Publication Date
10-1-2025
Document Type
Conference Proceeding
Publication Title
Physics Education Research Conference Proceedings
DOI
10.1119/perc.2025.pr.Turpen
First Page
429
Last Page
434
Abstract
Founded in 2014, the Access Network brings together nine student-centered, university-based programs that pursue systemic change towards a vision of a more diverse, equitable, inclusive, and accessible STEM community. Leaders at the Network-level and program-level are either current students (undergraduate or graduate) or young faculty and professional scientists, many of whom started out as student leaders in Access programs. Over the last 9 years, Access has brought people together (virtually or in-person) for an annual event called the "Assembly." Student leaders who attend the Assembly appreciate community-building and networking opportunities that help them build capacity for leading local site programming. Many participants report that the Assembly is a special place with a different feel than many other professional spaces. In this paper, we share vignettes from past Assembly events to give you a feel for how this space operates differently. We also report on the results of a post-Assembly evaluation survey which illustrate that participants tend to feel included, make new friends, feel valued, and build confidence as leaders.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Department
Physics and Astronomy
Recommended Citation
Chandra Turpen, Brianne Gutmann, Robert P. Dalka, Gina M. Quan, Mackenzie Carlson, Joel C. Corbo, Gabrielle Jones-Hall, Megan Marshall Smith, and Devyn E. Shafer. "The Access Assembly: Learning Together, Building Friendships, and Strengthening Our Leadership Capacities" Physics Education Research Conference Proceedings (2025): 429-434. https://doi.org/10.1119/perc.2025.pr.Turpen
