armed Forces.

Nilanjana Dasgupta (she/her/hers) is a professor of Psychology and the direc-

tor of the Institute of Diversity Sciences at the University of Massachusetts
Amherst. She is a leader in research on implicit bias. Her work emphasizes
the plasticity of implicit bias—identifying the ways in which changes in local
situations modify people’s implicit attitudes, beliefs, and behavior. Dasgupta
uses the science of implicit bias to tackle complex social problems by design-
ing and testing the impacts of psychological interventions in the lab and in
naturally existing settings. Her research has been funded by the National
Science Foundation, National Institute of Health, and American Psychologi-
cal Foundation. Dasgupta’s work has been recognized by the Hidden Bias
Research Prize from the Kapor Center for Social Impact in Silicon Valley,
the Application of Personality and Social Psychology Award from the So-
ciety for Personality & Social Psychology, and by the UMass Chancellor’s
Award for Outstanding Accomplishments in Research and Creative Activ-
ity. She is a fellow of the Association for Psychological Science, Society for
Experimental Social Psychology, and Society for Personality and Social Psy-
chology. She received her bachelor’s degree in psychology and neuroscience
from Smith College and a Ph.D. in social psychology from Yale University.

Mica Estrada (she/her/hers) is currently an associate dean of diversity,

inclusion and outreach and professor at the University of California at San
Francisco's School of Nursing in the Department of Social and Behavioral
Sciences and the Institute for Health and Aging. Her research program fo-
cuses on social influence, including the study of identity, values, kindness,
well-being, and integrative education. Estrada's research advances knowl-
edge about ethnic populations that are historically underrepresented in
higher education, most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, and are
providing diverse and creative solutions to the pressing challenges of our
day. She writes a Psychology Today blog entitled Lead with Kindness. Es-
trada currently leads, as principal investigator, several longitudinal studies,
which involve implementing and assessing inclusion, equity and kindness

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310 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

interventions aimed to increase student persistence in Science, Technology,

Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) careers (funded by the National In-
stitute of Health, National Science Foundation, and Howard Hughes Medi-
cal Institute). Estrada has previously served as a member of the National
Academies study on Strengthening Research Experiences for Undergraduate
STEM Students, and currently serves as a NAS Roundtable on Systemic
Change in Undergraduate STEM Education member. She received her B.A.
in psychology from the University of California, Berkeley, and her Ph.D. in
social psychology from Harvard University.

Mirian M. Graddick-Weir (she/her/hers) is formerly the executive vice

president, Human Resources (HR) at Merck, where she had responsibility
for all aspects of human resources for 68,000 colleagues located in over
90 countries. She joined Merck in 2006 from AT&T, where she was execu-
tive vice president of Human Resources and Employee Communications.
Prior to that role, Graddick-Weir spent 20 years at AT&T holding numer-
ous positions in HR and multiple operational roles. She is a member of the
Board of Yum! Brands, Inc. and Booking Holdings, Inc. She serves on the
Foundation Board of the Society for Industrial/Organizational Psychology
and is a senior advisor to the Jersey Battered Women’s services organiza-
tion. Previously, Graddick-Weir served as the Chair of the HR Policy Asso-
ciation and the National Academy of Human Resources (NAHR). In 2001,
she was elected as a NAHR Fellow and she was elected as a Distinguished
Fellow of the Academy, the highest honor in the HR profession. Graddick-
Weir earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Hampton University
and a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in industrial/organizational psychology
from Pennsylvania State University.

Giovanna Guerrero-Medina (she/her/hers) is executive director of Ciencia

Puerto Rico, a global network of more than 15,000 scientists, students,
and educators committed to promoting and democratizing science. Under
her leadership, CienciaPR has become one of the largest communities of
Hispanic scientists in the world. The organization has been recognized
for its work promoting justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion in the areas
of science communication, education, and professional development by
the Union of Concerned Scientists, the AAAS-Caribbean Division, and
the White House, and it received the Falling Walls Breakthrough of the
Year award for its efforts bridging science with communities during the
­COVID-19 pandemic. Guerrero-Medina is also the director of the Yale
Ciencia Initiative at Yale’s School of Medicine and assistant director of
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion of Yale’s Wu Tsai Institute. Through these
positions she designs and leads programs to promote more diverse and
inclusive academic environments at Yale and beyond. Guerrero-Medina

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APPENDIX E 311

was part of the Committee on the Next Generation of Biomedical and

Behavioral Sciences Researchers. Her work is funded by grants from the
National Institute of Health/National Institute of General Medical Sciences
and the Burroughs Wellcome Fund, among others. Originally from Puerto
Rico, Guerrero-Medina has a Ph.D. in molecular and cell biology from
the University of California, Berkeley, followed by a science policy fellow-
ship with the National Academies and science policy work at the National
Institute of Health, and the Van Andel Institute.

