#ThinkBigDiversity is a hashtag that is used to convey the importance of broadening participation in STEM, and it has been used as a theme for the University System of Maryland’s Pipeline Professional Development programs for undergraduates, graduate students, postdoctoral scholars, and faculty. #ThinkBigDiversity became a theme for the Summer Success Seminar (SSI), an annual conference that is sponsored by the National Science Foundation as part of the the PROMISE Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP) and Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP) programs for the University System of Maryland.
The social media involvement and advocacy of SSI scholars, and others participating and connecting virtually, including through the use of the #ThinkBigDiversity hashtag has become a “tool for engagement and retention” (Tull, 2016). Additionally, the associated activities leverage key social science theories related to promoting positive outcomes through communities of critical mass, including through active advocacy to promote an increased sense of belonging and increasing cultural wealth of individuals (Tull et al., 2017). (Montgomery, 2018)
Papers and Posts:
In Frontiers in Digital Humanities (via Dr. Beronda Montgomery), in the section on “Community Advocacy”:
Building and Sustaining Diverse Functioning Networks Using Social Media and Digital Platforms to Improve Diversity and Inclusivity
In Computing Research News:
Expanding the Pipeline: PROMISE Brings a New Phase of #ThinkBigDiversity to Maryland Grad Students
In Proceedings of the American Society for Engineering Education:
Hashtag #ThinkBigDiversity: Social Media Hacking Activities as Hybridized Mentoring Mechanisms for Underrepresented Minorities in STEM
On Blog: IN SEARCH OF INNOVATION, by Andrew B. Williams, Ph.D.
Think Big Diversity: Advice for Aspiring #STEM Ph.D. Graduate Students, Postdocs, and Junior Faculty
The first #ThinkBigDiversity Posts, via the NSF Advance Hispanic Women in STEM project
THINK BIG!
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ThinkBigDiversity’s full adoption by the USM’s pipeline professional development programs was made possible by early users and authors of the “Think Big” project for Advance Hispanic Women in STEM for the Women in Engineering Proactive Network (WEPAN) – Dr. Autumn Reed and Dr. Patricia Ordóñez.
The PROMISE and LSAMP team members later led programs and initiatives via Twitter- leaders: Yarazeth Medina (UMBC), Dr. Tracy Bell (University of Maryland Eastern Shore), and Christopher Perez (University of Maryland College Park). The first tweets using #ThinkBigDiversity were posted by Dr. Renetta Tull (UMBC).
#ThinkBigDiversity analytics over the last 365 days
#ThinkBigDiversity 