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2021-2022 Inclusive Excellence Fellowship: Request for Applications (Due May 3, 2021) 

 

About IE at OSU

Inclusive Excellence@OSU seeks to transform STEM education at Oregon State University and our allied 2-year colleges, Linn-Benton and Lane Community Colleges. Oregon State is one of 57 institutions to receive a $1 million, 5-year grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), challenging them to “substantially and sustainably increase their capacity for inclusion of all students, especially those students who belong to groups underrepresented in science.” The program is a collaboration of OSU's STEM Research Center, College of Science, and Division of Undergraduate Education. 

See our Theory of Change

Inclusive Excellence

Oregon State University defines Inclusive Excellence as “the recognition that an organization’s success is dependent on, and tied directly to, how well it values, engages and includes the rich diversity of its community members, including its students, faculty, staff, alumni, friends, and affiliates.” The HHMI’s Inclusive Excellence is grounded on three agreements:

  • Excellence in science education is dynamic, and both critical of and responsive to surrounding contexts.
  • Excellence in science education is combative toward language that marginalizes any group.
  • Excellence in science education is the result of constant and critical self-examination at the institutional and individual levels.

 

The Inclusive Excellence Fellowship

Each year, IE at OSU welcomes a cohort of up to 20 STEM faculty from OSU, Linn-Benton, and Lane Community Colleges to participate in a year-long fellowship. The fellowship has three components:

  • The IE Academy
  • The Action Plan
  • The Professional Learning Community

 

The IE Academy

The Inclusive Excellence Academy has three goals. First, to create a thriving community of peers who are invested in inclusive excellence in STEM. second, to challenge fellows to develop equity and justice-oriented mindsets; and third, to explore pedagogical practices that fellows can experiment with and implement in their own classrooms. The 2021 IE Academy will begin with four 4-hour sessions prior to the beginning of Fall term, on September 8th, 9th, 13th, and 14th, followed by four 2-hour sessions held over the course of Fall term, ending in Week 8. Fellows can expect to engage in reflective dialogue and activities throughout the Academy - during sessions as well as between sessions on an IE Canvas page. 

The Inclusive Excellence program for 2021 is currently planned to be fully remote, with the possibility of including some in-person sessions in alignment with state and university guidelines.

 

The Action Plan

Each IE Fellow will develop and implement an action plan to create change within their sphere of influence. The IE Team will guide fellows through ideation, planning, and evaluation of the action plans over the course of the Academy, with fellows being expected to implement their action plans in Winter and Spring terms 2022. Previous IE Fellow Action Plans can be seen here. After the Academy, fellows will work with partners with aligned Action Plans for continued peer support and thought-partnership. Each team will receive ongoing support and connection with a member of the IE Team, and meet regularly throughout Winter and Spring 2022. At the end of the Spring term, fellows will present their Action Plans and outcomes to the OSU STEM community at the 2021-2022 IE at OSU Spring Showcase.

 

The Professional Learning Community

Following the IE Academy, Inclusive Excellence Fellows participate in a two-term (or more, as desired!) professional learning community (PLC).  To support the PLC, fellows will:

  • Have access to the IE at OSU Slack workspace and a Canvas page where they are encouraged to engage with each other and contribute.
  • Engage in two 2-hour gatherings over Winter and Spring terms to continue learning within the cohort.
  • Attend one Faculty Food and Fun event each term; these events are open to all with the purpose of building community around evidence-based and inclusive instructional practice.
  • Present their Action Plans at the Spring term Faculty Food and Fun event, which will serve as an IE at OSU Showcase where fellows will present their Action Plans and outcomes to the community.
 

Eligibility

IE at OSU is open to faculty members who:

  • Are either academic or professional faculty (both fixed-term and tenure-stream) in student-facing roles in a STEM discipline at Oregon State University.
  • Or either full- or part-time faculty members in a STEM discipline at Linn-Benton or Lane Community Colleges.
  • Have a willingness to acknowledge their own unconscious bias and the effect this has on the educational experiences of learners historically underserved in STEM, and to engage their personal responsibility for redressing disparate educational outcomes for these learners.