Camara Phyllis Jones (she/her/hers) is a family physician and epidemiolo-

gist who is currently a Leverhulme Visiting Professor in global health and
social medicine at King's College London. Her work focuses on naming,
measuring, and addressing the impacts of racism on the health and well-be-
ing of our nation and the world. Jones allegories on “race” and racism illu-
minate topics that are otherwise difficult for many Americans to understand
or discuss: that racism exists, racism is a system, racisms saps the strength
of the whole society, and we can act to dismantle racism. She taught as
an assistant professor at the Harvard School of Public Health and served
14 years as a Medical Officer at the Centers for Disease Control and Pre­
vention. Jones was a Radcliffe Fellow at Harvard University, a Presidential
Visiting Fellow at the Yale School of Medicine, and the UCSF Presidential
Chair at the University of California, San Francisco. Jones is an adjunct
professor at the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University and a
senior fellow and adjunct associate professor at the Morehouse School of
Medicine. She is an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine,
an elected member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and a
Past President of the American Public Health Association. Jones recently
co-chaired the National Academies Committee on Science, Technology, and
Law workshop on “The Science of Implicit Bias: Implications for Law and
Policy” and is a member of the National Academies Roundtable on Black
Men and Black Women in Science, Engineering, and Medicine. She earned
her B.A. in molecular biology from Wellesley College, her M.D. from the
Stanford University School of Medicine, and both her M.P.H. and her
Ph.D. in epidemiology from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public
Health. Jones completed residency training in general pre­ventive medicine
at Johns Hopkins and in family practice at the Residency Program in Social
Medicine at Montefiore Medical Center.

Samuel R. Lucas is professor of sociology at the University of California-

Berkeley. He co-authored Inequality by Design: Cracking the Bell Curve
Myth, which received a Gustavus Meyers Award, and has authored three
other books, including Tracking Inequality: Stratification and Mobility in
American High Schools, which received the Willard Waller award as the

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312 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

best book in the sociology of education, and Theorizing Discrimination in an

Era of Contested Prejudice. Lucas’ work has appeared in multiple journals,
including Social Forces, Sociology of Education, Sociological Methodol-
ogy, American Journal of Sociology, and others, and he has served on two
National Academy of Sciences panels, which produced Minority Students in
Special and Gifted Education, A Vision and Roadmap for Education Statis-
tics, and Measuring Racial Discrimination. He received his B.A. in religion
from Haverford College and his M.S. and Ph.D. in sociology at the University
of Wisconsin-Madison as a National Science Foundation Minority Graduate
Fellow and Ford Foundation Dissertation Fellow, specializing in sociology of
education, social stratification, research methods, and statistics.

Fay Cobb Payton (she/her/hers) is professor Emeritus of information tech-

nology/analytics and University Faculty Scholar at North Carolina State
University. Payton earned the full professorship with tenure prior to her
Emeritus status. She recently completed a rotation as a program director
at the National Science Foundation where she initiated the CISE Minority
Serving Institution Research Expansion Program and worked on several
initiatives, such as INCLUDES, Smart Health and Biomedical Research in
the Era of Artificial Intelligence and Advanced Data Science and others.
Payton's research focuses on AI bias and data quality/curation which im-
pacts smart health, health equity and disparities, talent management, and
tech innovation along with ecosystems shaping lived experiences and metro-
technology hubs. She is the author of Leveraging Intersectionality: Seeing
and Not Seeing (Richer Press). Payton completed the American Council on
Education Fellow program and was elected to Sigma Xi. She worked in
the tech industry prior to entering academia. Payton maintains industry-
academic partnerships, and her work has been funded by federal agen-
cies, industry research initiatives, non-profit organizations, and corporate
foundations. She is the recipient of the National Science Foundation Direc-
tor's Award and serves on advisory boards for the American Society for
Engineering Education, Association of Computing and National Academies
of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Payton has a B.S. in accounting
with a minor in mathematics from Clark Atlanta University, and a B.S. in
industrial and systems engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology.
Payton has an M.B.A. in decision sciences from Clark Atlanta University
and her Ph.D. in information and decision systems from Case Western
Reserve University.

