Associate professor Caroline Krafft, PhD (left) and Endowed Chair in the Sciences Kristine West, PhD (right). Photos By Rebecca Studios / Rebecca Zenefski Slater 鈥10.
According to data provided by the , underrepresentation of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) and women in economics is even more pronounced than in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). A grant-winning project by 亚色影库 faculty in the Economics and Political Science Department will examine ways to remedy this.
Associate professor Caroline Krafft, PhD, and Endowed Professor in the Sciences Kristine West, PhD, have received a $289,038 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) through the . Their project focuses on the impact of institutional diversity on minority and women students studying economics and will run from January 2022 through December 2024. Krafft and West will collaborate with Metropolitan State University, who received a portion of the total grant.
鈥淎s a University with values deeply rooted in the pursuit of social and racial justice, and as home to the Minnesota Center for Diversity in Economics, it鈥檚 fitting that this research takes place at St. Kate鈥檚,鈥 said Tarshia L. Stanley, PhD, Dean of the School of Humanities, Arts, and Sciences. 鈥淭his NSF grant will provide crucial support to the essential work our amazing faculty, staff, and students are already undertaking to create more robust pathways for BIPOC women to explore their gifts and talents in fields like economics.鈥
The project will build on honors thesis research conducted by Adriana Cortes Mendosa 鈥21, who will be returning as grant program coordinator as part of her role at the Minnesota Center for Diversity in Economics. The St. Kate鈥檚 and Metro State team will survey college economics students and faculty at 18 institutions over the course of two years. The researchers will study the survey results to analyze how the presence 鈥 or lack 鈥 of diversity and representation in economics courses can either encourage 鈥 or discourage 鈥 women and BIPOC students to continue pursuing the field.
鈥淭here鈥檚 been a fair amount of research about the pipelines from undergrad to grad school, and why there aren鈥檛 more women, especially women of color, going on to get PhDs,鈥 noted West. 鈥淭here has not been enough attention on the part of the pipeline that we鈥檙e focusing on: introductory economics classrooms. We鈥檙e trying to fill that void.鈥
Women of color and white women may be discouraged by teachers and pop culture from pursuing economics, and/or left with the impression that the field is 鈥榡ust about the stock market.鈥
Barbara Salinas 鈥20 (left) and Adriana Cortes Mendosa 鈥21 (right) present undergraduate research, which fed into Cortes Mendosa's honors thesis and subsequently the National Science Foundation grant.
鈥淢any people who are underrepresented in economics come to it once they realize that it鈥檚 really more about policy, social issues, environmental economics, wealth inequality,鈥 said West. 鈥淥ur hypothesis is that if people find their way into an economics class where they actually see themselves, they see the issues, they feel like they belong, and they feel like they can have that growth mindset 鈥 鈥楳aybe I鈥檓 not a math person yet, but I will be鈥 鈥 that鈥檚 the kind of culture you need to create if you鈥檙e going to support women and underrepresented minorities to go on and go further in the field.鈥