Binghamton University’s Watson College Scholars Program has recently received the 2022 Inspiring Program in STEM Award from INSIGHT Into Diversity Magazine.

Through the award, the magazine seeks to recognize colleges and organizations that have programs encouraging diversity, equity and inclusion in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). This year, the magazine recognized 77 programs with the award — one being the Watson College Scholars Program. The Watson College Scholars Program is designed to support students from underrepresented or disadvantaged groups pursuing a degree in the Thomas J. Watson College of Engineering.

Clara Rodriguez, a Watson Scholar and a junior majoring in biomedical engineering, said the program has given her ample experience working with a team through numerous group events.

“The [Watson College Scholars Program] has done a great job in implementing a diverse set of individuals into life in higher education, and it continues to do so,” Rodriguez wrote in an email. “We are currently working on a mentorship plan where scholars in my cohort will act as mentors to the incoming cohort’s scholars. We also look forward to various professional and community building events that will take place throughout the semester.”

The program provides academic support and opportunities in order to help the scholars enter graduate programs or careers in engineering and computer science once they graduate. To aid this, it offers scholarship access, internship and job placement assistance, mentoring and community service opportunities.

Christian Martinez, a Watson Scholar and a sophomore majoring in mechanical engineering, described the program as a “leap in the right direction” for helping diversity in Watson College.

“One of the things that my father asked me as he was looking around when I first moved into Binghamton as a first-year student was, ‘Where are all of the other Hispanic students?’” Martinez wrote in an email. “That has really stuck with me, and I think it’s a huge problem that the Hispanic community, along with every other historically underrepresented group, is not properly represented in Watson [College], BU and STEM in general. I think that this program is a great start to solving a very large societal issue, and it’s great to see that the program is expanding and receiving more funding.”

According to its website, INSIGHT Into Diversity Magazine is the oldest and largest diversity magazine in higher education. The magazine seeks to to advance conversations about diversity and inclusion through its work, including through news articles, interviews and several diversity-oriented awards.

Ray Inoa, a Watson Scholar and a sophomore majoring in mechanical engineering, responded positively to the award.

“Firstly, I am honored to have a program that I am in acquire such a prestigious award,” Inoa wrote in an email. “The other scholars and I are very proud to see the program receive the Inspiring Programs in STEM Award. I hope that this will bring further attention to the program and motivate us further in both our academics and in who we are as people.”

The Watson College Scholars Program ran for the first time in the 2021-2022 academic year, meaning it received the Inspiring Programs in STEM Award after running for one year. Caprice Chavez, the Watson College Scholar Program coordinator, said the program has helped the “inaugural cohort” grow academically, introducing them to their industry in their first year at BU. Chavez expressed hope that the program would help increase Black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) and female students in the STEM field, and said she was honored to have received the award.

”It is a wonderful feeling to have been chosen for the prestigious award Inspiring Programs in STEM from Insight Into Diversity Magazine, especially being that we just completed our inaugural year with the program,” Chavez said. “We’ve primarily been receiving positive feedback from our most important individuals — our students. But across the board, we have been hearing great things from people all throughout campus about the impact the program has already had. I hope that this award will show that programs like ours work and essentially are necessary in order to keep the pipeline of diversity within engineering and tech alive and moving forward.”