Call for Proposals

2024 ADVANCE Equity in STEM Community Convening

Call for Proposals

Advancing equity in STEM requires an intentional focus on creating authentic, sustainable, and inclusive environments while simultaneously cultivating a community that collaborates, shares, and implements promising practices and tools shown to effect change.
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At the 2024 ADVANCE Equity in STEM Community Convening, researchers, practitioners, and change agents have an opportunity to share new research findings and exchange resources; brainstorm strategies; collaborate in novel ways; and demonstrate effective programs and interventions for greater collective impact.

Submit Proposal

General Guidelines

In lieu of traditional text-based abstracts, only visual abstracts will be accepted. Accessible content encouraged. Participants whose proposals are accepted are required to register for the 2024 ADVANCE Equity in STEM Community Convening and attend to present their scheduled presentation.

Timeline

January 5, 2024, 11:59pm PDT – Submissions Close
February 2, 2024 – Acceptance Notifications and
Session Assignments Distributed
May 6, 2024 – Presentation Materials Due
June 2-5, 2024 – 2024 ADVANCE Equity in STEM Community Convening

Quick Links

Priority Areas Session Types Visual Abstracts Submission Process Appendix Download PDF of Call for Proposals Submit Proposal

Send general inquiries to ARC@EquityinSTEM.org

“The networking was amazing!”

Convening Attendee

About the Convening

Since 2019, the National Science Foundation - funded ADVANCE Equity in STEM Community Convening (EiSCC) has served as the convening for NSF ADVANCE grantees in a format that facilitates engagement with change agents within and beyond the NSF ADVANCE community. The 2024 ADVANCE EiSCC brings together a variety of change makers from higher education, professional societies, industry, government, and non-profits in an engaged exchange of knowledge, resources, and support to drive systemic change in STEM.

Attendees have an opportunity to share new research findings and exchange resources; brainstorm strategies; collaborate in novel ways; and demonstrate effective programs and interventions for greater collective impact. We invite all ADVANCE grantees alongside not-yet funded institutions of higher education, professional societies, nonprofits, companies, and more to advance diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility in STEM at the 2024 ADVANCE EiSCC.

Funded by the National Science Foundation ADVANCE Program, Awards HRD-2121468 and HRD- 1740860, the ADVANCE Resource and Coordination (ARC) Network seeks to achieve gender equity for faculty in higher education science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. As the STEM equity brain trust, the ARC Network recognizes the achievements made so far while producing new perspectives, methods, and interventions with an intersectional, intentional, and inclusive lens.
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The leading champion in North America to propel the inclusion of women in the field of engineering, the Women in Engineering ProActive Network (WEPAN), is the home organization to the ARC Network.

Call for Proposals

Priority Areas

The EiSCC includes a diverse set of presentations that are selected using priority areas. Those submitting visual abstracts can propose additional priority areas when uploading their submissions. Intersectionality must be incorporated into all presentations. Current priority areas are listed below.

#1 - Many Layers of Change
Systemic change requires work at many levels. From individual change to departmental and institutional transformation to catalyzing a just STEM enterprise, this priority area focuses on understanding and implementing change for STEM faculty at all levels.

#2 - Sustainability and Institutionalization
An ongoing challenge of systemic change work is sustaining and institutionalizing efforts over time, especially for grant-funded projects. This priority area focuses on integrating and sustaining efforts in our organizations over the longer periods of time that are required for meaningful change to occur.

#3 - Equitable Adaptation
Engaging in equitable practices as we build on and learn from work that has already been done requires that we draw on, without co-opting, previous efforts. This priority area focuses on research and practice that has adapted work to new contexts while centering equity.

#4 - COVID-19 and Faculty Equity Solutions
More than three years of the COVID-19 pandemic have presented new challenges to faculty equity and exacerbated existing ones. This priority area focuses on research, policy, and practice aimed at centering faculty equity during these unprecedented times.