Faculty from the regional community colleges are encouraged to apply with colleagues as a team; however, we ask that each member of the team submit their own application. If you have questions about this option, please contact Holly Cho (inclusiveexcellence@oregonstate.edu).

 

Other Support

In addition to support from the IE team to develop and implement action plans, IE at OSU Fellows will receive or have access to modest financial support. 

  • Fellows who are employed by Linn-Benton or Lane Community Colleges will receive a $2,000 stipend in two installments issued to Fellows in good standing. The first installment will be processed in January 2022. The second installment will be processed at the end of Spring Term 2022. This stipend is paid to individual Fellows and may have tax implications; OSU is not able to advise on tax matters.
  • Fellows employed by OSU will have access to a $2,000 budget managed within the OSU STEM Research Center. This budget may be spent between Jan 1, 2022 and June 1, 2023 on supplies or labor to support IE-related professional development or implementation of Action Plans. Allowable expenses must be related to IE and are subject to approval. They may include basic supplies, software purchase or subscriptions, undergraduate or graduate hourly wages, conference or training fees, professional development-related travel, publication, or printing fees, or purchase of books or other resources. Computers are not included, however some computing accessories may be allowable. In some cases these funds can be used for Fellow salary, however this is subject to approval by department chairs and the STEM Research Center.

 

Program Requirements

Fellows are expected to:

  • Attend, participate in, and complete assignments during the IE Academy
  • Develop and implement an Action Plan that creates change within their sphere of influence
  • Stay engaged with the IE Team and other IE Fellows through Slack, Canvas, and Action Plan check-ins
  • Attend PLC gatherings, Faculty Food and Fun, and the IE at OSU Spring Showcase in the Winter and Spring terms of the 2021-2022 academic year
  • Respond to two surveys evaluating the IE Academy (administered at the end of Fall term) and the fellowship as a whole (administered at the end of Spring term)
  • Be an advocate for Inclusive Excellence in STEM within your sphere of influence
  • Fellows may be asked to volunteer to participate in IE-related research through additional surveys or interviews
  • Fellows may be asked to deploy surveys or collect information from their students to inform the success of the IE at OSU program

 

Application Process

Applications are due May 3rd, 2021 via Qualtrics survey:

Complete the application here.

You will be asked in the survey application to upload an application statement (.pdf format, 1000-word limit) to address the following:

  • Describe a typical day of instruction in your teaching space - what do you do? What do your students do?
  • Describe what you see as the biggest barrier to Inclusive Excellence faced by students in your discipline or your teaching space;
  • Explain the professional and personal development goals you hope to work towards through the Fellowship;
  • Note any other experiences, ideas, thoughts, or musings that you believe we should know about you.

 

We also ask that you provide us with a letter of support from your department chair or head. A template for this letter is available here. E-signatures are acceptable. Letters should be uploaded in the Qualtrics application. If you have any concerns about getting a letter of support, please let us know.

 

Selection

Applications will be reviewed by the IE at OSU leadership team. Selection criteria include: (1) evidence of readiness to work for Inclusive Excellence; (2) potential to “substantially and sustainably increase capacity for inclusion of all students, especially those students who belong to groups underrepresented in science”; and (3) distribution of Fellows across disciplines and institutions. 

 

Additional Information 

The Inclusive Excellence team is intentional about modeling inclusive practices in the work that we do. Although this fellowship will ask a lot of you, we want you to be able to bring your whole self to the program. We understand that sometimes it is not possible to fulfill simultaneously the obligations of your personal and professional lives, and are happy to accommodate any needs that arise.

We are also committed to accommodating the needs of any Fellow with disabilities. If you will need accommodations, please indicate as such on the application survey.

Applicants are encouraged to contact Program Coordinator, Holly Cho (inclusiveexcellence@oregonstate.edu) with any questions.