DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION: SAGE 2YC RESOURCES FOR THE GEOSCIENCE COMMUNITY

Broadening participation in the geosciences is a primary focus of the SAGE 2YC project (Supporting and Advancing Geoscience Education in Two-Year Colleges). The project team has developed resources to support the geoscience community’s work in promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion. These resources, available via the project website, can be used by faculty members, departments, programs, and faculty professional development leaders to implement and propagate evidence-based practices.

Project resources include materials in a variety of formats. One set of materials addresses inclusive educational practices, such as promoting the participation of all students, developing an asset-model mindset, making implicit expectations explicit, mitigating stereotype threat, and building students’ science identity. These materials consist of an introductory presentation, scenarios for small group discussions, and a group of posters summarizing evidence-based strategies. Another set of resources focuses on fostering students’ sense of belonging. These materials include an introductory presentation and a jigsaw activity for faculty members to explore the research literature using excerpts from four articles. Our project website also features a growing collection of blog posts, entitled “SAGE Musings,” summarizing research on topics such as the lack of diversity in the geosciences and strategies for developing equity-mindedness and fostering inclusive learning environments. In addition, we have several presentations from our faculty development workshops, includingBuilding a Science Identity and Infusing Geoscience Career Information throughout your Teaching; Broaden Participation in the Geosciences: Change Mindsets and Close the Achievement Gap; and Addressing Implicit Bias: Exploring Strategies for Promoting Student Success.

These resources aim to incorporate research into practice in approachable ways, lowering the barrier to promoting and supporting the participation, success, and continuation of a diverse population of students in geoscience courses, programs, and careers. By developing and sharing these resources for the geoscience community, the SAGE 2YC project is working to to achieve a culture of diversity, equity, and inclusion at larger and systemic scales.