Author(s):
Need
Despite numerous calls for change to broaden participation and improve diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice (DEIJ) in STEM and higher education, attempts at change often fail (Kezar, 2009), especially in STEM (Henderson et al., 2011; Kezar et al., 2015).
The goal of the GATHER (Gathering Action Together: Harbingers of Equity Revolution) project is to increase the effectiveness of and sustain organizational change efforts aimed at DEIJ goals by creating a multiyear, cross-institutional CoT, through which we foster commitment to and capacity for creating DEIJ-centered systems change in STEM higher education.
Through in-person workshops, regular virtual gatherings, and informal interactions, CoT members have opportunities to share the expertise they have developed as members of change teams. The CoT employs storycrafting and other arts-based methods to help DEIJ change agents hold fast to radical hope and to work in ways that are strategic and creative and that inspire and imagine justly designed systems, working as a community to create more humane and satisfying postsecondary environments for everyone.
Guiding Questions
How does a CoT support, sustain, and encourage DEIJ change agents in STEM higher education? How does a CoT foster individual and collective faculty change agency? How does a CoT support change agents to persist despite obstacles and become more effective in their aims?
Outcomes
We successfully created a CoT that currently has 64 members from 46 institutions of higher education and 4 organizations. Participants include members of NSF ADVANCE, RED, INCLUDES, IUSE, and Racial Equity projects, as well as HHMI Inclusive Excellence projects.
We held a virtual kickoff event in October 2023, attended by 55 members. Even before the event, we heard from participants with excitement, especially as they received the welcome kits with materials for the kickoff activities, including art making tools (e.g., watercolor pencils, embroidery thread, fabric), collage materials (e.g., cutouts of people, phrases), and zine templates (e.g., changemaker zine, a harbinger zine). The two-day kickoff focused on community building and understanding and expressing change agents’ experiences on change projects through arts-based activities.
We have continued with bi-monthly virtual events, including arts teas and media clubs. Our first hybrid retreat will be held in Albuquerque, NM in April 2024. Early participant feedback indicates enthusiasm and appreciation for the CoT.
Broader Impacts
Through an innovative approach to community building and storycrafting, the GATHER project helps CoT members support DEIJ-focused institutional change efforts, learn from one another’s experiences, and envision and learn effective change strategies towards a more just future. Our approach integrates arts-based methods and storycrafting from diverse perspectives, using approaches including speculative design, remixing, and futurisms. Our approach to creating and implementing a CoT is in the process of being shared with the broader community through design cases so that our team and others can adopt these methods for broader community workshops and initiatives. Through this work, we will learn how CoTs can help support transformative institutional change efforts so that they succeed and thrive.
Coauthors
Nadia Kellam, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ; Vanessa Svihla, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM; Kristen Ferris, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM; Katharine Getz, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA
