In the Specht lab, we are strongly committed to achieving excellence through diversity. We are aware of biases, conscious and unconscious, in academia and in science and we actively seek to reduce the role of these biases in our own decisions and in those of our colleagues and collaborators. We work together to combat prejudice and work toward equity and inclusion, within the lab and in the communities with whom we interact – on campus and beyond. We are eager to contribute to the diversity of scholarship in the Botanical Sciences and in Evolutionary Biology, as individuals and in the actions we take to teach, train, mentor, recruit and retain scholars from diverse backgrounds and with diverse perspectives. We are intolerant of actions and language that seek to limit our potential or dismiss the impact of who we are and what we can accomplish through excellence in scholarship, research, education, and outreach.
On this page, you can find information on how to support yourself and your community at Cornell, in Ithaca and beyond. This includes information for individuals with marginalized or minoritized identities and for those engaged in being strong and vocal allies:
On this page you can find information specifically for graduate students and postdocs including information on supporting needs as well as developing skills in being a more effective mentor.
On this page, you can find information about upcoming DEI events and engage in educational and career development opportunities sponsored by CALS.
On this page and this page you can begin to explore the many offerings from the Graduate School that support emotional well-being tied with intellectual and career development. Specific links you might find particularly useful can be found on the “Join Us” page.
On this page, you can explore all the events happening across Cornell, and can search for “diversity” tag to specifically identify events of interest to building your DEI program.
Below you can find some information on diversity in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and Arts!) and why we are committed to fostering diversity especially in the fields of Botany, Systematics and Evolutionary Biology. Please feel free to let us know of resources to add to the list, or if you find updated material you’d like us to consider:
“Diversity in STEM – What it is and why it matters?” Scientific American Blog
“Diversity: Pride in science” – Nature – on being LGBTQ in STEM
“Women in Science” Nature – Special Issue
“Equality: Standing out” – Nature, about how a “welcoming lab environment and networking organizations help lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender scientists to excel.”
“Science faculty’s subtle gender biases favor male students” PNAS
An article on implicit bias in letters of recommendation by Trix & Psenka