Date Posted: June 22, 2022

Originally posted on August 5, 2021; Updated June 22, 2022

In 2020, ORWH announced a prize competition aimed at increasing gender diversity among faculty members at colleges and universities and removing barriers for transformative change. The NIH Prize for Enhancing Faculty Gender Diversity in Biomedical and Behavioral Science recognizes institutions that have acted to effect systemic change to address gender diversity and equity among faculty members within their biomedical and behavioral science departments. NIH awarded 10 institutions each with $50,000 for their efforts in enhancing faculty gender diversity.

The winners of the prize competition are:

  • WISELI: A Wise Approach to Gender Equity, Women in Science and Engineering Leadership Institute (WISELI), University of Wisconsin–Madison
  • A Framework to Promote Gender Diversity & Equity, Rochester Institute of Technology
  • Promoting Women of Diverse Creative Expertise, Worcester Polytechnic Institute
  • No One Size Fits All: FOCUS’s Mosaic of Initiatives, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania
  • Participatory Approaches for Gender Equity: Center for Women in Medicine and Science (CWIMS), University of Minnesota Medical School
  • Enhancing Faculty Gender Diversity at MD Anderson; Office of Faculty Diversity, Equity and Inclusion; University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
  • FIU ADVANCE; Office to Advance Women, Equity & Diversity; Florida International University
  • Leveraging Evidence to Enhance Faculty Diversity, University of Houston
  • Gender Diversity in Medicine, Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons
  • Achieving Gender Equity at Boston University, Trustees of Boston University, Boston University Medical Campus

“Through the Prize for Enhancing Faculty Gender Diversity, NIH fosters supportive, inclusive, and equitable environments in which women faculty members can further their careers in the biomedical and biobehavioral sciences,” said ORWH Director Janine A. Clayton, M.D., FARVO. “Advancing women into leadership roles in the sciences is critical to producing good science. Diversity in the scientific workplace generates more innovative solutions; diverse teams are more productive and produce more impactful research.” 

ORWH would also like to recognize the following institutions as honorable mentions for their commitment to faculty gender diversity:

  • Intersectional Directions: Faculty Success @XULA, Xavier University of Louisiana
  • Colorado Trails to Advance Gender Diversity, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Anschutz Medical Campus
  • Women in Medicine and Science Program, Office of Faculty Affairs, Wake Forest School of Medicine
  • University of Chicago: Using 3 R’s to Elevate Women, Department of Medicine Women’s Committee, University of Chicago
  • Promoting Women Scientists during COVID and Beyond, Mass General Brigham, Harvard Medical School
  • Eye of the Tiger: Women with a Will to Thrive, Alliance for Women in Medicine and Science (AWIMS), Southern Illinois University School of Medicine

On October 5, 2021, ORWH hosted a forum, Effective Approaches to Fostering Faculty Gender Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion: Celebrating Progress, to formally recognize and promote the winners’ effective, evidence-based practices, address challenges, and improve the existing career paradigm for many women in biomedical and behavioral science. To learn more about the 2021 Prize Competition Forum, read the Executive Summary.
 

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