Philosophy

All Beier Lab members stand against racism and inequality. We recognize the importance of, and are committed to, cultivating a culture of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Diversity includes, but is not limited to, differences in age, race, ethnicity, gender identity or expression, national origin, disability, political affiliation, religion, sexual orientation, and socio-economic status, among others. Maintaining diversity of these characteristics is important, as they can only serve to better our science and outreach efforts. 

To instill inclusive values and support students of diverse backgrounds, the Beier lab is committed to pushing forward a number of initiatives. First, the lab has scheduled weekly meetings surrounding anti-racism and bias in science. In addition to these structured anti-racism discussions, whenever possible, lab meetings and journal clubs will include contextual information that grounds our research in its (often racist) roots and historical context. Second, the lab has established a channel for sharing ideas and resources related to promoting diversity and inclusion in our Slack workspace, in order to have an ongoing discussion about how the lab can contribute to anti-racism. These resources will also be published and updated regularly on our lab website.

To recruit, support, and retain members of underrepresented minorities, the Beier lab is committed to educational outreach. To further support diversity in science, we will strive to provide both informal mentorship in the lab and formal mentorship through a consistent, structured tutoring pipeline and mentor-mentee program. We will equip students with mentorship opportunities of their own, as well as provide additional support to those who experience hardships in their training. The Beier lab also encourages undergraduates to gain exposure to the greater scientific community through poster presentations and talks, and will give students the tools and constructive criticism they require to succeed. 

We are also committed to fostering lab members’ future career goals, and we hope to show underrepresented students that a career in the sciences is a viable option. To this end, the lab will offer paid undergraduate positions, sponsor high school students and undergraduates, and will commit to hiring full-time positions.