Stanford
NPSL
Diversity
Welcome to our expression of commitment to

NPSL & NPTL DEIB

DEIB

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging (DEIB)

DEIB is central to our values, group and science

Working definitions come from a variety of sources

  • Diversity     If you have a certain representative number of employees from various backgrounds, you have a diverse workforce. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean that everyone within it feels welcomed or valued. Before, it used to be “enough” to have a certain percentage of diverse workers at any given company. But not only were these numbers often not met, it was rarely acted upon as a top initiative. Thankfully, that’s changing.

  • Equity     This is about ensuring everyone has access to the same opportunities. In short, it’s about recognizing that we don’t all come from the same place and making sure that everyone, regardless of identity or financial background, has access to grow and develop. This includes the ability to be compensated fairly and equally for performing your job

  • Inclusion     People should be celebrated – not separated – for their differences. To bring their unique ideas, experiences and practices to life, people need to be empowered and inspired. And to be truly effective, inclusion must be engrained and integrated throughout the entire workforce.

  • Belonging     Workplaces that create a culture of belonging allow their employees to thrive simply by being who they are every day. Constantly being afraid of expressing yourself doesn’t foster a sense of creativity and innovation – especially not in the workplace. Creating social connections will strengthen everyone’s ability to communicate, get work done and enjoy each other’s company.

Some recent articles of potential interest

  • HHMI's Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (10/14/2021)

  • "Patrick Dunkley champions change. Stanford’s new vice provost for institutional equity, access and community talks about creating a more equitable and inclusive campus community" (2021) Stanford Report url

  • "Promoting diversity and inclusion in STEMM starts at the top. STEMM organizations must be proactive in advancing diversity, equity and inclusion" McNutt M & Castillo-Page L (2021) Nature Medicine url

Committees

Culture, Equity & Inclusion (CEI) Committee

The CEI Committee is dedicated to immediate and sustainable action in helping the Department of Electrical Engineering's community more equitable and inclusive for all students, staff, and post-docs. A diverse community is a stronger community, and we recognize that the EE department needs to take urgent action in addressing the systemic barriers that underrepresented groups face in Electrical Engineering. This committee aims to identify concrete goals to establish long-term change within Stanford’s Department of Electrical Engineering. Comprising faculty, staff, and both undergraduate and graduate students, the CEI committee aims to connect student experiences and perspectives to departmental heads within EE and the School of Engineering. We seek to better understand the needs of all students to advise the department on how it can best achieve this mission.

  • 2021-2022, Krishna Shenoy, Member

Student Life Committee (SLC)

The SLC is dedicated to immediate and sustainable action in helping provide the Department of Electrical Engineering's community a high-quality experience outside of the classroom. This is conducive to recruiting and retaining the best students, and providing a rich and rewarding social experience. In addition, the committee supports all constituencies in the department (faculty, staff, postdocs and students) to be engaged, productive and contributing members to the EE community as a whole.

  • 2020-2021, Krishna Shenoy, Chair

  • 2019-2020, Krishna Shenoy, Chair

  • 2018-2019, Krishna Shenoy, Chair

DEIB Committee

The Stanford Neurosciences PhD Program, and the DEIB Committee, believes diversity, inclusion, equity and belonging are essential to the advancement of science and to the development of a vibrant intellectual community. Research and education conducted in the absence of diversity and inclusion of all people and their ideas limits the quality of education, slows the pace of science and our ability to treat diseases and improve lives. The disparities produced by the history of exclusion of certain groups from science, on the basis of race, gender, sexuality or socioeconomic background, persist today, and it is our duty to commit to ending these injustices. We strive to correct these inequities, and our work is far from done. We commit to implementing changes within our organization to produce and sustain equity for historically underrepresented groups. We call upon ourselves and our community to reevaluate all components of the Neuroscience PhD Program including — but not limited to — our admission process, training and research programs, and leadership in order to identify ways that we can ensure that all voices are heard, and all have equitable access to resources. We welcome and look forward to engagement with all of the Neurosciences PhD Program, Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute, and Departmental communities as part of our evaluation and prioritization-for-change processes.

  • 2021-2022, Krishna Shenoy co-chair together with Prof. Tirin Moore co-chair

  • 2020-2021, Krishna Shenoy co-chair together with Prof. Tirin Moore co-chair Members Charter

DEIB web sites of potential interest

  • anneslist     To highlight female systems neuroscientists. This list was originally assembled by Anne Churchland, with input from Yael Niv and Adrienne Fairhall and is now being managed by Lamiae Abdeladim (formerly Jennifer Brown) to aid in choosing speakers for the COSYNE conference and other conferences.

  • Women in Neuroscience     To help identify and recommend female neuroscientists for conferences, symposia and collaborations. Despite some effort from the community and great initiatives, female neuroscientists are still under-represented in neuroscience.