EECS Strategic Plan for Inclusive Excellence

Potential for talent and passion for EECS is found in all groups and identities. To maintain and to strengthen our leadership in the field, we must expand our pool of talent to ensure gifted individuals are identified, particularly from groups underrepresented in the field. Broader representation will also improve our ability to inspire new EECS leaders and to envision the exciting technical challenges where the field will impact a diverse world.

Though this composition goal focuses on faculty and graduate students, because the department controls their selection through faculty hiring and doctoral graduate admissions, we are committed to adding diverse talent to our staff and undergraduate student body as well.

Recommendations include:

• • Broaden the pool of people who are inspired to join MIT EECS and increase the number of applications from groups underrepresented in the field. This includes summer programs such as MSRP, Rising Stars conference for future faculty candidates, information sessions to get people excited about faculty jobs and graduate school at MIT, recruiting at conferences that promote diversity in EECS, fee waivers, curation of list of promising candidates for outreach.
  • Provide information regarding the application and selection processes to increase transparency and to allow applicants to highlight their strengths and experiences and their potential, regardless of their personal or professional network. This includes online material and the student-led Graduate Application Assistance Program (GAAP).
  • Review our selection processes and adopt best practices for equitable hiring (done recently for faculty search, awaiting recommendation of the graduate admissions task force).
  • Once candidates receive an offer for a staff or faculty position, or for our PhD program, we must actively recruit them and make them feel welcome. One key metric is that our yield should increase, especially for groups historically underrepresented in the field, where it should reach the same level as other groups.

For more detail about initiatives supporting each role within our community please click on the links below:

Recommendations for undergraduate students
Recommendations for graduate students
Recommendations for staff
Recommendations for faculty

The large variance of prior background in EECS among our incoming students is a huge challenge for the department. Our field is not part of most high school curriculums, yet a subset of students had the opportunity to acquire a deep background by the time they join MIT. Furthermore, access to programs and resources that provide exposure to EECS, such as AP-level computer science courses, is known to correlate with socioeconomic status, race, ethnicity and gender, resulting in serious inequities. The impact of struggles in introductory subjects has also been shown to have more negative self-selection impact on students with less support networks such as those from underrepresented groups.

Our introductory sequence of subjects must take into account the large discrepancy in prior exposure to the field. This means reviewing our content and, when appropriate, offering multiple entry classes as a function of prior background. We must provide scaffolding and support, such as tutoring, and make sure LAs and TAs are ready to help all students. We also need to provide students with early experiences that give them a sense of achievement and excitement about the field.

This achievement goal focuses on undergraduates, where the challenge is most salient, but care must also be taken for graduate students, especially as the field becomes broader and draws students with diverse academic backgrounds.

High-level recommendations include the following, and a full list is given in the appendix.

• • Review introductory subjects to support students with various prior exposure to EECS. In particular, create a new 6.100L for students with access to little or no computer science in high school.
  • Review tutoring programs and enhance tutor availability.
  • With many foundational subjects experiencing increased enrollment, provide organizational support with the hire of course assistants in EECS.
  • Invite and support the participation of students to conferences that promote diversity in EECS (Tapia, Grace Hopper, NSBE, SHPE, SWE), including faculty/staff participation.
  • Review TA & LA training is conducted consistently to promote inclusive teaching practices.
  • Run a project-based freshman seminar to give students with limited prior background in the field excitement and confidence
  • Examine the UROP and SUPERUROP programs to assess participation and determine if differences in engagement are apparent; review accessibility factors for various groups.
  • Continue support of graduate student seminars for networking and introduction to research in EECS with the goal of aiding transition to graduate school and transition to MIT.

For more detail about initiatives supporting each role within our community please click on the links below:

Recommendations for undergraduate students
Recommendations for graduate students
Recommendations for staff
Recommendations for faculty

Mentoring is central to the strength of MIT EECS at all levels and for all roles. Talented individuals are nurtured and guided through rewarding relationships where both mentors and mentees learn from each other. The relationship between a mentor and a mentee is critical both for achieving excellence through intellectual synergies, and for providing a sense of belonging and community. Studies show that mentoring is one of the best tools for improving belonging, composition and achievement (e.g., Dobbin & Kalev).

This achievement goal will strengthen our existing mentorship by providing support to mentors, by providing more opportunities for feedback, and will establish a culture of excellence in mentoring. Strategies described below will enable all community members to benefit from such a culture of excellence in mentoring.

