An inclusive and diverse community is the cornerstone for an adaptable, creative, and sustainable academic center. The Penn community itself includes many diverse populations, comprised of students from broad and varied backgrounds. Yet while various ethnic minorities and women are successfully recruited to biomedical graduate programs, these populations remain noticeably underrepresented in the general scientific community. Here, we highlight two Penn groups that address this problem. Both groups are student-initiated and student-lead and support graduate students through the completion of their degrees. They also cultivate future careers in biomedical science through discussions, events, collaboration with other groups, and community outreach.
EE Just
While there are many efforts to recruit underrepresented ethnic minorities, there is a lack of support networks to ensure their retention and success. To address this problem, the Ernest E. Just Biomedical Society (EE Just) was founded at Penn in 1997 to foster the personal and professional development of biomedical graduate students, medical students, and post-doctoral fellows from traditionally underrepresented populations in science and medicine. The group was named after the early twentieth century biologist Ernest Everett Just, a pioneering African American scientist who made significant contributions to genetics and embryology.
EE Just organizes programs that span academic, social, and professional topics and consolidates and disseminates important resources. A vital aspect of EE Just is its focus on building community. There are monthly General Assembly meetings over lunch with discussions on specific themes, such as public speaking, fellowship applications, and social justice issues. These meetings offer the opportunity to share personal experiences and serve as a forum for meaningful discussion among peers. Current president Brenda Salantes (GTV) expressed gratitude for finding a support system like EE Just, explaining, “Students really know what you’re going through; it’s invaluable to have a shared cultural or ethnic background.”
Other EE Just programs uphold their commitment to community, both on and off campus. At Penn, EE Just partners with PennPREP – a group for recent undergraduates involved in research – to guide students applying to graduate school. EE Just also co-sponsors the annual Cell 600 Happy Hour with the Biomedical Graduate Student Association after the first Cell 600 exam. Beyond the immediate Penn community, EE Just sponsors events that bring science and public health concerns, such as vaccine education, to the public. To participate in the national conversation, EE Just also participated in a Black Lives Matter photo campaign. Goals for future partnerships include expanding outreach to Penn undergraduates, fostering closer relationships with existing on-campus cultural centers like Makuu and La Casa Latina, and working with the STEM POSSE program at Bryn Mawr. Past president Seleeke Flingai (GTV) affirms EE Just’s dedication to “figuring out…what the community needs for support to make it as strong for other students as possible.”
PGWISE
The Penn Graduate Women in Science and Engineering (PGWISE) was established to combat the underrepresentation of women in leadership positions in STEM fields. Although over half of all biological Ph.Ds are awarded to women, less than a third of biological professorships are held by women in the United States. Thus, PGWISE’s mission is to provide resources to students at Penn (in BGS and other science and engineering-related departments) and the surrounding community to recruit and retain women in the sciences. By helping foster a support system that begins in primary school and continues to post-doctoral positions, PGWISE aims to change the culture of science education to promote growth and innovation of the nation.
Rochelle Sadeghi, a third year CBG graduate student, is the Co-Chair of Academic Affairs for PGWISE. She detailed the plethora of resources the organization provides to graduate students. These include career-building workshops, community-building social events, seminar speakers, and mentoring and community service opportunities. Their most valuable resource, Rochelle says, is the opportunity for graduate students to interact with and solicit advice from women outside of Penn. To this end, PGWISE brought women representatives from academia, government research, medical writing, and the pharmaceutical industry to their spring career panel. In Rochelle’s opinion, this was their most successful event in the past year. Reflecting on how PGWISE could augment their impact, Rochelle says that they plan to incorporate women representatives from engineering and mathematics fields to their career panels as well.
PGWISE also steps off campus to provide support to the larger Philadelphia community. Their members put on science demonstrations at local schools, volunteer at the Philadelphia Science Festival, and mentor high school students on the college application process.
A common theme in organizing these events is leveraging expertise already on Penn’s campus. For example, a recent CV-writing workshop was led by Career Services, while a speaker from the School of Communication gave tips on how to give a good presentation. Indeed, Rochelle counts off the various groups PGWISE has collaborated with such as the Biomedical Post-doctoral Council and Women in Chemistry. PGWISE also collaborated with the Philadelphia chapter of the Association of Women in Science to showcase a lecture from the female CEO of Addgene.
When asked to provide a sneak peek of what the organization will be doing next year, Rochelle exclaimed, “We definitely want to focus this year on outreach…So I don’t want to give away too much…but we have a lot of really good ideas for this year.”
Get involved!
For students interested in learning more about EE Just, Seleeke and Brenda suggest attending the next monthly meeting and visiting the EE Just website (http://upenneejust.com) to subscribe to their email list and connect on social media. EE Just welcomes all biomedical graduate students to its meetings and events, underscoring its commitment to fostering an inclusive, diverse, and supportive community.
For students interested in PGWISE, Rochelle suggests visiting their website (http://pgwise-upenn.squarespace.com/) and social media pages on Facebook (UPenn-Graduate-Women-in-Science-Engineering) and Twitter (pgwise_upenn) to join their mailing listserv. A biweekly newsletter keeps members abreast of upcoming events and recaps the successes of previous ones. Rochelle also emphasizes that you do not have to be a woman to join. There are many men in the group and on the executive board, and they encourage more men to join.
For student interested in the other affinity groups on campus, they are encouraged to visit the GAPSA website (http://www.gapsa.upenn.edu/affinity-groups/).