The Community Building Committee in the Department of Chemistry develops practices and policies that build and maintain an inclusive environment. The committee draws members from multiple groups from within the department for diverse representation, including faculty, postdocs, graduate students and staff. The members of the Community Building Committee are Jeff Moore (Chair), Raylene Bentlin (Vice-Chair), Mei Shen, Lisa Olshansky, Bhagya Gunasekera, Zan Luthey-Schulten, Amanda Ramey, Claire West, Ashley Lenhart, Luke Westawker, and Levi Dumpert. The Department of Chemistry's Student Wellness and Advocacy Office supports our commitment to creating an inclusive environment and the academic and professional success of all our scientists. You can email Raylene Bentlin, assistant director for student wellness and advocacy, at chem-advocacy@illinois.edu.

Defining Community Building for our Department

Four Core Pillars of our understanding/definition of Community Building:

 

 

Unity

  • Collective success is built on mutual respect and shared goals. Strength as a department requires collaboration, curiosity, and a sense of shared belonging that is not confined to subdisciplines. We strive to connect the whole chemistry department and reduce divisions in social events, professional development, and communities.
  • Unity is foundational to our department in the sense that it sustains our interconnectedness and our communal work in order to provide space for all in an equitable way and through a culturally aware lens. Unity does not mean assimilation of communities.
  • Unity is seen as the intentional collaboration between individuals' inimitable properties to form a beautiful community.

Wellness and Advocacy

To thrive in science, it is essential to prioritize and balance mental, emotional, and physical well-being. The needs of any community evolve – it is important to meet those changes with empathy and action.

  • Advocating for all the members of our community is essential to foster an environment where all other foundational aspects of our department’s vision can flourish and grow.
  • For the sake of everyone in our community to improve wellness, we encourage every member to support and assist in the following:
    • Improving academic experiences for students, post-docs, faculty, and staff
    • Improving support structures and professional development for students, post-docs, faculty, and staff
    • Improving and expanding departmental policies and processes
    • Improving transparency, accountability, and response measures

Celebration of Differences

Unique backgrounds, identities, and perspectives enrich communities and foster innovation and understanding. Appreciating and celebrating everyone builds empathy and collaboration while also empowering our shared community.

  • Highlighting, respecting, and nurturing different and unique points of view produces a healthier, more efficient, and balanced department.
  • It is our mission to stay true to this pillar by respecting and learning about cultural differences. We encourage the sharing of these values outside the department, while prioritizing making an impact on our community.

Networking

  • As socializing and professionalism becomes more intertwined, networking is becoming an intrinsic factor in furthering a career. One of the main focuses of the Community Building Committee is to foster an abundance of opportunities to have a position in the social hub that could be our department. Giving everyone an opportunity to form strong connections and relationships that could last throughout a career and a lifetime.
  • Building connections across career stages, research areas, and communities fosters mentorship, collaboration, and opportunity as we believe growth occurs when ideas, resources, and support are exchanged.
  • We are more productive when we have a network and feel connected. Everyone in the department should feel comfortable going to others both professionally and socially. People should not feel isolated within their sectors.