Save the date: Out in STEM regional conference at ASU, Jan. 30–31, 2024

Spurred on by a very motivated ASU student Evan Crabtree and ASU’s chapter of Out in STEM, as well as seed funding from the College, ASU’s RISE Center will be organizing and hosting a regional Out in STEM meeting in the Arizona Ballroom on the ASU Tempe campus on Jan. 30–31, 2024. The Out in STEM organization helps support the LGBTQ+ community in STEM. They host a national conference each year, as well as national awards, scholarships and regional meetings.  

ASU’s RISE Center will be hosting a two-day regional meeting that will consist of short talks, panel discussions, a poster session, a mini-job/internship fair and lots of opportunities for networking and building connections for LGBTQ+ students. There will be opportunities for students to present any research related to STEM or STEM education. More specific details are still to come. 

If you are someone who conducts research related to LGBTQ+ individuals in higher education or STEM or LGBTQ+ challenges or opportunities in STEM education and would be willing to present a short 10- to 20-minute talk at the meeting, please contact Sara Brownell, a professor in the School of Life Sciences, at [email protected]. 

If you are someone who identifies as a member of the LGBTQ+ community and would be willing to be a visible role model for LGBTQ+ students as either a panelist or talking about your own experience navigating STEM in a short talk at the meeting, please contact Sara Brownell at [email protected]. 

If you know an LGBTQ+ undergraduate, graduate student, postdoc, staff or faculty member who you think might want to attend this conference, please forward this to them so they can save the date. 

If you would like to attend the meeting to learn more, please save the date and more information will come soon! Note: the meeting is geared toward LGBTQ+ individuals, but we welcome non-LGBTQ+ folks at the meeting, especially staff and faculty members who want to learn more about how to make academic STEM more inclusive for LGBTQ+ students. Also, this meeting is open to folks outside of ASU – including at the University of Arizona, Northern Arizona University and local community colleges!

Please share this opportunity and check the RISE Center website for more information soon!