Building Diversity & Fostering Sense of Belonging in STEM

Providing students with the right relationships at the right time eases their transition to college, fosters sense of belonging with their institution, and prepares them for post-college life. 

Join us Wednesday, May 12th to learn how one of the most innovative engineering colleges in the country leverages peer mentorship to help foster sense of belonging, promote diversity, and prepare students for post-college life.

“[I asked my mentor if] she faced any adversity as a female engineer in the workplace and she helped me by describing her co-op experiences.” - Emma H.

The virtual conversation will convene senior leaders from forward-thinking engineering institutions and be led by the J.B. Speed School of Engineering's Dean, Dr. Emmanuel Collins, and Associate Dean, Gail DePuy, Ph.D., P.E. 

With more than 23 years experience as a faculty member and administrator—which includes serving as the John H. Seely Professor and Chair of the Department of Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering at Florida A&M University-Florida State University (FAMU-FSU)—Dr. Collins brings unique insight regarding the evolution of engineering education. 

Dr. DePuy has authored more than 80 technical papers during her career and has served as Principal Investigator or Co-Principal Investigator on over 1.3 million dollars of funded research. She also has played an instrumental role in shaping the J.B. Speed School of Engineering's mentorship program and will be a great resource for event attendees that want to learn more about the college's Mentor Collective experience. 

Mentorship at the J.B. Speed School of Engineering

• The program has formed 200+ mentorships and fostered 3,000+ SMS exchanges since the program launched in late 2020.
• Mentors and mentees surveyed about their program satisfaction rated their experiences as 6.1 and 6.0 on a seven-point scale, respectively. 
• Students who identify as "URM" in the  program are more engaged in mentorship than their peers. 
• "My specific mentor that I have has had the same classes that I have this year last year. Being able to go to somebody who has had that same experience definitely helps.” - Program Mentee