Building an Antiracism CoSE Community AY 2023- 2024 Executive Summary July 17, 2024 The AY 2023-2024 marked significant progress in advancing the goals of the Strategic Action Plan within the College of Science and Engineering (CoSE). This executive summary outlines the key achievements for meeting these goals and highlights the ongoing efforts to promote antiracism, equity, inclusion, multiculturalism and social justice.
Summary of the Assistant Dean’s Work
In response to the Strategic Action Plan, the Dean of the College of Science and Engineering (CoSE) created the position of Assistant Dean. This role is dedicated to advancing antiracism initiatives, promoting multiculturalism, equity, social justice and inclusion, and fostering campus-wide collaborations. In Spring 2023, Diane Harris, a Professor of Psychology, was appointed as the Assistant Dean. She was tasked with implementing the Strategic Action Plan developed by the College’s Anti-Racism Task Force. Below are the key highlights of Assistant Dean Harris’ work for the AY 2023-2024.
Partnership Development: Collaborated with Dr. Jamillah Moore, Vice President of Student Affairs for campus, Enrollment Management, and Dr. Frederick Smith, Associate Vice President, Equity, and Campus Community Inclusion, to develop a partnership with campus administrators. To demonstrate the support of CoSE’s development of an antiracism, multicultural community, both attended the CoSE All-College Meeting, August 17, 2023. Webinar Participation: Participated in monthly USC Racial Equity Leadership webinars. Campus Meetings: Attended and participated in the monthly Associate and Assistant Deans’ campus meetings.
CoSE Leadership Meetings: Participated in the monthly meetings, which included the Dean, Associate Deans, and Office Staff as well as individual (1 on 1) weekly meetings with the CoSE Dean. Science Council Meetings and All College Meetings: Contributed to the discussions at the bimonthly Science Council meetings and presented updates on antiracism efforts at both Executive Summary Report, Strategic Action Plan, AY 2023-2024 Page 2 of 4 the Science Council and the All-College Meetings, Fall 2023 (August 17, 2023) and Spring 2024 (February 23, 2024).
Summer Sessions and Science Council Retreat: Organized four summer sessions (June 12, 2023, June 26, 2023, July 13, 2023, and July 27, 2023) and participated in the Science Council Retreat (August 14, 2023) for the Science Council with department chairs and their leadership to introduce and emphasize antiracism efforts within CoSE. Faculty Meeting: In collaboration with Hamid Mahmoodi, ARC member, met and engaged faculty in the School of Engineering to discuss plans for creating a safe and inclusive environment for underrepresented students of color.
Established Website and Email: Created and launched the Building an Antiracism Community website, (https://cose.sfsu.edu/building-antiracism-community) in collaboration with Adria O’Dea, Graphics and Special Projects Coordinator, CoSE and Michelle Jungbluth, ARC member. The website provides references and resources for addressing racism and will be consistently updated with new content. An email address (coseantiracism@sfsu.edu) also was established to facilitate communication.
Student Support: Met with students who experienced racism to offer support and resources, and maintained regular “check-ins” with the students throughout the year.
Antiracism Committee (ARC) Member Engagement: Met with each ARC member to renew their commitment to the mission of an antiracism CoSE community and collaborated with each one to create an assignment document reflecting their ARC interests for AY 2024- 2025.
Produced the Annual Report: Developed the annual progress report for the Strategic Plan, AY 2023-2024. These actions have significantly advanced the goals and objectives of the Strategic Action Plan, fostering a more inclusive and antiracism community within CoSE.
Summary of the Antiracism Committee’s (ARC)Work In addition to the individual key highlights, Assistant Dean Harris, in collaboration with the Dean, also was tasked with developing and monitoring the progress of the Antiracism Committee (ARC) towards meeting the goals of the Strategic Action Plan. Below are the key highlights of the ARC's activities for AY 2023-2024.
