The University of Massachusetts Lowell Making WAVES (Women Academics Valued and Engaged in STEM) Initiative was funded by the National Science Foundation as an ADVANCE Institutional Transformation Program. The goals of the 6-year WAVES endeavor included: 1)  to disrupt gendered microaggressions experience by faculty by increasing awareness and skills for addressing them, 2) to provide mentoring and alternative supports for early and midcareer faculty from minoritized groups, and 3) to promote university policies and procedures that increase equity and accountability around access to resources, supports, and promotion. While the initial focus in 2016 was on women faculty in STEM fields, it quickly became clear that the newly developed programs were helpful for all faculty across all disciplines.

A highly significant outcome of the grant was the establishment of an ADVANCE Office for Faculty Equity & Resilience (OFER) supported by the UML Provost’s Office to continue work on behalf of faculty equity and inclusion.

Specific programmatic outcomes include:

• Increased awareness of microaggressions, their impact, and strategies to address them

A signature focus of the grant was on microaggressions. The WAVES team developed a distinctive bystander training program to bring awareness to microaggressions and to help faculty adopt bystander strategies for disrupting them. About 1/3 of all faculty participated. Participants overwhelmingly endorsed the value of the workshop, and 97% indicated that they would “recommend this workshop to their colleagues.” The faculty bystander training will continue to be offered annually and has been adapted to be offered to staff and graduate student audiences.

• Expanded mentoring opportunities to support the success of early and midcareer faculty from minoritized groups

Two innovative approaches to mentoring were implemented. First, groups were established to promote cross-disciplinary and cross-rank collaborative mentoring  groups. Second, mentoring pairs were supported through a “50/50 Lecture” Program where faculty hosts could invite an esteemed mentor from another university to UML to talk ½ about their technical expertise and ½ about their professional pathway. Funding was provided for the faculty host and the mentor to collaborate further after the UML campus visit.

• Development of new policies that support equity

Three types of new policies that support equity have been developed. First, WAVES developed and promoted a new protocol to guide faculty evaluations for promotion and tenure. The protocol builds upon social science research about how to reduce bias through explicit discussion of the basis for evaluations. This new protocol is now part of the official training for all personnel committees.

The second policy area has been around service equity. Past research has documented the disproportionate service burden that often lands on faculty from minoritized groups. The expectation to preform extraordinary service can derail their progress on research and teaching that are typically more highly valued in promotion evaluations. The work started by WAVES is being expanded under OFER to work with departments to help them evaluate the amount and quality of service done by faculty and to ensure that it is assigned equitably.

The third policy-related area addresses work-life balance. WAVES created FAQs to help faculty navigate the university’s sometimes-obtuse parental leave and family leave policies. WAVES also spearheaded a University-supported childcare initiative to provide faculty, staff, and students with reduced-cost childcare options. A survey showed the strong need for this service on or near campus. This program is in its second year and continues to grow. Simultaneously, WAVES improved access to child-friendly and lactation spaces at multiple locations across campus.

Last Modified: 11/13/2024
Modified by: Meg Bond