Philosophy
The Mayerl lab is committed to fostering a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive scientific community, across all academic levels. We are committed to learning about, listening to, and supporting people from communities that have been historically underrepresented in sciences. We also recognize that students from historically underrepresented groups in science often have different needs and expectations, and are committed to listening to and supporting those students through the development of individualized mentoring plans to ensure that students feel safe, supported, and respected within the lab environment.
Community activities
We believe that creating a more equitable and inclusive scientific community requires an investment across all academic levels, and have been active in doing so at the k-12, undergraduate, and graduate levels.
K-12: Early exposure to STEM careers is critical for establishing an interest in, and a desire to pursue STEM, yet these experiences are not evenly distributed across socioeconomic, racial or geographic groups. During COVID, I started teaching two remote weekly classes to 2nd grade in San Bernardino, CA. In these classes, I highlighted novel scientific research about vertebrates, emphasizing how much there is to discover. Students were consistently engaged in this work, and my hope is that by exposing them to science, and the wonders of biology early, I am helping to provide a foundation for improving equity and inclusion in science long term. I am currently transitioning these classes to be in person activities for those same classes, and am interested in developing local community partnerships to interact with students from underrepresented groups in the Flagstaff area.
Undergraduate: When students from marginalized groups do choose to go to college and pursue a STEM major, they often lack support and do not graduate from that major. Furthermore, students from marginalized groups often are unaware of the steps to pursue postgraduate work. I Lots OF STUFF???
K-12: Early exposure to STEM careers is critical for establishing an interest in, and a desire to pursue STEM, yet these experiences are not evenly distributed across socioeconomic, racial or geographic groups. During COVID, I started teaching two remote weekly classes to 2nd grade in San Bernardino, CA. In these classes, I highlighted novel scientific research about vertebrates, emphasizing how much there is to discover. Students were consistently engaged in this work, and my hope is that by exposing them to science, and the wonders of biology early, I am helping to provide a foundation for improving equity and inclusion in science long term. I am currently transitioning these classes to be in person activities for those same classes, and am interested in developing local community partnerships to interact with students from underrepresented groups in the Flagstaff area.
Undergraduate: When students from marginalized groups do choose to go to college and pursue a STEM major, they often lack support and do not graduate from that major. Furthermore, students from marginalized groups often are unaware of the steps to pursue postgraduate work. I Lots OF STUFF???