MENDING THE GAPS

INEQUALITY IN SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING CAN HAVE LASTING IMPACTS ACROSS RACE, GENDER AND ETHNICITIES THAT GO UNNOTICED FOR DECADES – YET AFFECT TREATMENTS AND SOLUTIONS USED EVERY DAY. NOW, FOUR FACULTY MEMBERS IN THE DEPARTMENT OF MATERIALS SCIENCE & ENGINEERING AIM TO SHINE A LIGHT ON SOME OF THESE KNOWLEDGE GAPS AND HELP RECTIFY THE PROBLEMS THEY CREATE.

By definition, a gap is an “incomplete or deficient area.” For instance, in a scientific study, a literature gap represents unexplored sections in the data and an opportunity for further analysis or investigation.

The equity gaps that have permeated cultures, industries and communities throughout history are undeniable, and science, including its branches of research and education, is not exempt. With their insight, experience and analysis to guide them, Josephine Allen, Ph.D., Erika Moore, Ph.D., Nancy Ruzycki, Ph.D., and Michele, Manuel, Ph.D., are not only identifying, but also helping bridge some of the science, research and cultural equity gaps they’ve encountered.

Josephine Allen, Ph.D.

THE DATA GAP

Josephine Allen, Ph.D., associate professor and Genzyme Professor of Materials Science & Engineering, addresses inequity not only in her research, but also how it affects the raw data she uses in it. Dr. Allen and her team observed that biomedical researchers and the journals publishing their papers rarely mentioned the sex of the cells involved in the studies.

“Sex-based differences have been a long-standing interest of mine and are the primary reason I work in the area of cardiovascular disease – particularly its disproportionally negative effects on women, and African American women, in particular,” said Dr. Allen. “My interest is fueled by the overwhelming evidence that male and female biology is different, and these biological differences translate to disparities in health, disease and treatments.”

A literature survey of several top biomedical journals found that cell sex was reported in only a small fraction (roughly 3%) of papers.

That information prompted her lab’s paper highlighting the findings entitled “Let’s Talk About Sex – Biological Sex is Underreported in Biomaterials Studies.” Dr. Allen and her team then submitted a comprehensive review highlighting underreported cell sex data.

“I thought about all of the new insight that could be gained, how studies could be more easily replicated and how, as a field, we have an opportunity to shift research from being inadvertently biased towards male biology – simply because of the greater likelihood of obtaining male cells from a commercial vendor, to becoming more representative of the population as a whole. I viewed it as a chance to make a real difference.”

Erika Moore, Ph.D.

THE DISPARITY GAP

Inequities also exist in many diseases, including cancers, cardiovascular diseases, and mental health disorders. Unfortunately, the current lack of sample collection and background testing on cells from non-European ancestral backgrounds limit the development of new therapeutics for diseases that disproportionately affect diverse backgrounds.

Erika Moore, Ph.D., assistant professor and holder of the Rhines Rising Star Larry Hench professorship, sees both ancestral and sex-based disparities in her research into lupus, an autoimmune disorder.

“As an African American woman knowing several friends and loved ones who suffer from lupus, I am particularly aware of its statistical divergences,” said Dr. Moore. “Given the biomaterial models I have available, it became of great personal interest to me to study this disease and focus my research efforts towards identifying the reasons behind these disparities.”

Of the estimated 1.5 million Americans and over 5 million people worldwide suffering from lupus, 90% are women. There is currently no cure.

“Not only does lupus overwhelmingly affect women, but it’s also two to three times more prevalent in women of color,” said Dr. Moore. “My lab’s work explores not only why it’s mostly women, but we also delve into the significant disparity between lupus in women of African ancestry and women of European ancestry.” Although the biomedical engineering field has made considerable progress on its mission of utilizing engineering to advance human health and improve overall well-being, Dr. Moore feels its full potential will not be met until that progress benefits all populations.

“Health disparities disproportionately impact vulnerable or marginalized populations in the United States. It is my goal to leverage my research to ask questions about these overlooked segments and the diseases that develop disproportionately within them,” said Dr. Moore. “These types of questions are critical for biomedical sciences and biomaterial models. As scientists and as engineers, we must ask ourselves whose health we consider with our research?”

THE FUNDING GAP

Nancy Ruzycki, Ph.D.

Dr. Allen is also taking a stand on funding inequity for researchers of color, coauthoring a paper with 18 other scientists, calling upon the National Institutes of Health and other funding agencies to address disparities in allocating support to Black researchers.

“As a Black faculty member who relies heavily on NIH funding to advance my research program and, ultimately, my career, this paper means so much to me. It is filled with reasonable action items and policy changes that can address this funding disparity,” said Dr. Allen, Ph.D. “This paper articulates what many Black faculty are feeling and experiencing in academia.”

According to studies of National Institutes of Health research funding allocations, Black applicant award rates have stood at about 55 percent of that of white principal investigators of similar academic achievement. Despite internal reviews of the reasons behind this disparity and promises to do better, the funding gap continues.

