Institute of Diversity Sciences Announces 2024-25 Faculty and Student Sloan Fellows

Researchers in computer science and engineering at UMass Amherst and UMass Boston have teamed up to help diversify STEM culture across the UMass system with help from a $499,972 grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. The team, called the Sloan Fellows Program, is led by the Institute of Diversity Sciences (IDS) at UMass Amherst and recently selected its second cohort of 12 faculty mentors and 18 undergraduate students.<_o3a_p>

"For students in science, engineering and technology, academic success requires forging meaningful relationships with faculty and peers in research labs, acquiring hands-on research skills, and understanding the culture of science," says Nilanjana Dasgupta, professor of psychological and brain sciences at UMass Amherst and director of the IDS. But such relationship-forging doesn't happen in a vacuum, and students from historically marginalized backgrounds too-often find themselves at a disadvantage in STEM education and fields.<_o3a_p>

The Sloan Faculty Fellows Program takes a three-pronged approach to expand pathways from undergraduate to graduate education for underrepresented students in STEM. First, the leadership team selects an annual cohort of faculty fellows who are keen on improving the culture of their labs and mentoring practices to meet the needs of students who are often left behind when it comes to research training in science, engineering and technology. This faculty learning community that spans both campuses works together to improve their research mentoring practices and learn from each other. Second, faculty fellows expand and diversify onramps to graduate education by informing and engaging undergraduate students about the value of graduate education and encouraging them to consider applying to graduate school. Third, faculty fellows are matched with student fellows from underrepresented backgrounds who will be their research mentees for an entire academic year.<_o3a_p>

"Our students at UMass Boston don't fit in traditional molds," says Kim Hamad Schifferli, associate professor of engineering at UMass Boston, who is a member of the grant's leadership team as well as one of this year's faculty fellows. "They often don't know about the many opportunities for graduate school, and how it can impact their career pathways. I'm really excited about how this program opens up new doors and gives them the tools to go after competitive programs that they hadn't considered before."<_o3a_p>

The Sloan Student Fellows Program is a research-mentoring program welcoming Black, Hispanic and Indigenous (BHI) undergraduate students at both UMass Amherst and UMass Boston. These undergraduate students are actively mentored by one of 12 faculty fellows and their graduate students as they conduct hands-on research in faculty labs for an entire academic year. They take part in small mentoring groups to learn about post-graduate career options and also participate in a three-week summer professional development program called the Leadership Academy. Student fellows receive a stipend of $5,000 for their dedicated work.<_o3a_p>

"I was very fortunate to have excellent mentors from high school to college to graduate school and beyond," says Shannon Roberts, another member of the grant's leadership team, faculty fellow and assistant professor in mechanical and industrial engineering at UMass Amherst. "With the Sloan program, I am able to pay it forward by mentoring students and exposing them to unparalleled opportunities in research and beyond that can set them up for prosperous and fulfilling careers. We have already seen great success with our first cohort and are very excited to welcome another group of fellows this year."<_o3a_p>

This year's faculty fellows include:

• Stacyann Bailey, Engineering, UMass Amherst<_o3a_p>
• Wei Ding, Computer Science, UMass Boston<_o3a_p>
• Madalina Fiterau, Computer Science, UMass Amherst<_o3a_p>
• Kenneth Fletcher, Computer Science, UMass Boston<_o3a_p>
• Daniel Hahn, Computer Science, UMass Boston<_o3a_p>
• Kimberly Hamad-Schifferli, Engineering, UMass Boston<_o3a_p>
• Meghan Huber, Engineering, UMass Amherst<_o3a_p>
• Beatriz Lorenzo, Engineering, UMass Amherst<_o3a_p>
• Rafael Rodrigues, Engineering, UMass Boston<_o3a_p>
• Jay Taneja, Computer Science, UMass Amherst<_o3a_p>
• Yinxin Wan, Computer Science, UMass Boston<_o3a_p>
• YannisZografopoulos, Engineering, UMass Boston<_o3a_p>

This year's student fellows include:

• Richard Beke, Computer Science, UMass Amherst<_o3a_p>
• Chantelle Boateng, Computer Science, UMass Boston<_o3a_p>
• Fabiana Discenza, Computer Science, UMass Amherst<_o3a_p>
• Alvin Disla Acevedo, Engineering, UMass Amherst<_o3a_p>
• Somfenna Enwerekowe, Computer Science, UMass Amherst<_o3a_p>
• Claudia Figueroa-Pabón, Engineering, UMass Amherst<_o3a_p>
• Rafael Gross, Engineering, UMass Boston<_o3a_p>
• Daniel Gross, Computer Science, UMass Boston<_o3a_p>
• Emry Hankins, Computer Science, UMass Boston<_o3a_p>
• Kenny Hernandez, Computer Science, UMass Amherst<_o3a_p>
• Kesline Jean Baptiste, Computer Science, UMass Boston<_o3a_p>
• Isaac Marzuca, Engineering, UMass Boston<_o3a_p>
• Kayla (Soraia) Monterio, Engineering, UMass Amherst<_o3a_p>
• Antonio Moura, Engineering, UMass Boston<_o3a_p>
• Elda Ramirez, Engineering, UMass Boston<_o3a_p>
• Jorwin Reyes, Computer Science, UMass Boston<_o3a_p>
• Marisol Treble, Engineering, UMass Amherst<_o3a_p>
• Larissa Vinokourova, Engineering, UMass Boston<_o3a_p>

More information about the Sloan Fellows Program can be found on the Institute of Diversity Sciences website.<_o3a_p>
<_o3a_p><_o3a_p>

Public link

Please use the above public link if you want to share this noodl on another website.