Julie Posselt (she/her/hers) is associate dean of the Graduate School at the

University of Southern California (USC) and associate professor in the USC
Rossier School of Education. Her research examines institutionalized ineq-
uities in higher education and organizational efforts to advance equity and

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APPENDIX E 313

inclusion, with a focus on graduate education and the disciplines. Posselt is

an expert in the dynamics of judgment and decisions that determine access
to and advancement in academia. Internationally recognized for her schol-
arship on graduate education, she is the author of more than 50 articles
and three books, most recently Equity in Science: Representation, Culture,
and the Dynamics of Change in Graduate Education (Stanford University
Press). Posselt directs two research-practice partnerships: the Equity in
Graduate Education Consortium and the NSF-INCLUDES Inclusive Gradu-
ate Education Network Research Hub. She received the American Educa-
tional Research Association’s Early Career Award as well as the Association
for the Study of Higher Education’s Promising Scholar/Early Career Award.
Posselt is a member of the National Science Foundation’s Directorate for
STEM Education Advisory Board, in addition to boards for other national
and international organizations. She is a past associate editor of the Journal
of Higher Education and has been a member of three National Academies
consensus studies, most recently on Anti-Racism, Diversity, Equity, and
Inclusion in STEMM Organizations. Posselt held a postdoctoral fellowship
with the National Academy of Education and Spencer Foundation and
earned her Ph.D. from the University of Michigan.

André Porter (he/him/his) serves as the responsible staff officer for the
Roundtable on Black Men and Black Women in Science, Engineering, and
Medicine. In addition to the Roundtable on Black Men and Black Women
in Science, Engineering, and Medicine, his portfolio includes Building De-
fense Research Capacity at Historically Black Colleges and Universities and
Other Minority Institutions; and Advancing Anti-Racism, Diversity, Equity,
and Inclusion in STEM Organizations. Prior to joining the National Acad-
emies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, Porter’s experience includes
working in government and nongovernmental organizations such as the
National Science Foundation, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the
American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and the Ameri-
can Association for the Advancement of Science. His work has centered
on addressing higher education topics in science, technology, engineering,
and medicine (STEM) ranging from pipeline development to support
for early and mid-career researchers, integrating scientific evidence into
policymaking, and convening stakeholder groups to develop consensuses
that advance policies impacting the U.S. STEM enterprise. Porter holds a
B.S. and M.S. in biology from Howard University.

Victor E. Ray (he/him/his) is the F. Wendell Miller associate professor

in the departments of sociology and criminology and African American
studies at the University of Iowa, a nonresident fellow in governance stud-
ies at The Brookings Institution, and a Carr Center Fellow at the Harvard

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314 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

Kennedy School. His research applies critical race theory to classic socio-
logical questions. Ray work has been published in the Annals of Internal
Medicine, American Sociological Review, American Behavioral Scientist,
Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, Contexts,
Ethnic and Racial Studies, The Journal of Marriage and Family, Sociology
of Race and Ethnicity, and Sociological Theory. His work has won mul-
tiple awards, including the Early Career Award from the American Socio-
logical Association’s Section on Racial and Ethnic Minorities, the Theory
Prize from the American Sociological Association’s Theory Section, and
the Southern Sociological Society’s Junior Scholar Award. Ray is also an
active public scholar, publishing commentary in outlets such as The New
York Times, Time, CNN, The Washington Post, Harvard Business Review,
and Boston Review. His work has been funded by the Ford Foundation
and the ­National Science Foundation. Ray’s first book On Critical Race
Theory: Why it Matters & Why You Should Care was recently published
by Random House.

