Faculty representatives on START teams must attend all meetings of the Anti-Racist Faculty Learning Community. (Meeting times are listed below.) We ask that START Fellows commit to attending these meetings on the program application. As is possible, we ask that student representatives attend the March 20, April 10, and May 8 learning community meetings.

All meetings are in 720 SciLi from 2:30 - 3:50 PM on the following Thursdays in 2025:

• February 6 
• February 20
• March 20 
• April 10 
• May 8 

We also ask that teams schedule a second meeting each month (at a time of their choosing) to carry out the work of the project. Estimated meeting time for the Spring Term is 20 hours but, of course, this will vary by project and team members.

For assessment of the program, we would also request that team members give feedback on key outcomes of their participation and suggested improvements. This information will be outlined in full to program participants, but may include brief surveys, interviews, and examinations of project products and outcomes (e.g., syllabi, re-designed curricular pathways).

Beyond the benefits to the department, this Seminar offers the following to individual participants, as START Fellows:

• Each faculty or graduate student member of the change team will receive a research stipend (faculty) or award (graduate student) at the amount of $1,000, paid at the end of the Spring Term 2024. Payable as a stipend or award, the expectation would be that these funds would be used at the discretion of the team, to (partially or fully) carry out the change project and fund any personalized professional development needed. 
• For each team, the Sheridan Center will make an award to an undergraduate of $1475 for work conducted during the Spring Term. (University guidelines for UTA work, such as the weekly hourly limit, should be followed.) The undergraduate must be eligible to be employed by the university as a student worker (e.g., enrolled in Spring Term 2025). SPRINT funding from the College may also be available over Summer 2025.  For questions, please contact Sheridan_Center@brown.edu.

Applications are due on Thursday, March 10. Please submit one application per team, as an attachment to Sheridan_Center@brown.edu.

A complete application includes brief responses to questions 2-6, plus a letter as described in item #1:

• Please upload a brief letter of support, co-signed by the DDIAP Committee Chair and department chair (if not serving as a team member). The chair's letter should express a commitment to offering the revised or new course in AY25-26.
• Provide names and contact information for up to three team members, as well as a brief (1-2 lines) rationale for their inclusion on the team. At least one team member should be a faculty member who will be teaching the new/revised course. If the new/revised course is primarily an undergraduate-level course, at least one team member should be an undergraduate.
• Please acknowledge commitment to the program expectations named above.
• In what Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion-related work, in relation to teaching and learning, have proposed team members already engaged?
• What are preliminary ideas of what team will be trying to achieve, through participation in the group? Please describe activities and outcomes or both the course revision and the department change project around teaching, learning, advising, or mentoring. (Examples of past change projects include hosting a department town hall or a reading group; more examples are listed above.) We anticipate that these ideas may evolve through engagement with START colleagues so preliminary thoughts are welcome.
• What assets do team members bring to this community? (In other words, are there resources or knowledge areas that you would be willing to share to build our collective expertise?)
• Is there anything else that would be helpful to know about team members to ensure your full inclusion in this initiative?

Applications will be reviewed based on the following criteria:

• Disciplinary diversity
• Demonstrated need and commitment to the work, e.g., well-articulated rationale for engaging in the program and department’s opportunity for participation in this work
• Commitment from the department chair and DDIAP Committee chair
• Mindfulness about equity of DEI work allocation in the department
• Clarity in application about potential for team cohesion (e.g., past history of engagement together) to derive and sustain the benefits of the work
• Preference will be given to teams that address a foundational course with an undergraduate team member

2024 START Teams

Departments:

• Linguistics
• Molecular and Cellular Biology
• Visual Arts

Individuals representing:

• East Asian Studies
• Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology
• Hispanic Studies
• Latin American and Caribbean Studies
• Residential Life
• Slavic Studies

2023 START Teams

• Biology*
• Computer Science*
• Education
• Emergency Medicine*
• Pulmonary, Critical Care & Sleep Medicine*
• Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs

2022 START Teams

• Archaeology and the Ancient World
• Comparative Literature
• Earth, Environment, and Planetary Sciences*
• English
• Math*
• Neuroscience*
• Theatre Arts and Performance Studies

2021 START Teams

• Chemistry
• Classics
• Hispanic Studies
• Mindfulness Center
• Music
• Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
• Portuguese and Brazilian Studies

* Funded by HHMI