{"id":390422,"date":"2019-07-23T10:35:57","date_gmt":"2019-07-23T14:35:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/?p=390422"},"modified":"2019-07-23T10:47:42","modified_gmt":"2019-07-23T14:47:42","slug":"engineering-diversity-hajim-school-recognized-390422","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/engineering-diversity-hajim-school-recognized-390422\/","title":{"rendered":"Hajim School recognized for efforts to increase diversity"},"content":{"rendered":"

When Talia English \u201921 attended the National Society of Black Engineers<\/a> annual convention earlier this year, \u201cIt helped to reassure me that there are many successful and worthwhile opportunities that await me and that taking all of these challenging courses is worth it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The engineering sciences major at the University of Rochester\u2019s Hajim School of Engineering and Applied Sciences<\/a> was among 50 underrepresented minority students who were able to attend career and networking seminars at the convention and, in many cases, receive interviews for internships and jobs, thanks to travel support from the school.<\/p>\n

This is one of many ways in which the Hajim School seeks to increase the diversity of its student enrollment and retain women, first-generation, and underrepresented minority students in engineering. Combined with initiatives to hire more women and underrepresented minority faculty, the efforts have earned the school recognition from the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE).<\/a><\/p>\n

The school is among the first cohort to receive Bronze Level recognition as part of the society\u2019s Diversity Recognition Program<\/a>, indicating that it is \u201camong the nation\u2019s leaders in inclusive excellence,\u201d says Gregory Washington, chair of the ASEE Engineering Deans Council, and dean of engineering at the University of California, Irvine. Engineering schools can also achieve silver and gold levels of recognition for further improvements in diversity, but only bronze was awarded in this, the first round of submissions.<\/p>\n

The ASEE Diversity Recognition Program was launched in 2018 as a follow up to the ASEE Deans Diversity Pledge, which has now been signed by over 220 of ASEE\u2019s 330-member engineering colleges. The pledge was issued in response to industry calls for a more diverse mix of engineering professionals who can work effectively in a diverse, multicultural, and global environment.<\/p>\n

\u201dIt is important to ensure that engineering and the applied sciences are fields that are accessible to all,\u201d says Wendi Heinzelman, dean of the Hajim School.\u00a0 \u201cWe need a diverse community with different backgrounds and different ways of looking at problems to enable us to advance solutions to the most challenging problems we face as a society.\u00a0 I am thrilled that the Hajim School has been recognized for the work that we have done and will continue to do to attract and retain the best and brightest students and faculty.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Hajim School was recognized for multiple initiatives, including:<\/p>\n