Project Inclusion at WPI is a three-year initiative to help the university set standards and expectations for a campus environment that is accepting and welcoming to all. Under its guidelines, WPI establishes the definitions and sets goals around diversity, inclusion, and equity.
Join Us For Coffee
Students, faculty, staff and coffee lovers alike - are welcome to come join the Project Inclusion Steering Committee Leadership for a cup of coffee and some good conversation! Coffee is on us, of course. Come with questions, suggestions, concerns, and the like! Just look for the project Inclusion meet and greet flyer.
Email inclusion@wpi.edu for more information!
Launched in the spring of 2017, Project Inclusion uses input from the entire community to establish guidelines and adopt policies to help WPI assess the current campus environment. Facilitators assist in the process and help guide community ideas and proposals into strategies and actions that will be successful on the WPI campus. Read the bios of the facilitators WPI is working with here.
With the guidance of facilitators, Project Inclusion begins that assessment in a structured way using the following dimensions:
Read more about Project Inclusion’s Process (PDF) and Project Inclusion’s Purpose and Expectations (PDF).
Project Inclusion is high on WPI's priority list and it's important to know why. President Laurie Leshin and Michelle Jones-Johnson, WPI’s Vice President for Talent and Inclusion, discuss the initiative and the role it will be playing throughout the institution. The WPI Journal published an article about the conversation in the Summer 2018 edition of the print publication.
Read about it here.
The Daily Herd recently caught up with Peter Hansen, humanities & arts professor, director of the International & Global Studies program, and 2017 - 2018 co-chair of Project Inclusion’s Rubric Steering Committee (RSC), to take a deeper look at Peter's involvement within the Rubric Steering Committee and the Project Inclusion initiative as a whole. Read more about it here.
Michelle Jones-Johnson, vice president for talent development and chief diversity officer, believes community discussions and efforts keep the conversation around diversity and inclusion open and continuing. Employees don't just work at WPI, they help create and sustain an environment where community members feel like they are making a difference. Read more about how Project Inclusion helps that process
The launch of the Project Inclusion initiative in spring of 2017 welcomed input from the community and explained how weaving diversity and inclusion into the fabric of WPI would bring lasting results. One of the first steps was forming the Project Inclusion Steering Committee which gathers information from the community to ensure the most appropriate and efficient strategies are put into place.
Project Inclusion hosts a series of engaging and intentional programming that ties back to the initiative's mission of administering diversity, equity, and inclusion into the bloodstream of the university and campus culture; and not only that, many of the events serve to keep the WPI community apprised of the initiative's mission, goals, and next steps. Programming takes the form of cookouts, community listening circles, speaker series, and much more. All project inclusion programming is advertised via email, WPI Today, the WPI University calendar, and various WPI listserves. Make sure to keep a look out!
Chair: Michelle Jones-Johnson, VP for Talent Development and Chief Diversity Officer
Co-Chair: Emily Douglas, Professor/Department Head | Social Science & Policy Studies
WPI PI Institutional Liaison: Bonnie Walker, Executive Director of Diversity and Inclusion Strategy
WPI PI Administrative Support: Christelle Hayles, Diversity and Inclusion Specialist
*29 Active SC Members
Christopher (Chris) Robertson, Head Coach-Football, Physical Education
Whitney Goldstein, Head Coach-Softball, Physical Education
Katherine (Katie) Elmes, Associate Director, STEM/Director of Prep Program, Stem Education Center
Christine Sharry, Director, Student Activities
Michael Jacobs, Sergeant, Campus Police
Stefan (Steve) Koppi, Executive Director, Career Development Center
Stacie Murray (Co-Chair), Executive Director, Marketing and Communications
Alison Donta-Venman, Director, Institutional Research
Casey Wall, Assistant Dean of Students & Director, Residential Services
Andrew (Andy) Palumbo, Dean, Admissions and Financial Aid
Diane Begreen, Operations Manager, Library Services
Yvette Rutledge, Customer Service Coordinator, Facilities
Laura Rosen, Director, Disability Services
Kristopher Sullivan, Assistant Vice President, Academic Affairs
Michelle Ephraim, Associate Professor, Humanities & Arts
Zoe Reidinger, Assistant Teaching Professor, Biomedical Engineering
Douglas Petkie, Professor & Department Head, Physics
Suzanne Weekes, Professor, Mathematics
Suzanne (Sue) Celia Roberts, Department Head and Professor, Chemical Engineering
Rory Flinn, Director, Graduate Student Professional Development, Dean of Graduate Studies
Charlana Simmons, Director, Multicultural Affairs (Charlana will not be able to formally participate until January 2019)
Anna Gold (Co-Chair), University Librarian, Library Services
Heidi Morton, Career Advisor, Career Development Center
Peter Thomas, Executive Director, University Advancement
Paula Quinn (Co-Chair), Associate Director, Center for Project-Based Learning
Lisa Stoddard, Assistant Teaching Professor, Environmental & Sustainability Studies
James (Jim) Joseph Girouard, Senior Program Dev Manager, Academic and Corporate Engagement
Chrys Demetry, Director, Morgan Teaching & Learning Center; Associate Professor, Mechanical Engineering
Stephen Kmiotek, Professor of Practice, Chemical Engineering
Corey Dehner, (Will tentatively return to serve in Spring 2019)
Angel Rivera, Associate Professor, Humanities & Arts
Avery Brown, Graduate Student, Chemical Engineering
Chair: Michelle Jones-Johnson, VP for Talent Development and Chief Diversity Officer
Co-Chair: Peter Hansen, Professor, Humanities and Arts; Director, International and Global Studies
WPI PI Institutional Liaison: Bonnie Walker, Executive Director, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy
WPI PI Administrative Support: Christelle Hayles, Diversity and Inclusion Specialist
Diane Begreen, Operations Manager, Library Services
Alison Donta-Venman, Director, Institutional Research
Michael Jacobs, Sergeant, Campus Police
Rachel LeBlanc, Assistant Vice President, CPE
Andrew (Andy) Palumbo, Dean, Admissions and Financial Aid
Paula Quinn, Associate Director, Center for Project-Based Learning
Yvette Rutledge, Customer Service Coordinator, Facilities
Charlana Simmons, Director, Multicultural Affairs
Kristopher Sullivan, Assistant Vice President, Academic Affairs
Tom Thomsen, Director, International Students and Scholars Office
Casey Wall, Director, Residential Services
Corey Dehner, Associate Teaching Professor, Interdisciplinary & Global Studies; Director, Worcester Community Project Center: Community Empowerment and Environmental Responsibility; Co-director; Massachusetts Water Resource Outreach Center
Chrys Demetry, Director, Morgan Teaching & Learning Center; Associate Professor, Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering Program
Adrienne Hall-Phillips, Associate Professor, Foisie Business School
Stephen Kmiotek, Professor of Practice, Chemical Engineering
Susan Celia Roberts, Department Head and Professor, Chemical Engineering
Winston (Wole) Soboyejo, Dean, Engineering
Lisa Stoddard, Assistant Teaching Professor, Environmental & Sustainability Studies
Suzanne Weekes, Professor, Mathematics
Kris Wobbe, Associate Dean, Undergraduate Studies
Carlie Alfaro ’18, Founder and President, Student Advocacy Group
Thomas Mackintosh ’19, Student Staff Member, Residential Services
Kazim Shaikh ’18, President, Muslim Student Association
Avery Brown, Graduate Student, Chemical Engineering