Joan Y. Reede (she/her/hers) is the dean, Diversity and Community Partner-

ship and professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. She has served
on several committees/boards such as the Secretary’s Advisory Committee
to the National Institute of Health (NIH) Director; the Sullivan Commis-
sion on Diversity in the Healthcare Workforce; and the Advisory Committee
to the Deputy Director for Intramural Research of NIH. E ­ xamples of past
affiliations include the Steering Committee and Task Force for the Annual
Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students; past co-chair of the
Bias Review Committee of the Advisory Committee to the NIH Director’s
Working Group on Diversity; and past chair of the Association of American
Medical Colleges Group on Diversity and Inclusion. Reede is past chair of
the National Academy of Medicine Interest Group on Health of Popula-
tions/Health Disparities and is a current member of the National Academies
Roundtable on Black Men and Black Women in Science, Engineering, and
Medicine. She was appointed to the National Advisory Council on Minority
Health and Health Disparities. Reede is an authority in the area of workforce
development, diversity, and leadership development. She was also appointed
to the Board of Directors of the Association of American Medical Colleges.

Karl W. Reid (he/him/his) is the senior vice provost, chief inclusion officer,
and professor of practice at Northeastern University. He also heads the
Engineering PLUS Alliance, a national National Science Foundation-funded
coalition that aims to increase the growth rate in the number of women and
racially minoritized students obtaining undergraduate and graduate degrees in
engineering. Prior to joining Northeastern, Reid was the executive director of
the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE). He went to NSBE from the

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

APPENDIX E 315

United Negro College Fund, where he held the title of senior vice president
for Research, Innovation and Member College Engagement. Reid served on
the Committee for Addressing the Underrepresentation of Women of Color
in Tech and the National Council for Expanding American Innovation. He is
a member of the Industry Leaders Council of the American Society of Civil
Engineers, and a founding member of the American Council of Engineering
Companies Research Institute Advisory Council and the 50k Coalition. Reid
is a frequent contributor to the national discourse on advancing student
achievement and fostering diversity and inclusion. He holds a B.A. and M.S.
in materials science and engineering from MIT, and a Ed.D. from Harvard
University.

Layne Scherer (she/her/hers) served as the study director for the Commit-
tee on Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM
Organizations, and she is a senior program officer with the Board on
­Behavioral, Cognitive, and Sensory Sciences at the National Academies of
Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Prior to joining the National Acad-
emies, Scherer was a science assistant at the National Science Foundation
with the Directorate for Education and Human Resources. At this time,
Scherer also served as an executive secretary under the National Science
and Technology Council’s Committee on STEM Education. Scherer earned
her B.A and M.P.P. from the University of Michigan.

Cynthia N. Spence (she/her/hers) is an associate professor of sociology at

Spelman College and director of the United Negro College Fund (UNCF)/
Mellon Programs. Her interest in issues of higher education access, service-
learning, criminal justice reform, gender role socialization, and violence
against women frame her research, writing, community service involve-
ment, and public speaking. As director of the UNCF/Mellon Programs,
Spence creates, manages, and oversees a suite of future faculty development
and faculty career enhancement programs for UNCF students and faculty.
­Under her leadership, students are groomed to enter the Ph.D. pipeline,
and faculty throughout the UNCF consortium are supported in their devel-
opment as teachers and scholars. Spence also serves as the director of the
Spelman College Social Justice Fellows Program. The Social Justice Pro-
gram is a living and learning community program that attempts to match
students’ intellectual interests with their social justice advocacy passions.
She serves as the director of the Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation
Center, an initiative sponsored by the American Association of Colleges
and Universities. Spence has served as consultant for the Ford Foundation
Institutional Transformation Project, the University of Chicago Provost
Initiative on Minority Affairs, the Agnes Scott College Center for Teaching
and Learning, and the Georgia Department of Corrections.