Recommendations include:

• • Create robust onboarding processes, in particular for faculty and staff. Provide information and describe resources available to new faculty, graduate students and staff.
  • Establish and offer new mentoring plans, in particular for junior faculty members, staff, and undergraduates.
  • Improve and adopt widely the annual performance review process followed by constructive and actionable feedback, in particular for staff and graduate students.
  • With the hire of a dedicated EECS Human Resource Administrator, provide personnel management that encompasses career plans and professional development for staff.
  • Support a culture of excellence in mentorship by requiring mentoring activities to be listed as part of the annual review information provided by faculty.
  • Provide financial support and encourage faculty participation in the University Center for Excellence in Mentoring which creates community for, and supports, doctoral graduate students from underrepresented groups through networking and mentoring events.
  • For faculty members who wish to improve their mentoring style, provide support to participate in 360 reviews and executive coaching.
  • Pilot a new coaching program aimed at graduate students to help with: 1) time and stress management, 2) planning and prioritization, 3) tackling perfectionism and distraction, 4) aid in career planning and confidence, and 5) designing a healthy school-research-life balance.

For more detail about initiatives supporting each role within our community please click on the links below:

Recommendations for undergraduate students
Recommendations for graduate students
Recommendations for staff
Recommendations for faculty

The size of MIT EECS and its current demographics create challenge for all members to experience a sense of community and a feeling of belonging within the department. Feeling valued and connected to others in one’s learning community (i.e., having a sense of social belonging) is positively associated with wellbeing, academic engagement, and performance. We are committed to fostering a sense of welcome, adopt and practice work-life balance, and send an unequivocal message of belonging to all our community members. We believe these positive life experiences are key contributing factors impacting our students, staff, and faculty in their quest for excellence.

Recommendations include:

• • Fund and organize large community events, examples include the new food truck events created by the undergraduate office and EECS Town Halls for disseminating information.
  • Support community groups of different scales, in particular through funding and logistical support.
  • Create an EECS community space larger than the current undergraduate lounge.
  • Support trips to conferences that promote diversity in the field (shared with goal 2).
  • EECS will provide membership dues for associations that promote diversity in the field.
  • Support informal networking and community building events such as student buddy system programs, faculty dinners, and staff social events.
  • Provide accommodations and improve accessibility to support community members with a disability.
  • Support community members with children and promote family-friendly schedules. In addition to MIT-level staff and faculty benefits such as childcare support and parental leaves, EECS will continue support for parental leave and childcare support for graduate students via monetary grants.

For more detail about initiatives supporting each role within our community please click on the links below:

Recommendations for undergraduate students
Recommendations for graduate students
Recommendations for staff
Recommendations for faculty

Interpersonal relationships in a working environment affect daily productivity and effectiveness, as well as career satisfaction. When work relationships contain conflict, or impose stress or add friction, individual personal hardship or work dissatisfaction are results. To establish a respectful community, interpersonal norms should be articulated, and as conflicts arise, actions should be taken to resolve the conflict. Bad behavior is not acceptable and will be addressed according to the policies provided by MIT. Person-to-person engagement understandably will result in both agreements and in disagreements. Acknowledging the occurrence of different views, and respecting the right of individuals to hold counter opinions, normalizes the existence of conflict, and providing clear communication strategies will result in resolution.

Challenging or difficult conflicts, conflicts arising from a power differential, and difficult situations involving misconduct will be addressed using institute-wide resources so as to ensure consistent and objective evaluation and fair resolutions. EECS will seek out collaboration with MIT Institute Discrimination, Harassment and Response Office (IDHR).

Recommendations include:

• • Raise awareness of existing MIT and EECS resources to find help and report issues.
  • Raise awareness and prepare community members for difficult conversations.
  • Support organizations that promote stress reduction (REFS, Thrive)
  • Offer guaranteed transitional funding for graduate students in difficult situations
  • Encourage a culture of mentorship excellence for all community roles, including peer-to-peer mentoring for staff
  • Annual reviews will include assessment of mentoring activities for all community roles.
  • Establish feedback channels for EECS community members to submit feedback and to honestly report issues and conflicts without fear of retaliation, and with confidence of resolution.
  • Strengthen communication of reported issues between IDHR and EECS leadership.

For more detail about initiatives supporting each role within our community please click on the links below:

Recommendations for undergraduate students
Recommendations for graduate students
Recommendations for staff
Recommendations for faculty

This plan seeks to make MIT EECS stronger in its core mission – excellence in education and research– by articulating important goals and necessary recommendations. Integrated and sustained infrastructure synergistic with the core operation of the department is required. Such infrastructure will coordinate efforts, provide logistical support, and will improve communication to community members.

Inclusive excellence infrastructure will include:

• • MIT EECS will continue support for a full-time Diversity, Equity and Inclusion program director to strategize, execute, and oversee inclusive excellence.
  • Two newly-appointed Faculty Equity Officers are members of the Department Leadership Group providing an inclusive excellence ‘lens’ on all departmental issues.
  • The Committee on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (CDEI) meets every other week and is composed of undergraduates, graduate students, staff and faculty members.
  • EECS will support Course Assistants

For more detail about initiatives supporting each role within our community please click on the links below:

Recommendations for undergraduate students
Recommendations for graduate students
Recommendations for staff
Recommendations for faculty