Impacting Cultural Change Through Mentorship and Community

In Physics and Astronomy programs accross the country, there is a lack of representation from certain groups participating in these fields. While there are many different reasons for this problem, generally a lack of support early on in a career leads to those students leaving the field. Mentorship in a student's first year greatly improves the chance that they would remain in the program and earning a degree. A strong sense of community aids in establishing a student's science identy and further aids in their success. Dennis actively engages with both through his work with Polaris, a student organization, and through his work with the APS Bridge program at OSU.

Dennis is a apart of the leadership team of Polaris, a student organization composed of aduate students in physics and astronomy at Ohio State. Polaris aims to better the culture and climate of both physics and astronomy programs by leading a mentorship program and an early arriveal program for first and second year undergradaute students from under represented groups. As a bridge student at OSU, Dennis has helped build and foster a community amongst fellow bridge students at OSU that has lead to a significant increase in the retention rate of these students.

In this talk, Dennis will discuss both his work through Polaris and in the APS Bridge Program utilizing mentorship and community as a tool to better improve studnet outcomes. His efforts along with his fellow students have facilitaed a cultural change in both the physics and astronomy departments at OSU. This talk will highlight the effects of those changes amongst the community and at the instituional level in the departments.