NSF Award
2324402
This project aims to develop ways to encourage access and broaden participation in research in higher education. The conference draws upon the topic of a culture of care. A focus on care reorients the research enterprise towards recognizing how institutions are made of systems and structures, as well as individuals. The goal is to find ways to enhance practices and processes that will facilitate the research opportunities of underrepresented researchers and ensure the U.S. remains competitive and agile in the face of global challenges. <br/><br/>This conference is a partnership between a national professional society, the American Association of Geographers (AAG), an Emerging Research Institution, the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, (UCCS) and a research enterprise organization, the National Organization of Research Development Professionals (NORDP). Together, these organizations are well-positioned to catalyze scalable practices into diverse institutional and organizational contexts, especially at minority-serving and emerging research institutions. The conference will include three groups of participants: research enterprise professionals, leaders in institutions of higher education, and early career faculty. Participants will be placed in groups of 3 (or triads) with a member from each of the three groups. The triads will: 1) explore the lived experiences of researchers in navigating or supporting the research enterprise, and 2) recommend practices that are expected to broaden and strengthen the research enterprise workforce. The goal of the convening is to enable practitioners in the research enterprise field to encompass both knowledge discovery and critical reflection on the ethical, political, economic, and emotional aspects of research practice and knowledge production. Ultimately, the conference will offer opportunities to stretch horizons and expand the capacity of the research enterprise to enhance and improve science.<br/><br/>This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
