The diversity of the SCU community is its greatest strength.
Upholding the values of a Jesuit education, our diverse community of students, faculty, staff, and alums, fosters an environment that fuels intellectual growth, stimulates creative and critical thinking, and nurtures empathy and respect. Learning and working together with individuals from a wide range of backgrounds, experiences, and differences enhances growth and prepares our Bronco engineers for future success, both personally and professionally.
Black and Brilliant: Timeline of InventionsThroughout history, African-American contributions to science, technology, engineering, and math have been underreported or underrepresented. Through engaging images and captivating information, the Black & Brilliant: Timeline of Inventions illuminates the illustrious contributions of African-Americans to our modern world
- Hispanic/Latinx Heritage Month
National Hispanic/Latinx Heritage Month is celebrated in the U.S. from September 15 - October 15 to honor the cultures and recognize the contributions of Hispanic and Latinx Americans. The date of September 15 is significant as it marks the Independence Day anniversaries for 5 Latin American countries: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. Three other countries celebrate their Independence Day within the month as well: Mexico (September 16), Chile (September 18), and Belize (September 21).
Get involved with Latinx Communities on campus:
In honor of Hispanic/Latinx Heritage Month, check out the evolving list of influential Hispanic and Latinx individuals who have contributed to science, technology, engineering, and math, as compiled by We Rep STEM.
As we celebrate this month, we can also use this time to reflect on the hardships of Latinx in STEM, those of which can include being a first-generation college student, working while being a student, and a lack of role models and representation in STEM.
If you are a Hispanic/Latinx in STEM and would like support, here are some additional resources:
If you would like to learn more about Hispanic Heritage Month, visit the Hispanic Heritage Month website.
- Beyond Pride Month
Although Pride Month has passed, the School of Engineering stands with our LGBTQQIAAP community all year round. We recognize and celebrate your diversity and unique contributions to Engineering and STEM.
Campus Resources: Rainbow Resource Center
Professional Organizations: Out in STEM (OSTEM), National Organization of Gay and Lesbian Scientists and Technical Professionals Inc. (NOGLSTP)
Other Resources: OC.me Online Resources for LGBTQIA+ College Students
Lesbian: A woman who is emotionally, romantically or sexually attracted to other women.
Gay: A person who is emotionally, romantically or sexually attracted to members of the same gender.
Bisexual: A person emotionally, romantically or sexually attracted to more than one sex, gender or gender identity though not necessarily simultaneously, in the same way or to the same degree.
Transgender: whose gender identity and/or expression is different from cultural expectations based on the sex they were assigned at birth. Being transgender does not imply any specific sexual orientation. Therefore, transgender people may identify as straight, gay, lesbian, bisexual, etc.
Queer: A term people often use to express fluid identities and orientations.
Questioning: A term used to describe people who are in the process of exploring their sexual orientation or gender identity.
Intersex: An umbrella term used to describe a wide range of natural bodily variations.
Asexual: A person who does not have sexual feelings or desire.
Ally: A person who is not LGBTQ but shows support for LGBTQ people and promotes equality in a variety of ways.
Pansexual: A person who has the potential for emotional, romantic or sexual attraction to people of any gender though not necessarily simultaneously, in the same way or to the same degree.
- Black Lives Matter
Education on the impact of systemic racism on the Black community is a critical step toward understanding crucial history and context and taking meaningful next steps. Use the resources below to gain awareness of how systemic racism fuels white privilege and the role allies can have in dismantling it.
- 75 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice
- 75-Day Interactive Calendar (PDF) with something you can do each day
- Or add it to your Google Calendar
- Ways You Can Help
- Anti-Racism Resources
Juneteenth, also known as Freedom Day, is celebrated annually on June 19. Though slavery was abolished with the Emancipation Proclamation on September 22, 1862, it wasn’t until June 19, 1865 that the final state, Texas, was notified that slavery had been outlawed and all slaves were free.
- Walking the Walk Together
The Engineering Diversity & Inclusion Council presents to the community a panel series, featuring guest STEM Leaders from around the country, “Walking the Walk Together” every second Thursday in June - December. Episode 2 will be July 9 at 6 p.m. PDT. Watch the panels live or catch them on the recorded archives, both available on the Engineering Diversity and Inclusion Council page.
Diversity Initiatives
Program mission or purpose:
Upholding the values of a Jesuit education, we strive to recruit, retain, and support a diverse community of students, faculty, and staff, fostering an environment that fuels intellectual growth, stimulates creative and critical thinking, and nurtures empathy and respect. Learning and working together with individuals from a wide range of backgrounds, experiences, and differences enhances growth and prepares our Bronco engineers for future success, both personally and professionally.
Key features:
- Established Engineering Committee on Diversity and Inclusion
- Required faculty search committee training
- Target of opportunity hires
- Workshops on teaching practices that improve inclusiveness and equity in STEM classrooms
- Bias busting workshops for faculty and staff to facilitate recognition and response to incidents of unconscious/implicit bias (or conscious bias)
- Workshops to recruit, retain, and improve attitudes of faculty
- University required discrimination and harassment prevention workshops
Tracking or assessment measures:
- University Human Resources tracks candidate diversity
- Women faculty comprise ~30%
Program impacts:
Target population:
Related links:
https://www.scu.edu/engineering/diversity-in- engineering/
https://www.scu.edu/engineering/women-in- engineering/
Program mission or purpose:
Upholding the values of a Jesuit education, we strive to recruit, retain, and support a diverse community of students, faculty, and staff, fostering an environment that fuels intellectual growth, stimulates creative and critical thinking, and nurtures empathy and respect. Learning and working together with individuals from a wide range of backgrounds, experiences, and differences enhances growth and prepares our Bronco engineers for future success, both personally and professionally.
