Mission Statement

MISSION STATEMENT

CSHL WiSE is committed to the support and inclusion of all women scientists, including cis and trans women, and non-binary people comfortable in spaces that center women. The diversity and inclusion initiative within CSHL WiSE is centered on supporting women scientists with multiple marginalized identities, including but not limited to race, gender, sexuality, and disability. 

Our goal is to address and mitigate the barriers and biases standing in the way of gender equity in STEM fields. This mission statement is intended to outline the goals and specific commitments of the CSHL WiSE organization and Executive Board to promoting a diverse, inclusive, equitable, and accessible environment for current and future women scientists to thrive and benefit from our community, resources, education, and outreach opportunities.

Over time, we believe our mission and values will promote equal opportunity and increased representation across all academic levels in scientific research.

 

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT

Our CSHL WiSE community is open to CSHL community members of all identities and academic levels. Joining CSHL WiSE as a member currently includes our email listserv, Slack workspace, and social media platforms where members can share resources and keep up-to-date on WiSE initiatives.

  • WiSE Community: Anyone with a vested interest in learning about, participating in, and/or supporting our initiatives, please email wiseboard@chsl.edu sign up for our listserv to receive regular updates and invitations to our community events.
  • WiSE Executive Board: Members of our WiSE community who have taken on additional roles of ideating, spearheading, and communicating initiatives. These members include post docs, graduate students, technicians, and research associates. 
  • WiSE Ambassadors: Members of our WiSE community who help support the initiatives of the WiSE Executive Board by volunteering to assist with event preparation and leadership.
  • WiSE Faculty Advisory Board: CSHL faculty that commit to providing one or more years of advising to the WiSE Executive Board. Faculty leaders meet with the Executive Board annually to provide direction, counseling, and support for WiSE Initiatives.

Please contact us at wiseboard@chsl.edu to sign up for our email listserv and learn how to become more involved in our WiSE community. 

 

EXECUTIVE BOARD TRAINEE LEADERSHIP CHAIR POSITIONS 

Leadership chair positions are open to all trainees (technicians, graduate students, post-docs, etc.). This structure ensures an opportunity for trainees to develop leadership skills, and creates a comfortable space in which trainees can discuss initiatives amongst peers. The broader WiSE community is open to all CSHL community members of all academic levels, as well as diverse backgrounds and identities. 

  • Executive Board chair positions are typically a 2 year commitment, however 1 year is the minimum.
  • All chairs are expected to attend Executive Board meetings every 3 weeks and contribute to our WiSE Wednesday social media campaign.
  • President and Vice-President positions are open to any standing member of the Executive Board who has previously held a chair position for at least 1 full year. All other positions do not require previous experience.
  • The chair descriptions below are based on the activities of previous chairs and are open to change. New ideas for events, projects, and chair positions are encouraged to continuously adapt our structure to best meet the needs of our WiSE community.

President

  • Lead monthly Executive Board meetings and sustainability efforts (elections, monthly sign-up emails, WiSE & Cheese events, Executive Board Retreat, etc)
  • Work with other chairs to develop annual schedule of events and oversee budget 
  • Co-lead grant initiatives and funding requests to CSHL and external organizations
  • Organize annual update meetings with CSHL leadership and Faculty Advisory Board
  • Organize logistics for McClintock Lecture Series 
  • Represent WiSE at Labwide and community events 

Vice President

  • Co-lead grant initiatives and funding requests to CSHL and external organizations
  • Represent WiSE at Lab-wide and community events 
  • Assist President with organizing logistics for McClintock Lecture Series 
  • Assist President in directly supporting chair activities

Secretary/Treasurer

  • Prepare agenda and record minutes for board meetings, and remind chairs of their action items after board meetings
  • Process reimbursements for all events and manage cash funds, grants, etc. 
  • Liaison with financial department, and assist President with developing annual budget

Website Management

Goal: amplify voices of marginalized groups on STEM social media platforms, and promote CSHL WiSE content to CSHL, local, and global communities

  • Maintain and update CSHL WiSE website and calendar of events
  • Maintain, update, and coordinate expansion of Women in Biology Speaker List Website
  • Monitor WiSE Gmail account

Communications

Goal: amplify voices of marginalized groups in STEM on social media, and promote CSHL WiSE content to CSHL, local, and global communities

  • Manage WiSE social media accounts (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram) by resharing or posting original content
  • Attend WiSE-sponsored events and assist chairs with creating a post-event report for our website and social media platforms
  • Organize submissions for WiSE Wednesday and “Real Humans of CSHL” campaigns
  • Liaison with CSHL Writing Center and CSHL Communications Department to help broadcast WiSE initiatives

Outreach

Goal: increase access to educational STEM resources and programs, and create opportunities for young women to network with scientists