#5 - STEM and DEI Terminology and Methodology
The language and approaches that we use in STEM and our DEI work can have long standing impacts on the problems we solve, how we solve them, and who is included. Sessions in this priority area focus on unpacking the terminology and methodologies used within STEM fields and DEI work and making recommendations for intentional and inclusive approaches.

#6 - Community Collaboration
Social equity and justice work is often most effective when done together. Sessions in this priority area focus on how to build successful collaborations for greater collective impact— from partnerships across NSF ADVANCE, INCLUDES, and other broadening participation initiatives to cross- industry relationships, research-practitioner partnerships, and more.

Submit Proposal

Call for Proposals

Session Types

Presentations and posters must be submitted electronically by May 6, 2024. All submitted materials will be included in the conference app for the 2024 ADVANCE Equity in STEM Community Convening as well as in the ARC Network Resource Library. Session and poster descriptions and presenter details will be included in the program book.

Poster Showcase

The Poster Showcase allows for informal discussions among attendees. Poster presenters will summarize their efforts toward equitable faculty environments in STEM while providing an excellent opportunity for attendees to learn about successful initiatives that have been implemented at institutions across the country.
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The final poster must adhere to all size and printing guidelines listed in Appendix I.

To learn more about the submission process for the Poster Showcase, please visit Appendix I.

High 5 Talks

This presentation format challenges scholars to delineate the highlights of their intersectional gender equity work and explain its importance in a span of 5 minutes. High 5 Talks provide an opportunity for scholars to share and receive feedback on projects at any stage of development, hear about other types of projects and methods, and network with other researchers and practitioners dedicated to advancing intersectional equity in STEM.
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To learn more about the submission process for the High 5 Talks, please visit Appendix II.

Experience Reports

Attendees want to learn and adopt emerging practices from existing efforts. Experience Report presentations are for well-developed and/or later-stage programs, initiatives, research, and interventions designed to examine and promote equitable work environments from an intersectional perspective. For all Experience Report presentations, audience engagement is strongly encouraged. Possible presentation styles include but are not limited to the following:

Lecture with engagement component
Roundtable/Conversation Hour
Panel Discussion

To learn more about the submission process for Experience Report Presentations, please visit Appendix III.

Early-Stage Innovations

Informative presentations from new and early-stage programs, initiatives, research, and interventions designed to examine and promote equitable work environments from an intersectional perspective. Less formal in nature, Early-Stage Innovation Presentations are meant to help develop, inform, and provide feedback to works-in-progress. For all presentation types, audience engagement is encouraged. Possible styles can include but are not limited to the following:

Roundtable/Conversation Hour
Panel Discussion
Open Fishbowl
Open Space

To learn more about the submission process for the Early-Stage Innovations, please visit Appendix III.

Symposia

A Symposium is a multi-presenter session including a well-integrated set of research or practice content and is one hour and 15 minutes in length. Participants in a Symposium should include a chairperson and three to five presenters.
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Basic criteria include:

The topic should be novel, timely, and interesting to a broad range of researchers and practitioners in STEM and incorporate intersectionality throughout.
The proposed list of speakers should represent a good balance between established and new investigators and have an equitable representation regarding gender, under- represented groups, and institution type.

Submissions must provide a statement describing how the proposed speaker lineup incorporates a diversity of experiences, including demographic factors, career stages, institutional settings, etc.
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For increased audience interaction, the chairperson can facilitate a discussion at the end of the Symposium. Other options for audience interaction are welcome.
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To learn more about the submission process for the Symposium, please visit Appendix IV.

Pre-Conference Workshops

Workshops are structured to facilitate a deeper look into critical topics and challenges in implementing and sustaining intersectional social equity efforts in STEM. These 3-hour sessions should be interactive and may include lectures, panels, research findings, promising practices, case studies, real-world issues, and valuable expertise by respected leaders in their fields. The basic criteria for workshops include:

A set of learning outcomes
Topics that are novel, timely, and interesting to a broad range of researchers and practitioners in STEM.
Attendees should leave with a blueprint for moving forward in addressing the topic of focus in their own organizations.