The paper, entitled Fund Black Scientists, recommends several ways on how research funding disparities can be eliminated, including:

• Explicitly state that racism persists in the United States research enterprise and that it must be expelled

• Develop federal funding institute policies to achieve racial funding equity immediately

• Incorporate diversity into research proposal scoring

criteria, prioritize research teams that exemplify diversity, and diversify proposal review panels

• Train funding agency leadership and staff, and grant reviewers and recipients, to recognize and stop racism

As a group, the paper’s authors also suggested ways individual scientists and universities, colleges and institutes can act to bring about social justice. These recommendations include recognizing how they might be unintentionally contributing to systemic racism in their academic roles. Academia, they noted, must move forward from statements of solidarity to transformative organizational changes.

THE EDUCATION GAP

Florida students are taught science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) subjects as early as elementary school. Still, with an ongoing teacher shortage and over 25% of educators in classrooms not holding education degrees or degrees in the fields they teach, more teachers and more rigorous teacher training are needed to prepare those students to join tomorrow’s workforce. Nancy Ruzycki, Ph.D., instructional associate professor, addresses this gap with a “Supporting Effective Educator Development” (SEED) grant awarded to her by the U.S. Department of Education.

The SEED grant, written to help teachers build their STEM core content and deliver research/ evidence-based pedagogical practices in the classroom, funded the Engaged Quality Instruction through Professional Development (EQuIPD) program. Designed to improve the pedagogy of STEM learning among K-9 students, EQuIPD deployed in 11 Florida counties whose districts account for over 30% of elementary schools on the state’s lowest 300 list and contain 12 schools listed as persistently underperforming according to the Florida Department of Education in 2017.

“The EQuIPD program exposes teachers to new approaches in classroom instruction,” Dr. Ruzycki said. “They learn about using model concept development practices to help structure classes for all learning levels, utilizing technology to collect and analyze data and refining and deploying their lessons into real-world applications.

A recent independent assessment revealed the program’s impressive impact among Florida teachers. The survey results found that teachers with EQuIPD training are implementing more technology and computational thinking in their classrooms and using real-world problems to help develop workforce skills in their students. They also have better knowledge of local STEM resources and employ design and systems thinking with engineering design in their classes and lessons.

“It is clear the EQuIPD program has had a significant impact on teacher practice for researchbased teaching methods in the classroom,” said Dr. Ruzycki. “This program strengthens the STEM pipeline for all students so we can gain more diversity in STEM fields.”

THE RECOGNITION GAP

Michele Manuel, Ph.D.

When Michele Manuel, Ph.D., chair of the Department of Materials Science & Engineering and Rolf E. Hummel Professor of Electronic Materials, earned her doctorate, finding other faces like hers was nearly impossible.

“When I graduated, there was hardly anyone in my field who looked like me,” said Dr. Manuel. “And with so few colleagues with whom I could identify, it could feel a bit isolating at times.” It can get easy to question if you actually belong.”

Now, as an internationally recognized expert in materials design and the first woman and person of color to hold the position of Department Chair in the department’s 60 plus-year history, Dr. Manuel champions for fundamental changes in the system – the changes that make a difference.

For example, one of her directives included removing standardized testing score requirements and implementing a more holistic system to evaluate the department’s graduate program applicants.

“Standardized tests can be inaccurate and unreliable predictors of graduate student aptitude and future success. Historically, they have been instruments of exclusion, especially for underrepresented groups, including socioeconomic, race, language and gender,” said Dr. Manuel. “By looking at more than just a test score, we get to know more about the students themselves, which we believe is a much better indicator of success potential than a grade from a single exam.”

She also helped forge a strategic partnership with the University of Puerto Rico – Mayaguez (UPRM), a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI), to provide their MSE students with a path to a UF doctorate degree.

“UPRM has a fantastic master’s program, but currently no Ph.D. program. For Latinx students who want to continue their research and studies, we felt UPRM’s close proximity to the University of Florida and our mutual research interests would facilitate a strong alliance. That partnership has yielded several outstanding Ph.D. students,” said Dr. Manuel.

Dr. Moore also knows what it’s like when the microaggressions of others make you feel like you don’t belong. While she has always loved research and education, she also can’t recall an instance when she walked into a classroom or a lab, and there weren’t hushed whispers or subtle questioning of why she was there.

“When I was younger, my father often told me that I had two things working against me: I’m a woman, and I’m Black. So, when others questioned my presence somewhere, it seeded doubt within me,” said Dr. Moore. “I eventually realized that the only way to create a space for Black women who felt similarly othered or similarly uncomfortable walking into classrooms or laboratories was to become a leader in those classrooms and those laboratories.”

When Dr. Moore signed her faculty acceptance letter from the University of Florida in 2017, African American women held just over 0.5% of tenuretrack engineering positions in the United States. While the University of Florida now leads the country in tenured and tenure-track African American female faculty, much more work remains to be done.

It’s a responsibility she does not take lightly.

“I understand that I am here to continue to change the landscape of science and engineering. I know that it will not be easy and that my journey forward from here will have moments of uncertainty. But being a Black person - being a Black woman, in these spaces gives me the voice to confirm to everyone that we are indeed capable and that we most definitely belong.”