  • Organize and host the following events throughout the year:
    • Brain Day with Nassau County Girl Scouts (in-person)
    • Coding Camp for Girls (virtual)
    • Fascination of Plants Day (in-person)
    • CSHL DNALC “Fun with DNA” Summer Camp for Girls (in-person at the CSHL DNALC)
  • Recruit WiSE Ambassadors and volunteers for each event (WiSE Ambassadors will coordinate volunteers, and Outreach chairs function to lead logistics and event management)
  • Recruit volunteers to represent WiSE at external events including:
    • Career fairs at local high schools and colleges 
    • Science Cafés at local high schools 

Professional Development

Goal: provide opportunities for women scientists to engage in networking, science communication, and mentorship

  • Organize and host annual “Tech to Grad” Panel
  • Organize trainee practice talks 
  • Host trainee chats for McClintock Lecturers (and other invited speakers who are WiSE Allies)
  • Organize workshops and panel discussions
  • Conduct biennial labwide survey to identify recipients of WiSE Mentorship awards 
  • Liaison with PDLC and BEC to co-host events pertinent to WiSE mission

Mental Health

Goal: destigmatize dialogue about the mental illnesses that impact women scientists in academia, and help foster a healthier work environment for all

  • Organize and host annual “Real Stories of Science” Open Mic Night
  • Collaborate with Communications chairs to create content for Mental Health Month
  • Foster dialogue within the Executive Board and greater WiSE community about mental health and accessibility in our events and practices
  • Recruit speakers with domain expertise at the intersection of mental health and STEM to host a Mental Health seminar (1> per year)

In-House Education

Goal: stimulate self-education and critical discussions on the topic of gender disparities in STEM at CSHL to equip our lab community with knowledge-based evidence

  • Organize and host annual In-House Education Retreat 
  • Organize and host discussion as part of monthly DEI series with other CSHL affinity groups
  • Organize educational seminars featuring external guest speakers
  • Support Communications chairs and slack workspace by suggesting content for WiSE community

 

ORGANIZATIONAL INITIATIVES

How do we foster an institutional community that is more accessible and supportive of marginalized identities in science? 
  • Commitment to providing closed captions at virtual events, providing hybrid and virtual options, and appointing an accommodations coordinator for each event who attendees can contact for assistance, whenever possible. We recognize that many locations on CSHL’s campus are not particularly accessible for individuals using mobility aids, and will strive to accommodate the needs of our community to the best of our ability.
  • Acknowledge the efforts of individuals who provide mentorship to women scientists through our Biennial Mentorship Awards announced during the CSHL In-House Symposium.
  • Highlight the experiences and career paths of women working at CSHL through the “Real Humans of CSHL” project.
  • Contribute to CSHL’s Harassment Prevention & Response Advisory Group. 
  • Host professional development workshops and practice talks for trainees to provide access to tailored mentorship and training.
  • Organize an annual “Tech to Grad” panel discussion to provide resources and advice for lab employees who are applying for advanced STE degree programs. 
  • Organize an annual “Real Stories of Science” Open Mic Night for our lab community to share stories of successes and failures in science in a safe, supportive space.
  • Host two women scientists as ‘McClintock Lecturers’ as part of the CSHL Labwide Seminar Series to advocate for more gender balance in speaker invitations extended by our institution.
  • Actively support DEI-focused recruitment efforts led by the School of Biological Sciences.
What steps do we take to specifically support marginalized identities and promote diversity and inclusion among the broader scientific community? 
  • Engage with girls in our local community by participating in career fairs and through our Science Café program.
  • Highlight the stories of historical and contemporary women scientists through our WiSE Wednesday social media campaign.
  • Maintain social media platforms and resource pages on our website to amplify content from underrepresented scientists and spread awareness about resources (i.e. fellowships, grants) specifically intended to support these groups.
  • Organize an annual virtual Coding Camp for Girls and develop curriculum that is publicly available on our website.
  • Collaborate with the CSHL DNALC to provide a “Fun with DNA” Summer Camp for Girls, and sponsor scholarships and transportation for girls with limited access to this program.
  • Create content for our “A Tip A Day for the Month of May” Mental Health social media campaign as part of Mental Health Awareness month.

 

How do we, as an organization, acknowledge our biases and work against them?
  • Participate in an annual implicit bias training with our Executive Board.
  • Evaluate our events to ensure full representation of BIPOC women, and hold ourselves accountable to inviting diverse speakers.
  • Evaluate our events to determine how we can best collaborate with and highlight the missions of other CSHL affinity groups.
  • Commit to joining one other CSHL affinity group to provide support to the larger CSHL community.
  • Advocate for and hold ourselves accountable to supporting opportunities and policies that dismantle gender-based discrimination and biases.

 

How do we disseminate data-driven evidence that stimulates dialogue about gender disparities in science and promotes more inclusive practices?
  • Host an annual In-House Education Retreat featuring speakers with domain expertise in inclusivity and gender disparity studies.  
  • Contribute to a monthly DEI discussion group at CSHL in collaboration with other CSHL affinity groups. 
  • Share and discuss peer-reviewed articles during journal clubs and on our Slack workspace.
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