About R&D: Research and Diversity

The evolution of the STEM field has led to development and diversification of occupations and specializations. With over 17.3 million STEM employees in the U.S., it’s time to diversify the people filling these positions. 

While 11% of the U.S. workforce includes people who identify as black, they only make up 9% of STEM workers. Hispanic people make up 16% of the U.S. workforce, yet only 7% are in STEM.¹ Not only is the racial disparity clear, but students of low socioeconomic backgrounds are also underrepresented in the field. Their schools do not have the funding to offer the same advanced science and math courses that schools in higher socioeconomic areas do. This directly inhibits students in reaching their full potential, and makes it much less likely for them to consider a career in STEM. ² Lack of representation is proven to affect students’ mindsets, giving them the feeling of “I don’t belong here”. This also affects motivation and mental health in general, which is an extremely important factor in academic and career-building success. ³ Research & Diversity is here to offer an accepting community - for those students who do not have that sense of belonging in STEM.
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Our goal is to build a community that highlights racial and cultural diversity and brings together STEM-related researchers in both academia and industry. We intend to spotlight the many achievements by STEM minority role models to inspire students. By emphasizing research, in both academia and industry, we aim to expose students to possible careers that they may not have otherwise considered.

Every month, we will be hosting an interview with a researcher of a minority group - focused on one of their publications. We encourage anyone interested to read the papers and submit questions for the researcher during the interview. 

COFOUNDERS

Shemar Anderson

Pronouns: he/him/his
Hometown: Brooklyn, NY
Background: Guyanese, FGLI
Achievements: The TEAK Fellowship
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​R&D is important to me because:
Personally I felt that traversing the academic world had always come with challenges that were tied to my race and where I came from. I have experienced biases in a number of communities I was in and I learned at a young age that the environment is never easy for BIPOC, URM, etc. Programs, organizations, and clubs like R&D exist for the purpose of helping people like myself face those challenges and giving us opportunities in our chosen fields. In research, there isn’t an abundance of diverse role models and head figures that exist in STEM, we want to draw together those that exist to create a community for young, underrepresented, aspiring scientists.

Erica M. Hernandez

Pronouns: she/her/hers
Hometown: North Bergen, NJ
Background: Cuban & Russian, CODA, FGLI
Achievements: Associate’s in Natural Sciences and Mathematics from Bergen Community College, Presented a microbiology research project at Metropolitan Association of College and University Biologists (MACUB) in 2019

R&D is important to me because: I am a CODA - a child of deaf adults - who immigrated from Russia and Cuba in search of opportunities in America. Growing up as their bridge to the hearing world, I quickly learned that ableism and discrimination is just as prevalent here. Finding jobs, receiving proper medical care, and even making friends was twice as difficult for them. I needed to work after high school, but once I could afford it, I returned to college. I struggled to feel like I belonged, until I ended up working with a microbiology professor of Latinx background, like me, who became my role model. He defied all odds to become successful, and it inspired me. It made me realize that having a role model that you can relate to makes ALL the difference, especially in a field as complex as STEM. This is why R&D is so important to me. Those of us who had to figure it out on our own, despite our obstacles - we now have this community: one that allows us all to learn from each others’ struggles and uplift one another.
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Vivian Jackson

Pronouns: any pronouns
Hometown: Hell's Kitchen, NY
Background: Jamaican and Japanese, FGLI, LGBTQ+
Achievements: QuestBridge National College Match Scholarship

R&D is important to me because: I was motivated to start R&D because I wanted to create something for aspiring scientists like myself-- coming from underrepresented, underserved backgrounds. I want my community of undergrads to be able to see potential role models and mentors, to be able to develop connections with researchers who care about and have experienced how racism, classism, and science/science education affect each other. Being part of programs in high school centered around increasing diversity in STEM and medicine has also nurtured my passion for advocating for marginalized communities in and outside of STEM settings. 

References
​¹ Funk, Cary, and Kim Parker. “Diversity in the STEM Workforce Varies Widely across Jobs.” Pew Research Center's Social & Demographic Trends Project, 9 Jan. 2018, www.pewsocialtrends.org/2018/01/09/diversity-in-the-stem-workforce-varies-widely-across-jobs/.
² Innovate Public Schools. “Finding Hidden Genius: the Importance of STEM Education for Low-Income Students.” Innovate Public Schools, 18 Mar. 2019, innovateschools.org/research-and-data/finding-hidden-genius-the-importance-of-stem-education-for-low-income-students/. 
³ Mcgee, Ebony O. “Devalued Black and Latino Racial Identities.” American Educational Research Journal, vol. 53, no. 6, 2016, pp. 1626–1662., doi:10.3102/0002831216676572.