The Power of Intersectionality for Removing Barriers in STEM at Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs)

This panel discussion is part of our research project “HSI-Hub Intersectionality as Inquiry and Praxis: Race, Class, Gender, and Ethnicity for Student Success in STEM" (see below for more details) and features three distinguished speakers:

• Dr. Adriana Espinosa, The City College of New York
• Dr. Stephanie Hernandez, Drexel University
• Dr. Angela M. Kelly, Stony Brook University

About the speakers

Dr. Adriana Espinosa is Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at The City College of New York and The Graduate Center from the City University of New York. She received a PhD in Economics from the University of California, Berkeley. Dr. Espinosa leads an interdisciplinary research program that centers on the examination of salient factors that create, maintain, and exacerbate health and social inequality among Hispanic, immigrant and other minoritized populations. Her work is grounded on an intersectionality framework that identifies interconnections between socioeconomic, environmental, cultural, and psychological determinants of disparities in health and adaptation among Hispanic and other minoritized groups. She has numerous years of experience leading or collaborating in projects aiming to reduce social inequality among Hispanic and other minoritized individuals through their increased representation in STEM fields and has mentored over 30 students and early career individuals from backgrounds underrepresented in health science, biomedical research, and other STEM fields.

Dr. Stephanie Hernandez is an Assistant Professor in Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the Dornsife School of Public Health at Drexel University, where she joined as part of the Drexel FIRST (Faculty Institutional Recruitment for Sustainable Transformation) program. Dr. Hernandez is a demographer whose research seeks to document, understand, and address sexual and gender minority (SGM) health inequities. Currently, her research agenda spans three areas including operationalizing intersectionality in SGM health research, examining socioeconomic disparities and their association with health in SGM populations, and incorporating biopsychosocial approaches to better understand SGM health inequities across the life course. Prior to joining Drexel, Dr. Hernandez completed her postdoctoral training at the Carolina Population Center at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Dr. Hernandez received her PhD in Applied Demography from the University of Texas at San Antonio and a Master of Science in Demography and a Bachelor of Science in Sociology from Florida State University.

Dr. Angela M. Kelly is a Professor of Physics and Science Education, and the Associate Director of the Institute for STEM Education at Stony Brook University. Her roles include teaching and advising students in the Ph.D. Program in Science Education, directing the M.A.T. Physics Program, and teaching undergraduate physics. Her research is focused on equity in precollege and university physical science and engineering education, reformed teaching practices in undergraduate science, sociocognitive influences on STEM access and participation, and quantum information science education. She completed her Ph.D. in Science Education (2006) at Teachers College, Columbia University, New York. She is the recipient of the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching (2015-2016); the Provost’s Faculty Recognition Award for Excellence in Scholarship and Research from Lehman College, City University of New York (2010); and the Outstanding Teaching Award from Teachers College, Columbia University (2006). Dr. Kelly is the founder and Director of the PhysTEC Regional Network of Southeast New York, a professional community of physics teacher educators.

About our project

The Hispanic Serving Institution-Hubs, “Intersectionality as Inquiry and Praxis: Race, Class, Gender and Ethnicity for Student Success in STEM" (HIS-Hubs), is a 5-year long National Science Foundation (NSF) grant funded partnership between the City College of New York, Lehman College, Hostos Community College, The University of New Mexico, New Mexico State University and Central New Mexico Community College. Our project centers on examining students’ performance in STEM and non-STEM majors using an intersectionality approach and detecting and incorporating appropriate variables and ways of measuring them to create a more accurate/truthful picture of Latino/a/x students’ experience in institutions of higher education.

Our CUNY based team is comprised of

Dr. Ramona Hernandez (City College of New York), Director of the CUNY Dominican Studies Institute and Professor of Sociology, The City College of New York and The Graduate Center, CUNY

Dr. Yoel Rodriguez (Hostos Community College), Professor, Physical Science Unit

Dr. Maria-Isabel Roldos (Lehman College), Associate Professor of Health Sciences and Director of the CUNY Institute for Health Equity

Dr. Antonios Varelas (Hostos Community College), Professor of Psychology, Behavioral Sciences Unit