Transforming culture in marine biology, one diver at a time.

What can be done to increase diversity in STEM in the absence of affirmative action? What about marine biology, in particular? In this seminar, educational sociologist and USC Associate Dean Julie Posselt will share the current state of evidence about recruitment in STEM. She will present new findings from her ethnographic research with The Diversity Project, a UCLA program that prepares talented undergraduates from minority-serving institutions to thrive in marine biology graduate programs. Central patterns in how the program is designed and how students learn scientific SCUBA diving on Mo’orea involve the instructors’ race-conscious approach to marine biology’s disciplinary culture and their proactive approach to the learning curves associated with diving and research. She will discuss implications for recruiting and training students in ways that are not remedial or stigmatizing, but rather focused on identifying and cultivating talent and evolving culture.