ASPIRE Workshops Help Faculty Make Labs More Inclusive
Jessica Blackburn, PhD, associate professor of molecular and cellular biochemistry, wanted to make her undergraduate students feel welcome at the start of the fall semester. As the daughter of a teacher, her instinct was to gift each undergraduate student a binder with supplies. She also included a Starbucks gift card for new students to grab coffee with new colleagues and a giant eraser “because mistakes are OK and how you learn.”
“Most undergraduate students don’t know what research is or if it’s a career they’re interested in,” Dr. Blackburn said. “For me, the goal was to make sure these students figuring out their career path could do so in a lab that is welcoming.”
Dr. Blackburn was motivated to go the extra mile for her students because over the summer, she attended the University of Kentucky’s Adopting Supportive Practices for an Inclusive Research Environment (ASPIRE) workshops, which were established by the UK Center for the Enhancement of Learning and Teaching (CELT) in collaboration with the UK College of Medicine Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.
The ASPIRE program was developed by Shauna Morgan, PhD, director of inclusion and equity initiatives at CELT and Trey Conatser, CELT acting director, with the College of Medicine’s Stephanie White, MD, MS, acting associate dean for diversity and inclusion, and Kevin Pearson, PhD, assistant dean for inclusive research initiatives. Drawing from foundational principles of Restorative Justice, a process to build community and address marginalization, ASPIRE’s interactive and dynamic module provides thoughtful and practical approaches to optimize research settings so that all colleagues are welcomed and have equitable opportunities to engage in the research community.