Two faculty members at Missouri S&T have been selected for the university’s second cohort of ADVANCE Faculty Fellows.

In 2022, Missouri S&T was awarded a $1 million grant through the National Science Foundation’s ADVANCE program to work toward increasing the representation of women — especially those from underrepresented racial or ethnic groups — in faculty and leadership positions at the university. The fellows work to complete projects that will help the university reach this goal.

The two newest fellows for the program include:

• Dr. Carleigh Davis, assistant professor of English and technical communication. Davis’s fellowship project is titled: “Leading with impact: Tools and templates for sustainable faculty searches.” Davis will develop usable and sustainable resources to facilitate recruitment and equitable evaluation of faculty candidates. 
• Dr. Robin Verble, associate professor of biological sciences and the Ozark Research Field Station director. Verble’s fellowship project is titled: “Advancing diverse participation in field work.” Verble plans to evaluate existing field site safety and field work policies at Missouri S&T and recommend improvements based on best practices. She will create field safety planning documents and templates; conduct workshops for field site managers and staff to develop site-specific field safety plans; and produce a sustainable field safety training module.

The S&T ADVANCE program also coordinates other programs and initiatives, including a distinguished lecture series, a department grant program, leadership workshops, professional development opportunities for mid-career faculty, and search committee training.

Dr. Jessica Cundiff, associate professor of psychological science, serves as S&T’s ADVANCE director and is the principal investigator for the program.

The leadership team for S&T’s ADVANCE program includes Dr. Colin Potts, provost and executive vice chancellor for academic affairs; Dr. Richard K. Brow, Curators’ Distinguished Professor of ceramic engineering and executive director of operations of the Kummer Institute for Student Success, Research and Economic Development; Dr. Kate Drowne, assistant provost for faculty affairs; Dr. Melanie Mormile, professor of biological sciences; and Dr. Robert J. Marley, the Robert B. Koplar Professor of Engineering Management.

For more information about the program, visit advance.mst.edu.

About Missouri University of Science and Technology

Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T) is a STEM-focused research university of over 7,000 students located in Rolla, Missouri. Part of the four-campus University of Missouri System, Missouri S&T offers over 100 degrees in 40 areas of study and is among the nation’s top public universities for salary impact, according to the Wall Street Journal. For more information about Missouri S&T, visit www.mst.edu.