SCS DEI Update 9
Feb. 19, 2021
With the onset of winter weather combining with COVID protocols, it’s easy to feel isolated during this time of year. We’ve listed several CaPS resources below, and you can always reach out to them directly if you’re feeling in need of support. Please take advantage of all the opportunities here to connect, participate and add your voice and talents in our effort to make SCS a more diverse and welcoming community. As various groups and constituents in SCS continue work on issues related to diversity, equity and inclusion, we are committed to providing periodic updates on the work, progress and achievements, as well as inviting participation and collaboration. I want to thank everyone — students, staff and faculty — for their hard work in our attempts to harmonize and synchronize our efforts to make the SCS community more welcoming, diverse and inclusive.
Upcoming Events / Deadlines
Proposals for the Provost’s Inclusive Teaching Fellows are due Monday, Feb. 22
Fellows in this program develop and implement inclusive teaching practices to enhance the diversity of voices or perspectives represented in the curriculum and to increase students’ sense of belonging in the discipline. Each fellow receives a $5,000 stipend to work closely with the Eberly Center to iterate on a CMU course they are actively teaching. Fellows also meet as a group once or twice per month to explore research and strategies on inclusive teaching. Interested faculty colleagues are encouraged to see this request for proposals and faculty projects website for more information.BIPOC Connection Hour - Thursday, Feb. 25, 2021, 4:15 - 4:45 p.m. EST
This is a space for BIPOC students to come together in community, and to share and process the different ways we navigate our experiences within white-dominant spaces. This will be a consistent space, free of judgment and expectations. Come every week or come when you can; we will be here.Online Discussion: The Past, Present and Future of the Black Experience - Thursday, Feb. 25, 2021, 4-5 p.m. EST
How has the culture of 'Blackness' changed through time? Join a panel of CMU faculty for a rich dialogue centered on what their research reveals about the historical and present-day Black experience and how it can inform the creation of a more equitable future. Join the discussion.
Virtual Support Groups
Overcoming Racial and Ethnic Discrimination Support Group, Mondays, 4:30-6 p.m. EST
Racism, discrimination, and systemic oppression play a significant role in how you feel about yourself, your community and the world around you. Being directly impacted by any or all of them can feel like an added pressure that you have to navigate on top of the stress of being a student. If you feel that way, know you are not alone. Join our Overcoming Racial and Ethnic Discrimination Support Group to understand how racial and ethnic discrimination affects your mind, body and feelings and find ways to work through them in a supportive and healing space. Contact Dareen Basma to schedule a screening appointment.
Research on Fairness in AI
Three Carnegie Mellon University research teams have received funding through the Program on Fairness in Artificial Intelligence, which the National Science Foundation sponsors in partnership with Amazon. The program supports computational research focused on fairness in AI, with the goal of building trustworthy AI systems that can be deployed to tackle grand challenges facing society.
- Organizing Crowd Audits To Detect Bias in Machine Learning. Led by Jason Hong, researchers in the HCII seek to increase the diversity of viewpoints involved in identifying bias and unfairness in AI-enabled systems, in part by developing an audit system that uses crowd workers.
- Fair AI in Public Policy — Achieving Fair Societal Outcomes in ML Applications to Education, Criminal Justice, and Health & Human Services. Led by Hoda Heidari, an assistant professor in the Machine Learning Department (MLD) and Institute for Software Research, researchers in MLD and the Heinz College of Information Systems and Public Policy will help translate fairness goals in public policy into computationally tractable measures. They will focus on factors along the development life cycle, from data collection through evaluation of tools, to identify sources of unfair outcomes in systems related to education, child welfare and justice.
- Quantifying and Mitigating Disparities in Language Technologies. Led by Graham Neubig, an associate professor in the Language Technologies Institute (LTI), researchers in the LTI, HCII and George Mason University will develop methods to improve the ability of computer systems to understand the language of a wider variety of people. They will address variations in dialect, vocabulary and speech mechanics that bedevil today's smart speakers, conversational agents and similar technologies.
Mentoring Programs
- The NSF FLIP Alliance Mentoring Program mentor recommendation period has been extended to Feb. 26, 2021.
The purpose of the mentoring program is to provide our fellows with additional support that complements the academic advising and mentoring programs at each institution. Mentoring will be in groups consisting of one faculty mentor and fellows from various FLIP institutions. The faculty mentor will focus on topics such as academic and professional development and career paths. Time expectation is approximately one mentor meeting monthly and occasional one-on-one meetings as deemed necessary.
Note that mentors should be in academia or have significant academic experience, but they don’t have to be in SCS or even at CMU.
Use the online FLIP Mentor Recommendation Form by Feb. 26, 2021 to recommend anyone you feel would be a great candidate. The FLIP Mentoring Program Committee will contact candidates to confirm their interest and availability. Prior confirmation by the recommender is not required. The alliance will provide verification of program participation. Once mentors have been determined, FLIP fellows will receive information to sign up for the FLIP Mentoring Program. If you have any questions, contact Jenn Landefeld.
From the SCS Ph.D. Student Advisory Committee Anti-Racism Working Group
- Transparency helps us be accountable to improving diversity within SCS. CMU publishes demographic information aggregated by college for enrolled students. The Ph.D. Advisory Committee is calling for SCS to publish additional annual statistics to compare with the number of students who apply, are admitted and graduate, as UC Berkeley does.
One of our faculty members said it well: "This is a win-win action. When we make things more equitable for the most marginalized parts of our community, the whole community benefits." Submit your story about DEI-related challenges at SCS on our Google form. - The committee maintains an SCS DEI progress tracker to map progress relative to the Towards Anti-Racist Change letter, where we outline steps toward a more inclusive SCS. To date, four items have been completed, five are on track, 40 have been acknowledged and one has been refused.