Dr. Laurencin, Chair of the Roundtable on Black Men & Women in Science, Engineering & Medicine, initiated the Inaugural Roundtable Meeting on December 2nd and 3rd at The National Academy of Science in Washington, DC.
Roundtable members, drawn from academia, government, and industry, focused on the barriers and opportunities encountered by Black men and Black women as they navigate the pathways from K‐12 and postsecondary education to careers in science, engineering, and medicine.
The objectives of the Roundtable are to:
- Compile and discuss quantitative and qualitative data relevant to the representation and experiences of Black men and Black women in science, engineering, and medicine.
- Convene a broad array of stakeholders representing higher education, industry, health care, government, private foundations, and professional societies.
- Highlight promising practices for increasing the representation, retention, and inclusiveness of Black men and Black women in science, engineering, and medicine.
- Advance discussions that can lead to increasing systemic change.
As supporting content, Dr. Laurencin recently published an editorial titled “The Context of Diversity” describing the need for systemic changes to bring Black diversity to science, engineering, and medicine. Read the full article here.
The Roundtable will convene biannually, and host 2‐3 national or regional workshops each year.