Establishment and Meetings: The ARC was successfully established in August 2023, comprising 14 members to ensure multicultural representation. The Committee consists of 14 members: one Department Chair, Eric Hsu (Mathematics); Nine Faculty: Nicole Adelstein (Biology), Kim Coble (Physics and Astronomy), Raymond Esquerra (Chemistry and Biochemistry), Shahrukh Humayoun (Computer Science), Michelle Jungbluth (EOS), Misty Executive Summary Report, Strategic Action Plan, AY 2023-2024 Page 3 of 4 Kuhn (Chemistry and Biochemistry), Hamid Mahmoodi (Engineering), Amy Smith (Psychology), and Andrea Swei (Biology); Two staff members, Darleen Franklin (Biology) and Breanna Powell (School of the Environment); and two students, Mikesha Carter (Biology graduate student) and Alexandria Nesbeth (Engineering undergraduate student). The ARC Inaugural Meeting was held on September 20, 2023, and the committee has since held monthly meetings with robust participation and engagement from all members.
Student Recruitment: A subcommittee led by Darleen Franklin with committee members Misty Kuhn, Michelle Jungbluth and Ray Esquerra, was created to recruit students to ARC. Two students, Mikesha Carter and Alexandria Nesbeth, were invited to join the committee and have actively participated in ARC activities. Members of the subcommittee also met with representatives from CoSE student clubs on February 22, 2024, to inform students about the antiracism efforts within CoSE and to recruit interested students.
Syllabus Evaluation: During Fall 2023, CoSE departments evaluated their syllabi for multiculturalism, inclusiveness, equity, and social justice using the Social Justice Pedagogy Syllabus Evaluation Tool (Bolter, Eliason, Hermosos, Taylor, van Olphen, & Veri, 2017-SF Faculty). This evaluation was led by Ray Esquerra with committee members, Shah Humayoun, Amy Smith, Misty Kuhn, Kim Coble, Eric Hsu, and Breanna Powell. The results of these syllabi evaluations were shared with all ARC members, the Science Council, and with faculty and staff at the All-College Retreat, February 23, 2024.
Development of a new CoSE Tool: Based on faculty recommendations, a tool specifically designed for the CoSE context was developed under the leadership of Shah Humayoun and Ray Esquerra with collaborative supervision of two graduate students from the Department of Computer Sciences. This initiative has resulted in the development of a partnership with three authors of the Social Justice Pedagogy Syllabus Evaluation Tool: Sherria Taylor, Associate Professor, Child, and Adolescent Development; Nicole Bolter, Associate Professor, Kinesiology; and Maria J Veri, Instructional Faculty of Kinesiology. The new tool designed specifically for CoSE is the Social Justice Tool (SJT).
Summary and Plans for AY 2024-2025
This executive summary reflects significant progress for fostering a more inclusive and antiracism environment within the College of Science and Engineering. The progress in meeting the goals of the Strategic Action Plan has been substantial and impactful. The appointment of an Assistant Dean to initiate and manage the attainment of goals, the establishment and intense work of ARC members, the utilization of a social justice tool, the development of a new CoSE tool to evaluate syllabi, and the creation of a dedicated website and email address, have provided a solid foundation for ongoing antiracism efforts. The significant milestones achieved in AY 2023-2024, including increased multicultural Executive Summary Report, Strategic Action Plan, AY 2023-2024 Page 4 of 4 demographics among faculty, successful tenure and promotion applications, and the removal of GRE requirements in most departments, highlight the concerted efforts toward fostering a more inclusive and equitable community within CoSE. For AY 2024-2025, Assistant Dean Harris and the ARC will continue to assess, refine, and expand the CoSE antiracism initiatives. Key efforts will include deepening faculty and student engagement, enhancing collaborations, and developing comprehensive guidelines and tools to sustain and amplify the impact of these continued accomplishments. The commitment to meeting weekly with the Dean, maintaining active communication channels, and participating in campus-wide and external leadership forums also underscores a strategic and collaborative approach to achieving the long-term goals of the Strategic Action Plan. By continuing to prioritize equity, multicultural, antiracism and social justice, CoSE is positioned to create a more inclusive, safer, and supportive academic community for students, staff and faculty.
Submitted by: Carmen Domingo, Dean, College of Science and Engineering Diane Harris, Assistant Dean, College of Science and Engineering