To learn more about the submission process for the workshops, please visit Appendix V.

Visual Abstracts

No need to put together another boring 250- to 500- word abstract. Instead show us a snippet of what you are planning from the beginning by submitting a visual abstract!

A visual abstract is a visual summary of the information typically found within a traditional abstract. The visual format is effective in displaying ideas and data designed to persuade people to either attend your presentation or learn more about your efforts. Visual abstracts can be completed using any presentation software (PowerPoint, Keynote, Prezi, etc.) but must be submitted in the original presentation file format (e.g., ppt, pptx, key, mp4). To ensure your visual abstract is accessible to a broad audience, slide narrations, with supporting transcripts, are strongly encouraged.
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Find key best practices for creating presentations that are accessible to persons with disabilities.

Visual Abstract Guidelines

For Poster Showcase, High 5 Talks, Experience Reports, Early-Stage Innovation Presentations

Submissions must have a 3-slide maximum with the following elements:

Title Slide: Summarizes key question being asked or problem being addressed and provides names of all presenters
Slides 2-3 should include but are not limited to the following:
- A provocative statement or question in a visually compelling manner
- Definition of your primary audience
- A succinct list of clear learning outcomes
- Program outcomes/data or stage in progress

For those submitting to the Poster Showcase or High 5 Talks do not submit your final poster/slide deck. Remember, the purpose of the visual abstract is to provide a visual summary of your presentation.
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Submissions to Experience Reports and Early-Stage Innovation must also include how the audience will be engaged throughout the presentation.

For Symposia and Pre-Conference Workshops

Submissions must have a 5-slide maximum (1 slide per presenter/key topic to be discussed) with the following elements:

Title Slide: Summarizes key question being asked/problem being addressed.
Slides 2-4 should include but are not limited to the following:
- A provocative statement or question in a visually compelling manner
- Definition of your primary audience
- A succinct list of clear learning outcomes
- Session outcomes and/or key topic(s)
Symposia submissions must also include the following:
- How the audience will be engaged throughout the presentation
- How the proposed panel’s speaker lineup incorporates a diversity of experiences and expertise, including demographic factors, career stages, institutional settings, and more
Pre-Conference Workshop submissions must also include the following:
- How the audience will be engaged throughout the presentation
- Expertise/background of each presenter and presentation history on topic proposed

icon Call for Proposals Now Open

Submit Proposal

Call for Proposals

Submission Process

Submit Proposal Download Guidelines PDF

Information must be submitted at one time, as there is no option to save a draft and return later.

Individuals may only submit up to 3 sessions, regardless of if they are a primary or secondary presenter.

No more than 2 presentations will be accepted; however, Pre-Conference Workshops do not count against this limit.

Each proposed session must be submitted separately.

Demographic Information for Each Presenter

Name (denote primary contact)
Institution/Organization
Position/Title
Email Address
Bio—highlights expertise to lead a session in proposed topic area (50 words maximum)
Headshot

Presentation Content

This portion of the submission form is used to provide details that will help the program team create the strongest program possible. Please review the Appendices to ensure you understand session requirements if your proposal is accepted.

Title
Session Type
- Poster Showcase
- High 5 Talks
- Experience Reports
- Early-Stage Innovations
- Symposia – Please describe how the proposed
  panel’s speaker lineup incorporates a diversity of experiences, including demographic factors, career stages, institutional settings, and more.
- Pre-Conference Workshops
Session Description – To be published online and in
print materials, 50-word maximum.
Keywords/Phrases – Select all that apply
- Barriers
- Demographic Patterns
- Disciplinary Differences & Contexts
- Measurements, Methodologies, & Metrics for Research & Evaluation
- Organizational Settings & Contexts
- Promising Practices
- Training Environments & Contexts
- Entrepreneurship & Commercialization
- Other, please specify
Priority Areas
- Many Layers of Change
- Sustainability and Institutionalization
- Equitable Adaptation
- COVID-19 and Faculty Equity Solutions
- STEM and DEI Terminology and Methodology
- Community Collaboration

Visual Abstract Upload

A visual abstract is a visual summary of the information typically found within a traditional abstract. Visual abstracts can be completed using any presentation software (PowerPoint, Keynote, Prezi, etc.) but must be submitted in the original presentation file format (e.g., ppt, pptx, key).

