Work in Progress: Early Exploration of Engineering Students' Perspectives about Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in an Introductory Materials Science and Engineering Course

Abstract Work in Progress: Early Exploration of Engineering Students' Perspectives about Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in an Introductory Materials Science and Engineering Course Aroba Saleem1,2, Sindia Rivera-Jimenez1, Idalis Villanueva1 1Department of Engineering Education, University of Florida 2Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Florida Despite numerous efforts made by the engineering community, maintaining a diverse, equitable, and inclusive education environment still seems a distant goal. Persistently, nationwide reports and studies continue to point to the severe underrepresentation of marginalized and minoritized groups, especially women and African American students in engineering. Discrimination due to gender, race, ethnicity, religion, and other forms of identities, impedes the development and sustaining of diverse and inclusive educational environments, which affects student retention and graduation/completion rates. Providing equitable access to education and supporting tolerance and acceptance of those who are different can positively enhance student learning. This Work in Progress paper examines engineering student perspectives about diversity, inclusion, equity, and access at a Southeastern university in the United States. In this exploratory study, two questions around students' notion of diversity and inclusion and its challenges in their learning, were developed. The survey was conducted among 300 undergraduate students (69% male and 31% female) in an Introductory Materials Science and Engineering course that consists of students from different fields of engineering. The class was a mix of Freshman (3%), Sophomore (8%), Juniors (43%), and Seniors (46%). The response rate of the survey was 83%. Preliminary findings suggest that while some commonalities were observed, students' perspectives about the state of diversity and inclusion on their campus differed significantly. The majority of respondents were comfortable with the overall climate in the university and felt no or minimal need for any intervention, however, the other group of respondents shared a contradictory perspective and expressed a dire need for change. For example, many students commended the ethnic diversity among the student population whereas 4% of respondents expressed grave concerns about the lack of African American students on Campus. Interestingly, the demographic distribution of students revealed that African American students consisted of only 7% of the total students in the course. This indicates that the demographic distribution of students could explain the divergent views of students on diversity and inclusion. The findings from this study support the idea that students with different ethnic and social identities can have different views and experiences regarding diversity, inclusion, and equity in their campus. This study can help identify the challenges that need to be overcome in order to create a diverse, inclusive, and equitable environment.