Harvard University's Diversity in the Sciences: Resources

Reading Resources for Diversity in the Life Sciences

Minority Scientists Network

Minority Scientists Network (MiSciNet) is part of Science Magazine, run by AAAS. Their articles are of specific interest to minority scientists and can be sorted by interest to students, administrators, mentoring, and community. MiSciNet is a division of NextWave, which has a wealth of information about careers in science.

Underrepresented Minorities in Science:  Feature Index
A list of articles within MiSciNet that feature the perspectives of minority scientists.

Best Practices Index
A listing of articles within MiSciNet about programs that work to increase the participation and success of minority students in science.

Bibliographies

The Diversity Institute Literature Review
An annotated review of literature about women and minorities in science, with conclusions about effective practices.  Articles cover both K-12 and higher education.

Minorities in the Sciences: Top Twenty Annotation
Compiled in 2000, this list of twenty readings focuses on diversity in undergraduate science education.

Making Strides Bibliography
Compiled by the NSF Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate AGEP, this list of readings on diversity in higher education is a few years old, but very comprehensive.

Successful programs

The Biology Scholars Program
Matsui, J., Liu, R., and Kane, C.M.  2003.  Evaluating a Science Diversity Program at UC Berkeley:  More Questions Than Answers.  Cell Biology Education.  2:  117-121.  An analysis of the Biology Scholars Program at the University of California, Berkeley, which targets students from underrepresented groups.  Minority participants of the program graduated with biology degrees at a higher rate than non-participants, and with higher overall GPAs. 

Emerging Scholars Program
The Emerging Scholars Program was created at University California, Berkeley, in the 1970’s as a way to improve the success of African American students in Calculus.  A short description of the program, which has been replicated at many other universities, can be found here, and a much more detailed description can be found in this publication by the College Board.

Priming the Pump:  Strategies for Increasing the Achievement of Underrepresented Minority Undergraduates
This publication from the College Board highlights successful strategies and programs at colleges and universities around the country. 

A Bridge for All:  Higher Education Design Principles to Broaden Participation in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
This report from Building Engineering and Science Talent BEST, a public-private partnership, evaluates and recognizes programs that enhance diversity in the sciences.

Making Room for Diversity Make Sense
A short article about three successful programs by Camille Mojica Rey in Science, 2001, 293:  1161-1162. 

Minorities in the Chemical Workforce:  Diversity Models that Work: A Workshop Report to the Chemical Sciences Roundtable
From the National Academies Press, this publication records the talks and follow-up discussions from a 2002 conference on diversity in chemistry.  Speakers represented preeminent diversity programs, including Michael Summers and Freeman Hrabowski from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and Steven Watkins from Louisiana State University.  PDF can be downloaded for free.

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