Current Projects and Plans

• Strategic Planning - We work with department leadership and various stakeholders to set departmental goals.
• U-M STEMobile - A vehicle that will bring STEM outreach education by student groups to communities, schools, libraries, and events in Southeast Michigan and beyond. Student-led groups from Astronomy, Physics, and the College of Engineering will Engage, Entertain, Educate, and Excite you with demos and hands-on activities suitable for all ages.
• U-M Physics Department's DEI Weekly Event Email - Weekly newsletter focused on raising awareness of inclusive events around the University. Delivered every Friday around 2:00 p.m. during the fall and winter terms.
• 2026 NSBP-NSHP Joint Conference at U-M - Preparation for the 2026 joint conference with the National Society of Black Physicists and the National Society of Hispanic Physicists at the University of Michigan (pending).
• Supporting Student Health and Wellbeing - Collaborating with MHealthy to connect community members to University resources and support health and wellbeing.
• Digital Accessibility - Working to help make department resources more widely accessible. 
• U-M Physics Department Language Lunches - Monthly community lunches where community members are encouraged to gather and speak different languages.
• Improving Physics Education - We are working to study data to better understand where we are falling short in our educational mission and what we can do to improve.
• If you have any ideas or suggestions, please reach out to us at physics-deigssa@umich.edu

• MLK Colloquium - Every year, our committee invites a distinguished speaker to deliver our department's MLK Colloquium. Past speakers have included Sylvester James Gates, Julie Posselt, Sharona E. Gordon, Willie S. Rockward, and Shirley Malcom. 
• Unsung Heroes Initiative - This initiative aimed to highlight the members of our community who do the behind the scenes work that makes our department function.
• CUWiP - The University of Michigan hosted the Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics in January 2024
• Suicide Prevention Workshop - This workshop helped to teach individuals who have a lot of contact with students (e.g., faculty, staff, friends) how to recognize the warning signs of suicide and provide guidelines as to how to Question a person about suicidal thoughts, how to Persuade them to get help and how to Refer the person for help.
• Teaching Workshops - We've helped to organize a few workshops to help graduate students and faculty become more effective teachers.
• Diving Into Math With Emmy Noether - A theatre performance about the life or one of history's most influential mathematicians.
• Elmer Imes Statue - We worked to get a statue recognizing Elmer Imes in our department courtyard.
• International Student Workshop - We have supported the physics graduate council in organizing an annual international student workshop.
• Outreach activities - Our committee has been involved in a wide range of outreach activities both within the Ann Arbor community and beyond.

Informatal collection of initiatives that we, the DEI GSSA, believe could lead to short and long-term positive impact to the Climate of the Physics Department. The ideas and projects listed below were crafted based on several informal exchanges with members of our community, and do not necessarily reflect personal opinions. In order to ensure the ideas and projects below have the envisioned impact, a broader conversation and survey - led by the DEI Committee - should be conducted.

• Projects are categorized according to the main areas of concern currently identified:
  • Recognition and appreciation of student labor
  • Supporting graduate students
  • Support of DEI initiatives
  • Structure in DEI initiatives to ensure long-lasting positive impact
  • Healthy connections between members of our community
• Climate Assessments - Regular Climate assessments to monitor the evolution of the climate and the impact of specific initiatives and identify focus action areas in the Department climate.
• Department Retreat - Department wide retreat of a full day of activities for all members of our community - possibly occurring in an external venue, with meals offered. The activities would include scientific presentations, networking sessions and Workshops to encourage community building. This is a common tradition in several Departments and we could seek external ideas and feedback.
• Graduate Internship Program - Facilitate internships between graduate students and local industry partners to assist students that are unsure about their career directions or wish to pursue a future in industry.
• Attendance at Diversity in STEM Conferences - Facilitate regular attendance in STEM Conferences (such as CUWiP, NSBP, SACNAS and oSTEM) by providing financial support and organizing a student delegation, led by faculty, to attend major conferences (possibly with the help of student organizations). By attending such conferences students have the opportunity to network and feel supported by their peers in their graduate school journey.