LSST E-News |
AURA Workforce and Diversity Committee Meets at STScI
Members of the AURA Workforce and Diversity Committee (WDC) met in Baltimore at the Space Telescope Science Institute December 12 & 13, 2013. This AURA governance committee works to develop and maintain a positive, inclusive work environment at all AURA Centers as well as provide opportunities for underrepresented groups, institutions, and geographic areas to contribute to AURA’s mission and the overall field of astronomy. As LSST moves into construction, we’re strengthening our commitment to develop a culture that promotes respect, communication, fairness, and inclusion throughout the project.
One outcome of the WDC meeting was the submission of a proposal for a workshop at the June 2014 AAS meeting in Boston. AURA has developed expertise and toolkits for: diversity and equity in hiring practices; a positive workplace culture; family-friendly work policies; effective mentoring and professional advancement; and connections to local, diverse communities. AURA’s WDC intends to share these strategies, training materials, and toolkits through a series of AAS workshops and build a community of practice among institutions with similar goals.
This proposed Summer 2014 initial workshop will focus on: (1) Using climate surveys as tools for improving the professional climate in your department, and (2) Technical tools and strategies for enabling a flexible, family friendly workplace. Workshop leaders include: Lotte Bailyn (MIT), Sheryl Bruff (STScI), and Keivan Stassun, the new Chair of the WDC.
The WDC meets twice a year face-to-face; the DAs meet more frequently via telecon. More information and resources are available on AURA’s website. These resources include AURA’s Guide to Best Practices for Recruitment and Selection as well as an updated brochure on Unconscious Bias.
Article written by Suzanne Jacoby, LSST Diversity Advocate
LSST is a public-private partnership. Funding for design and development activity comes from the National Science Foundation, private donations, grants to universities, and in-kind support at Department of Energy laboratories and other LSSTC Institutional Members:
Adler Planetarium; Argonne National Laboratory; Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL); California Institute of Technology; Carnegie Mellon University; Chile; Columbia University; Cornell University; Drexel University; Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory; George Mason University; Google, Inc.; Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics; Institut de Physique Nucleaire et de Physique des Particules (IN2P3); Johns Hopkins University; Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology (KIPAC) – Stanford University; Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope Network, Inc.; Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL); Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL); National Optical Astronomy Observatory; National Radio Astronomy Observatory; Northwestern University; Princeton University; Purdue University; Research Corporation for Science Advancement; Rutgers University; SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory; Space Telescope Science Institute; Texas A & M University; The Institute of Physics of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic; The Pennsylvania State University; The University of Arizona; University of California at Davis; University of California at Irvine; University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; University of Michigan; University of Oxford; University of Pennsylvania; University of Pittsburgh; University of Washington; Vanderbilt and Fisk Universities
LSST E-News Team:
- Suzanne Jacoby (Editor-in-Chief)
- Robert McKercher (Staff Writer)
- Mark Newhouse (Design & Production: Web)
- Emily Acosta (Design & Production: PDF/Print)
- Additional contributors as noted
LSST E-News is a free email publication of the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope Project. It is for informational purposes only, and the information is subject to change without notice.
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