Key features:
- SES (summer residential program) and SEEDS (multi-Saturday day program), programs aimed at increasing engineering interest and enrollment from high school age underrepresented groups
- Support Unity Night Faculty-Student Mixers before Preview Days for admitted students
- NSBE hosts an outreach program for elementary students (grades 4-6)
- NSBE and SWE students aid recruitment through calling campaigns
- SWE outreach through GAINS One Step Ahead program
- Travel grants for black students to attend Preview Day and Unity events
- Annual lunch for women admitted students
- Annual Women in Engineering Dinner for faculty and undergraduates
- MUSE mentoring program open to all undergraduate engineering students
- Support for national professional societies
- Partnership with NCWIT to advance women in IT
- Funding for attendance at NSBE, SWE, SHPE, GHC conferences
- Funding for engineering student groups performing outreach
- Office for Multicultural Learning conducts campus climate survey
- Office for Multicultural Learning provides transportation for underrepresented students to attend graduate studies fair
Tracking or assessment measures:
- Annual demographic reports track admittance and retention
- Undergraduate enrollment in 2016-17: 28% underrepresented minorities, 29% women
- Graduate enrollment in 2016-17: 8% underrepresented minorities, 39% women
Program impacts:
Target population:
Related links:
https://www.scu.edu/engineering/beyond-the- classroom/outreach/summer-engineering- seminar-ses/
https://www.scu.edu/engineering/beyond-the-classroom/outreach/spring-engineering- education-days-seeds/
https://www.scu.edu/engineering/beyond-the- classroom/outreach/one-step- ahead/
https://www.scu.edu/engineering/women-in- engineering/
https://www.scu.edu/engineering/undergraduate/student-support/mentoring- underrepresented-students-muse/
https://www.scu.edu/engineering/beyond-the- classroom/student-organizations/
https://www.scu.edu/oml/
Diversity Spotlights
- Lo Dificil Cuesta (Difficult Tasks Require Hard Work)
Marieli Rubio ’21, a First-Generation Latina and recipient of the Latinos in Technology Scholarship from the Hispanic Foundation of Silicon Valley, shares her story of being resourceful, proactive, and resilient. Watch the full video here.
- Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers
Society of Hispanic Professionals Engineers: Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers-Santa Clara University (SHPE-SCU), is a non-profit academic organization that promotes the enrollment and retention of minorities in an effort to diversify technical fields. SHPE-SCU is a student chapter of the national organization of SHPE--Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (www.shpe.org). Studying STEM in Silicon Valley can be overwhelming as a Latinx student. SHPE is a familia that helps you find your way. We provide you with the tools and support needed to focus on your ambitions and escape the pressure of going through it alone. Reach out to us anytime at shpe@scu.edu, and follow us on IG @shpe_scu!
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Next Level IoTInside this room packed with imposing server stacks and desks covered with laptops, blinking electronic components, and test equipment, student researchers from undergraduates through Ph.D. level are working to advance networking and embedded systems for a myriad of applications. This is the SCU Internet of Things Research Lab (SIOTLAB), founded in 2017 and directed by Behnam Dezfouli, assistant professor of computer science and engineering. |
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Graduate Profile: Laura Rivas Yepes, BioengineeringGraduate student Laura Rivas Yepes has always wanted to contribute to society and improve quality of life, especially for people in developing countries like her native Colombia, and she sees bioengineering as the perfect career to help her do that. “The difficulty many people in rural areas in my country face in obtaining healthcare has motivated me to help provide solutions for improving access to medical attention. Additionally, my mom played an important role in choosing my career; she is a nurse and I always saw her passion to help patients." |
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De Novo Fellowship Sparks Diversity in Undergraduate ResearchTo encourage traditionally underrepresented students to become involved in research, the School of Engineering and the College of Arts and Sciences put out a call to undergraduates last spring: apply for a De Novo Fellowship; get paid for up to 10 weeks of full-time research with a faculty mentor; travel and present your work at an academic conference. |
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A Major ExplorationBioengineering senior Shani Williams is focused on getting all she can out of her time at Santa Clara University, even when school is not in session. She spent the summer as part of Assistant Professor Emre Araci’s research team, developing a “wearable sensor for physical activity tracking”—an ultrathin microfluidic sensor that can be placed on the skin to measure how the tissue reacts in connection with a particular movement. Shani was paid to work on the project for 10 weeks as a De Novo Fellow—a program designed to encourage underrepresented students in engineering and the sciences to take on a research challenge. |
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A Big PictureAs an Executive for Real Estate at Google, Roshan Mehdizadheh Corsiglia ’06, M.S. ’07, applies her talent for the big picture to oversee multi-billion dollar projects and millions of square feet that deliver Google’s award-winning workplace experience. But “talent” really isn’t the right word for it. |
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8 Questions for Rathi Murthy, SVP/CTO of Gap Inc.Rathi Murthy received her master’s degree in computer engineering from Santa Clara University in 1995. Since then, she has held senior positions at American Express, eBay, Yahoo!, and WebMD, among others, and is currently Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at Gap Inc., where she thrives on “removing friction and avoiding the status quo” while helping the company “get faster, cheaper, better.” Here, she answers a few questions about SCU, diversity in the workplace, mentoring, and more. |