Community Engagement
Materials Science and Engineering Community Engagement
The Department of Materials Science and Engineering at The Grainger College of Engineering, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, is dedicated to cultivating a vibrant community where every student, faculty and staff member feels a strong sense of belonging, is deeply valued and is empowered to achieve their fullest potential. Our department is best equipped to tackle society’s most challenging scientific and technology problems when we combine multifaceted insight from a variety of perspectives, personal experiences and backgrounds.
Our commitment
An important goal of the department is to broaden the participation and engagement of the public to the field of Materials Science and Engineering. MatSE at Illinois is proud of its vibrant community of undergraduate and graduate students, faculty and staff who lead numerous outreach initiatives to continuously attract bright, talented and well-rounded students to MatSE that represent a wide cross-section of backgrounds.
Our department is involved in various activities to continuously strengthen and support our community as highlighted below:
- MatSE at Illinois faculty is directly involved in individually advising students as well as student societies, such as Material Advantage and Keramos.
- Faculty and staff are deeply engaged and lead a variety of outreach activities at The Grainger College of Engineering, including the Worldwide Youth in Science and Engineering Programs, female-focused summer camps for high-school and middle-school students, such as GEMS and Mid-GLAM, respectively, and a MatSE after-school academy. GEMS hosts high school students in the summer for a week of fun activities in materials. Mid-GLAM is similar but is devoted to middle school students. Both GEMS and Mid-GLAM recruit several undergraduate and graduate helpers each year. MatSE after-school academy (ASA) takes places in the fall and consists of a series of online outreach activities to local schools. ASA also recruits student helpers.
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Dow Community Award: Funded through a generous donation from Dow, the $500 award recognizes efforts and initiatives of current MatSE undergraduate students to build a supportive community in the department. It is due in February.
- MatSE at Illinois staff and faculty attend the annual National Society of Black Engineers and Society for Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics & Native Americans in Science conferences to recruit prospective graduate students. The department also reaches out to engineering historically black colleges and universities.
- Working with The Grainger College of Engineering and Graduate College, the department also participates in programs such as the Multicultural Engineering Recruitment for Graduate Education, which is a diversity recruiting event. Faculty also participate in the SURGE fellowship program, Sloan Scholars and Illinois Sloan Scholars Fellowship Program with the Graduate College.
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Graduate 3M Community Award: Funded through a generous donation from 3M, the $1000 award recognizes efforts and initiatives of current materials graduate students to build a supportive community in the department. Up to two awards will be given per year. It is due in February.
- MatSE at Illinois advertises faculty job opportunities in avenues to attract a diverse pool of applications. MatSE at Illinois reviews faculty applications with respect to their scholarship and demonstrated commitment to DEI as stated in The Grainger College of Engineering’s DEI statement.
- MatSE at Illinois takes care to invite a diverse body of applicants to campus interviews. The department is proactive in putting forward attractive offers and has an excellent track record in accommodating dual careers. Junior and mid-career faculty are supported with formal and informal mentorship programs. The faculty development committee provides thorough assessment and feedback yearly.
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The MatSE department at lllinois coordinates a yearly Rising Stars Workshop together with CMU, MIT, and Stanford aiming to enhance the diversity of future faculty in material.
- MatSE at Illinois takes special care to ensure that job descriptions do not include requirements that could potentially exclude those from under-represented groups.
- Supervisors ensure that under-represented staff are tasked with recruiting faculty and students in a way that is commensurate with their job responsibilities and workloads.
- Promotions and annual reviews are managed with parity among all staff. Exit interviews are completed for all staff, but special care will be taken to inquire about an under-represented staff’s input on MatSE at Illinois’ diversity culture.
Community Engagement Committee
- MatSE at Illinois’ Community Engagement Committee brings faculty, students, researchers and staff members together to engage with recruitment, outreach and community efforts at the department, college and campus level. Together, this committee develops strategies to achieve our goals and values, fostering an environment of unity and inclusivity that drives excellence in innovation and research.
Resources
Department of Materials Science and Engineering
Department of Materials Science and Engineering
- Student Award Opportunities
- Graduate 3M Community Engagement (CE) award
- Dow Community Award: Funded through a generous donation from Dow, the $500 award recognizes efforts and initiatives of current MatSE undergraduate students to increasing diversity, equity, and inclusion in the department. Up to two awards will be given per year. It is due in February.
- Department Outreach and Events
- See the "Our Commitment" section above.
- Grainger College of Engineering
- U. of I. Campus
- For more information regarding cultural houses, resource centers, academic support, cultural student groups, etc.
- llinois Undergraduate Admissions Diversity and Inclusion Resource page
- Student Success, Inclusion & Belonging
- The Jeffries Center
- Disability Resources & Educational Services
- International Student & Scholar Services
- Chez Veterans Center
- Open Illinois – Resources for Undocumented Students
- We Care – Sex-Based Misconduct Support, Response and Prevention
- Illinois Human Resources
Key Diversity Leadership
Contact Us
For answers to your questions about diversity within the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, contact Erica Malloch (emalloch@illinois.edu).