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, technology, 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:¹Expanding Underrepresented Minority Participation: America’s Science and Technology Talent at the Crossroads (the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine, 2011); Minority Serving Institutions: America’s Underutilized 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 developing 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.

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¹ STEM is used intentionally, as medicine is not a core subject for the four reports analyzed.

THEME I: DEVELOP AND INSTITUTE INCLUSIVE LEADERSHIP PRACTICES IN STEMM INSTITUTIONS

Given the significant impact that individuals in positions of leadership 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 directly connect with the populations they intend to serve. Additionally, providing 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 leadership at STEM institutions will provide a step in the right direction, solidifying 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 leadership 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 implement innovative strategies, track outcomes, and provide accountability.

Incorporating continuity in these leadership positions will support consistency 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 STEMWorkforce: RECOMMENDATIONS 1 and 2
• Transforming Trajectories for Women of Color in Tech: RECOMMENDATIONS 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 stakeholders 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 Science 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 advancement of people from minoritized groups, should be explored across governmental, 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

precipitate targeted activities such as orientations, professional development, 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 participate in the development of students and trainees from minoritized groups should receive an acknowledgment from their institution through professional 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 recruitment, 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 UnderrepresentedMinority 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: RECOMMENDATIONS 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 nurture natural curiosity and competency for STEM concepts. The report on Expanding Underrepresented Minority Participation encourages stakeholders 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 primary 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 partnerships that support education, research, and workforce training.

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 incorporation 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: RECOMMENDATIONS 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 Universities 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 missions and programs, robust tracking, evaluation, and accountability will ensure that the initiatives are effective and evolve to better address changing demographics and intersectionality. The Minority Serving Institutions report recommends that stakeholders reassess and refine methods of measuring 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

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 government, agencies should, as best as possible, develop interagency guidelines 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 advancement 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 evaluation 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

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