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

316 ADVANCING ANTIRACISM, DEI IN STEMM ORGANIZATIONS

Kecia M. Thomas (she/her/her) is the dean of the University of Alabama at

Birmingham’s College of Arts and Sciences and professor emerita of psy-
chology at the University of Georgia. She is an expert in the psychology of
workplace diversity who relishes her scientist-practitioner identity. Thomas’
scholarship and institutional engagements focus on the issues of strategic
diversity recruitment, diversity resistance (especially in STEM workplaces),
and understanding the career experiences of marginalized workers like
high potential women of color (e.g., Pet to Threat). She is the author of
numerous articles and book chapters and the first I/O diversity textbook,
Diversity Dynamics in the Workplace. Thomas has edited six scholarly
volumes and her work has been funded by federal agencies, for-profit and
nonprofit institutions, and corporate foundations. She is an elected-fellow
of the American Psychological Association, the Society for the Psychological
Study of Culture, Ethnicity and Race, and the Society of I/O Psychology.
Thomas is also a recipient of the Janet Chusmir Award for Distinguished
Service from the Academy of Management.

Emily Vargas (she/her/hers) is a program officer with the Board on Behavioral,

Cognitive, and Sensory Sciences. She continued working at Northwestern
University as a research assistant professor in preventive medicine, funded
through a National Institutes of Health grant. Throughout her research
career, Vargas’ research was focused on examining the intersection of in-
dividual’s marginalized identities and psychosocial factors, and how they
impact well-being as well as inform disparities and equity. She earned her
bachelor’s degree with honors in psychology from Rutgers University in New
Jersey. Following graduation, Vargas earned her M.S. and her Ph.D. in psy-
chology from the University of Michigan in the area of Personality and So-
cial Contexts. After graduation, she completed a two-year T32 Postdoctoral
Research Fellowship in cardiovascular disease epidemiology and prevention
at Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine.

Daniel J. Weiss (he/him/his) is the board director for the Board on Be-
havioral, Cognitive, and Sensory Sciences. Prior to joining the National
Academies, he served as a professor of psychology and linguistics at Penn
State for nearly two decades. Weiss’ research focused on the processes un-
derlying language acquisition and motor planning in children, adults, and
nonhuman primates. He has also been serving as the editor-in-chief for
Translational Issues in Psychological Science. Weiss received his B.A. from
the University of Maryland at College Park and his master’s degree and
Ph.D. from Harvard University. After graduation, he became a postdoctoral
fellow at the University of Rochester in the Brain and Cognitive Sciences
program prior to his appointment at Penn State University.

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Advancing Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEMM Organizations: Beyond Broadening ...

APPENDIX E 317

M. Roy Wilson (he/him/his) is president of Wayne State University. He is

chancellor emeritus of the University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medi-
cal Campus and former deputy director for strategic scientific planning
and program coordination at the National Institute on Minority Health
and Health Disparities. Wilson is past chair of the board of the Associa-
tion of American Medical Colleges, and currently serves on the boards of
Research!America, Alliance for Health Policy, and the Federal Reserve Bank
of Chicago. His research focuses on glaucoma and blindness in populations
from the Caribbean to West Africa. Wilson is an elected member of the
National Academy of Medicine. Additional honors include the American
Academy of Ophthalmology’s Senior Achievement Award, the Distin-
guished Physician Award from the Minority Health Institute, the Herbert
W. Nickens Award from the American Association of Medical Colleges, the
National Institute of Health Director’s Award, the President’s Award from
the American Glaucoma Society, the Lifetime Research Award from the W.
Montague Cobb Institute, the National Medical Foundation Excellence in
Education Award, and the Detroit News Michiganian of the Year. Wilson
received his B.S. from Allegheny College and an M.S. in epidemiology from
University of California, Los Angeles. He completed medical school, post-
graduate residency in ophthalmology, and a glaucoma fellowship earning
his M.D. from Harvard Medical School.

Sweeney Windchief (he/him/his) currently serves as an associate professor

in education at Montana State University (MSU). His primary professional/
research expertise includes higher education specifically under the umbrella
of Indigenous intellectualism. Windchief’s most recent scholarship has
been around Indigenous research, mentoring American Indian and Alaska
Native graduate students in science, technology, engineering, and medicine,
and epistemological pluralism. His teaching privileges include critical race
theory, Indigenous methodologies in research, law and policy in higher
education, and institutional research. ­Windchief was named the President’s
Excellence in Teaching Award, Montana State ­University, Outstanding
Faculty for Scholarship and Discovery, MSU Department of Education,
and most recently was selected as a Montana University System Teaching
Scholar. He received his Ed.D. in educational leadership and policy from
the University of Utah.

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