Increasing Diversity at SIOP: The Future is Now
Lilia Cortina
University of Michigan
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Miguel A. Quiones
University of Arizona and Chair of CEMA
One of the goals of SIOPs Committee on Ethnic Minority Affairs (CEMA) is to increase the visibility of research on minority topics. Towards that end, CEMA is working with the Conference Program Committee to develop CEMA-sponsored sessions at the annual conference. The first such session will take place at the 2005 conference in the form of an interactive poster session.
The interactive poster session format made its debut at the 2003 SIOP conference in Orlando. Each session highlights four posters (selected among those already accepted for presentation) that address a similar theme. Audience members first have an opportunity to view each poster and converse with each author individually. During the second part of the session, a facilitator engages audience members and authors in a discussion of the research and the broader topic area. These sessions thus provide more interaction and integration than the traditional poster session.
For the CEMA-sponsored interactive poster session, a group of CEMA committee members will select posters that showcase cutting-edge research relevant to issues of ethnic diversity and inclusion. Our hope is that this, and future CEMA-sponsored sessions, will increase the visibility of these topics at SIOP, increase the participation of ethnic minorities in the annual conference, and promote dialogue about issues of diversity within the larger SIOP community. If you are interested in these issues, take some time from your busy conference schedule to stop by the CEMA-sponsored interactive poster session.
A second goal of CEMA is to develop a mentoring program within SIOP to benefit students from underrepresented minority groups. Our committee is taking two approaches to get this initiative off the ground. First, the newly revived CEMA discussion list is starting to see increased dialogue around the issue of mentoring. A number of ideas are being discussed but we would still like to have more SIOP student affiliates and members involved in the conversation. Visit the SIOP Web site for information on joining the CEMA discussion list.
Second, we want to encourage individuals interested in becoming a mentor or finding a mentor to attend the CEMA business meeting at the SIOP conference. In addition to discussing progress made by the committee, the session will include time for a discussion on how to incorporate CEMAs mentoring goals within SIOPs mentoring inititatives such as the Member-2-Member (M2M) program. The following are a list of goals that we would like to accomplish by establishing a mentoring program within SIOP.
- Increase retention of ethnic minority students in I-O programs by providing a social support network beyond their specific program (since most programs have very few minority students)
- Increase the amount of career-related information
- Provide internship and/or employment opportunities for students
- Provide role models for students to follow as they make career decisions
- Establish research collaborations
- Provide feedback regarding strengths and opportunities for development
- Increase the number of student affiliates that become full SIOP members upon graduation
There are many other positive outcomes of mentoring relationships. However, participation in and commitment towards the mentoring relationship is critical for a successful program. We need your help to make SIOP a model of inclusion. As we know, diversity benefits us all.
January 2005 Table
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