Faculty Affairs and Academic Programs
Initiative to Advance Faculty Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the Life Sciences
UC Berkeley, 2018-2019
Project Principal Investigator
Rebecca Heald, Professor Dept of Molecular & Cell Biology
Project Abstract
With strong commitment by campus leadership, this unique program is a cross-divisional collaboration to advance faculty diversity in the life sciences. This program centers on four broad categories: building a critical mass; strengthening applicant pools; improving candidate evaluation processes; and institutional change. The interventions will include the allocation of FTE across the life sciences; a centralized cross[1]department review committee; winter seminar series with participants from the President’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Program (PPFP), Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Program (CPFP), and other institutions; faculty search ads; targeted, personal outreach using a database of promising candidates; rubrics for evaluating contributions to diversity statements; search committee training; valuing contributions to diversity, equity, and inclusion alongside contributions in research, teaching, and service; Council of Life Sciences Faculty to provide ongoing program development; diversity, equity, and inclusion retreat; a cohort mentoring program; and additions to start-up packages for equity and inclusion programs.