Certification of Submissions

Changes to Accepted Presentations – If there are substantive changes to the content or presenters of an accepted presentation between the confirmation and the conference, the main presenter will notify conference planners immediately. Continuation of the session is at the discretion of the conference planners.

Presentation Submission Deadline

In an effort to increase accessibility of Convening presentations and posters and to build the ARC Network Resource Library, we require that all final presentations and posters be submitted by Monday, May 6, 2024. Failure to submit your presentations/posters by the deadline will result in forfeiture of your proposal acceptance.

icon Call for Proposals Now Open

Submit Proposal

Call for Proposals

Appendix

Appendix I: Poster Showcase

Overview

Thank you for considering participation in the Poster Showcase at the 2024 ADVANCE Equity in STEM Community Convening. Meeting participants attend to become familiar with institutions focused on transformational change, best and promising practices, and lessons learned.
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Accepted poster presenters must submit an electronic poster file by May 6, 2024, for inclusion in the online program booklet. Electronic versions of all posters will be uploaded to the ARC Network Resource Library and poster descriptions will be included in the online program booklet for the 2024 ADVANCE Equity in STEM Community Convening.

Eligibility and Guidelines

Once a visual abstract is approved, the presenter will be provided with a Presenter Contract and further details regarding the location to ship materials, as well as setup and breakdown instructions. Poster shipping and production costs are NOT reimbursable by the 2024 ADVANCE Equity in STEM Community Convening or WEPAN.

All presenters are required to register for the 2024 ADVANCE Equity in STEM Community Convening. Detailed information, guidelines, and recommendations for poster session, as well as day, time and room will be sent to duly registered presenters.
Presenters must be present at their poster during their scheduled time to present their poster and answer questions. Presenters must arrive at their assigned station at least 10 minutes prior to their designated time slot.
Only those attending the 2024 ADVANCE Equity in STEM Community Convening are eligible to submit a visual abstract and present during the Poster Showcase.

Poster Size

Posters should not be greater than 4ft wide and 4ft. tall (48 in. x 48 in.). Power supplies (such as electricity) will not be readily available (if at all). If you require power or have any other requests for your poster display, please contact us no later than May 6, 2024, and the request will be reviewed. Questions about poster session and guidelines can be directed to arc@equityinstem.org.

Accessibility

Please consider the following resources when designing and presenting a poster:

Appendix II: High 5 Talks

Overview

Thank you for considering participation in the High 5 Talks at the 2024 ADVANCE Equity in STEM Community Convening. This presentation format challenges scholars to delineate the highlights of their work and explain its importance in a span of 5 minutes. With space for approximately 5 participants, high 5 talks provide an opportunity for scholars to share and receive feedback on projects at any stage of development, hear about other types of projects and methods, and network with other researchers and practitioners dedicated to advancing equity in STEM.
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High 5 Talk presenters must submit supporting handouts and final presentation decks by May 6, 2024. These materials will be uploaded to the ARC Network Mendeley Library.

Eligibility and Guidelines

High 5 Talk presenters are required to register for the 2024 ADVANCE Equity in STEM Community Convening. Detailed information, guidelines, and recommendations for high 5 talks, as well as day, time and room will be sent to duly registered presenters.

Recommendations

Keep it Simple: What is most important for the audience to take away from the session?
Keep it Succinct: A small number of slides should feature only the most pertinent information on the topic.
Keep it Straightforward: Presentations should be direct. Content should be summarized and portrayed visually, such as with information detailed in a graph.

