The Jackson State University ADVANCE Program, in cooperation with the National Science Foundation, was awarded a grant to host the 2011 STEM Women of Color Conclave held in Atlanta, GA June 3, 2011 – June 5, 2011. This meeting featured a national assembly of approximately two hundred women faculty of color, representing all STEM disciplines, including those related to informal science education. We provided keen attention to various influences on the professional advancement of women of color that are intrinsic and extrinsic to the academy which included, but were not limited to: health disparities and lack of access to culturally competent mentoring, which have been shown to contribute to inequities that exist at the intersection of gender and race. Our guiding focus for this important event was directed not only toward the inclusion and empowerment of women of color, but also toward the most current social science theory that describes and examines the unique circumstance of women of color. Our ultimate goal is to build a more global awareness of uniquely-defined gender issues in STEM disciplines, and empower women of color to more actively participate in this enterprise.
During the conference, there were four keynote speakers; Dr. Kerry Ann Rockquemore, Executive Director of the National Center for Faculty Development & Diversity; Cathy Hughes, Founder and Chairperson of Radio One, Inc.; Dr. Stacey Blake-Beard, Associate Professor of Management at the Simmons College School of Management; and Dr. Maria Ong, a principal investigator at the Education Research Collaborative at TERC in Cambridge, Massachusetts. There were also several networking opportunities including thought mapping assemblies, working lunch breaks, and a panel discussion. The panel of male participants consisted of Dr. Douglas Haynes, Associate Professor of History at University of California, Irvine and Director of UCI’s ADVANCE program; Dr. Mark Hardy, Professor of Biology and Provost of Academic Affairs at Jackson State University, and Dr. Orlando Taylor, President of the Chicago School of Professional Psychology Washington, DC Campus.