THE HHMI INCLUSIVE EXCELLENCE INITIATIVE AT OBERLIN COLLEGE
Our Mission:
The Oberlin community aims to retain and advance Oberlin's historic position as a national leader in inclusion by enhancing the climate for and success of a diverse student population in STEM.
In 2017, Oberlin became one of just 24 colleges and universities nationwide awarded a Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Inclusive Excellence grant as part of ongoing work to address institutional inequities and promote leadership in improving science education.
Through the Inclusive Excellence grants, HHMI seeks to catalyze the capacity of institutions to engage diverse undergraduate students in the sciences. At Oberlin, HHMI initiatives take a variety of forms as a dedicated team of students, staff and faculty work to identify institutional challenges and barriers and envision new opportunities and community structures that will advance the participation and success of students of all backgrounds in STEM disciplines.
At Oberlin and beyond, there are substantial gaps in the persistence of underrepresented minority students in STEM fields. As the first coeducational college in the US and the first US college to make the education of African American and white students together central to its mission, Oberlin aims to continue its historic role in promoting and modeling equity in higher education through participation in the HHMI Inclusive Excellence grant.