Accessibility

Please consider the following resources when designing and presenting a presentation and handouts:

Appendix III: Experience Reports and Early-Stage Innovations

Overview

Experience Report presentations are for well-developed and/or later-stage programs, initiatives, research, and interventions designed to examine and promote equitable work environments from an intersectional perspective. For Experience Report presentations, audience engagement is strongly encouraged. This session is one hour and fifteen minutes in length.
‍
Early-Stage Innovation presentations are for new and early-stage programs, initiatives, research, and interventions designed to examine and promote equitable work environments from an intersectional perspective. Less formal in nature, Early-Stage Innovation presentations are meant to help develop, inform, and provide feedback to works-in- progress. Audience engagement is encouraged for both Experience Report and Early-Stage Innovation sessions. This session is one hour and fifteen minutes in length.

Accepted Experience Reports and Early-Stage Innovation presentations must submit supporting handouts and final presentation decks by May 6, 2024. These materials will be uploaded to the ARC Network Mendeley Library.

Eligibility and Guidelines

Accepted presenters are required to register for the 2024 ADVANCE Equity in STEM Community Convening. Detailed information, guidelines and recommendations for Experience Reports and Early-Stage Innovation sessions, as well as day, time and room will be sent to duly registered presenters.
Only those attending the 2024 ADVANCE Equity in STEM Community Convening are eligible to submit a visual abstract for the Experience Reports and Early-Stage Innovation sessions.

Accessibility

Please consider the following resources when designing and presenting a presentation and handouts:

Appendix IV: Symposia

Overview

A Symposium is a multi-presenter session including a well-integrated set of research or practice content and is one hour and fifteen minutes in length. Participants in a Symposium should include a chairperson and three to five presenters.
‍
Basic criteria include:

The topic should be novel, timely and interesting to a broad range of researchers and practitioners in STEM. Proposals that focus on inclusive entrepreneurship and commercialization in academic STEM are strongly encouraged.
The proposed list of speakers should represent a good balance between established and new investigators and have an equitable representation regarding gender, under-represented groups, and institution type.
All Symposia submissions must provide a statement describing how the proposed speaker lineup incorporates a diversity of experiences, including demographic factors, career stages, institutional settings, etc.

Eligibility and Guidelines

Symposia presenters must register for the 2024 ADVANCE Equity in STEM Community Convening. Detailed information, guidelines, and recommendations as well as day, time and room will be sent to duly registered presenters.
Only those attending the 2024 ADVANCE Equity in STEM Community Convening are eligible to submit a visual abstract for Symposia.

Accessibility

Please consider the following resources when designing and presenting a presentation and handouts:

Appendix V: Pre-Conference Workshops

Overview

Workshops are structured to facilitate a deeper look into critical topics and challenges in implementing and sustaining social equity efforts in STEM. These 3-hour sessions should be interactive and may include lectures, panels, research findings, promising practices, case studies, real-world issues, and valuable expertise by respected leaders in their fields.
‍
Basic criteria include:

The workshop should include a set of learning outcomes
Topic should be novel, timely and interesting to a broad range of researchers and practitioners in STEM
Attendees should leave with a blueprint for moving forward in addressing the topic of focus in their own organizations

Accessibility

Please consider the following resources when designing and presenting a presentation and handouts:

icon Call for Proposals Now Open

Submit Proposal

Funded by the National Science Foundation ADVANCE Program, Awards HRD-2121468 and HRD-1740860, the ADVANCE Resource and Coordination (ARC) Network seeks to achieve gender equity for faculty in higher education science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. As the STEM equity brain trust, the ARC Network recognizes the achievements made so far while producing new perspectives, methods and interventions with an intersectional, intentional and inclusive lens. The leading champion in North America to propel the inclusion of women in the field of engineering, the Women in Engineering ProActive Network (WEPAN), serves as the backbone organization of the ARC Network.