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CLIF Fund Recipients

The mission of the CLIF is to encourage experimentation to uncover solutions that will enable a culture of belonging and grow a network of innovators striving towards inclusive excellence at Harvard. The Culture Lab Innovation Fund has awarded grants to a group of projects to scale existing efforts and test new ideas through two funding cycles. 

This exciting portfolio of investments represent a breadth of innovative solutions with the capacity to catalyze a culture shift at Harvard. The projects range from web based platforms, assessment tools, awareness campaigns, events, and more. These projects provide a range of solutions that contribute to a growing base of promising practices that can be models for other Schools and units.

2020 Grant Recipients

Race Research and Policy Portal

This project proposes developing an online portal of anti-racism policy research called the “Race, Research and Policy Portal” or RRAPP. The objective of this portal is to evaluate existing evidence-based research and publications in areas of policy, practice, and organizational change as they relate to racism, racial equity, and anti- racism so that all Harvard affiliates can quickly access high quality research for use in the classroom, research, and curriculum development.

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Addressing Bias in Med Ed - Inclusive Anatomical Representation

A pioneering pilot project to replace the predominant anatomical representation of the human body as young, lean, white, and male by collecting and generating anatomical images of all human forms, including those who have been systematically excluded from medical discourse. The pilot will develop into an open-source, multimodal platform that fosters an accessible and collaborative model of medical education.

Project Details
 

A Walk in My Shoes: Fostering Empathy for Gender Diversity

The Walk in My Shoes Project is designed to disarm unconscious bias surrounding gender identity. Harvard students will engage with the learning experience, consent to be filmed, and videos will be synthesized into a short film. This film will be screened at an event that will involve a panel with policy, community, education, and healthcare leaders working at the intersection of gender and bias. We will engage in qualitative and quantitative research after this immersive film event to evaluate impact.

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Harvard H.U.B.

Harvard H.U.B is an interactive digital platform that harnesses the power of technology and storytelling to connect undergraduate students to a myriad of campus resources. H.U.B, which stands for Here U Belong, aims to aid students in navigating and shaping their unique Harvard experience. We aim to build intentional communities premised on the understanding that everyone’s journey to and through Harvard is unique and worthy of celebration and support.

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Map of Inclusive Symbols and Spaces

The Map of Inclusive Spaces and Symbols at Harvard is an interactive web application that visualizes spaces around campus. Each data point will feature background and information on the symbol (e.g., public art honoring social justice leaders) and space (e.g., named buildings and departments). The data will also be tagged so that similar objects can be found by searching keywords.

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SySTEMatic: Expanding the Reach of Diversity in STEM Mentoring

Harvard has several mentorship programs to support diversity for students, faculty, post-docs, and staff in the STEM fields. Three of these programs: HarvardWIT+, WiSTEM, and HGWISE would like to collaborate and implement mentoring software to aggregate the opportunities and streamline administrative efforts, so we can strengthen the impact and expand the reach of these programs toward a cohesive approach in addressing issues around diversity and inclusion in STEM at Harvard.

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The Women+ of Color Project @ Harvard

The Women of Color Project (WOCP)@Harvard aims to improve the pipeline of under-represented racial minority women+ (URRM Women+) who pursue graduate school in the physical sciences at Harvard. We plan to use a multi-platform model consisting of an in-person conference focused on graduate admissions and thriving as a PhD student, in tandem with a digital conference and online portal. We hope our efforts will ultimately increase representation from this demographic by targeting the applicant pool.

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UndocuVeritas

UndocuVeritas is a support hub for undocumented/DACAmented students across all Harvard schools and campuses. UndocuVeritas connects students virtually through secure technology platforms, creates community and opportunities for professional development through in-person gatherings, and addresses issues undocumented students face through problem-solving ‘hacks’.

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Universal Design for Inclusive Research Labs

This pilot project aims to increase the number of undergraduate students with disabilities in research labs and increase the implementation of Universal Design principles in existing and new research environments.

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NextGen Initiative

While there is no universal first-generation, low-income (FG/LI) student experience across Harvard, there are shared FG/LI challenges and needs that Harvard can effectively address through the innovative use of existing university resources and services. Next Gen is a multiplatform initiative that aims to positively enhance the experience of all students who are the first in their families to pursue an undergraduate or graduate degree in the U.S., including undocumented and low-income students.

Project Details
 

Teachly

Teachly is a web application that helps faculty teach more effectively and inclusively. Teachly dashboards aggregate student participation patterns and provide data visualizations to help faculty conceptualize class participation and identify neglected students. Teachly was awarded a CLIF 2020 scaling grant.

Project Details

Harvard Votes Challenge

The Harvard Votes Challenge is a nonpartisan initiative that strives to build a civic culture at Harvard University by increasing voter registration and participation in the Harvard community. We endeavor to transform Harvard University into a national leader for civic engagement, full voter participation and community building. The Harvard Votes Challenge project team was awarded a CLIF 2020 scaling grant.

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DEIB Personalized Learning

The mission of the DEIB Personalized Learning Project (DPLP) is to provide resources and pathways for all members of Harvard University to develop and grow their DEIB skills and understandings, both during their time at Harvard and beyond. DEIB is essential for the overall quality of learning, living, and work at Harvard- particularly for the experience of community members from underrepresented backgrounds. Over the past few years, DEIB has become a vital part of the mission of Harvard University, the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE), and in the broader field of education. While the commitment to DEIB work at Harvard has been on a steep, positive incline, there remains a need to create supports that can help guide community members’ learning and growth.

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2019 Grant Recipients

Bystander Intervention Training

A train the trainer workshop that will provide University Diversity Officers with the knowledge and skills to implement a bystander intervention training within their school or central unit.

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ColorFULL

The ColorFULL Collective invites Harvard colleagues, community educators, and creatives to contribute tools for culturally affirming, multimedia-based curriculum and grow in their own sense of inclusion and belonging.

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Cross Cultural Narratives

The Other Narrative is a series of events that invites the Harvard community to explore identity, immigration and misrepresentation in the media.

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First Generation Low-Income Student Professional Development

Offering deeper support to student groups representing students of color, first-gen/low income, BGLTQ+ and undocumented students to help them access professional development opportunities.

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Harvard LGBTQ+ Conference

An event that convenes the widest possible Harvard community to engage LGBTQ+ issues including LGBTQ healthcare and wellness, immigration, and navigating higher education.

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Personalized Learning Tool

A diagnostic tool to help Harvard community  members identify their strengths and growth edges in understanding diversity, equity, and  inclusion domains and direct them to  resources or learning experiences (teaching  materials, websites, courses, etc.) targeted to their growth needs.

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Portable Audio Systems

Providing portable audio systems which will be available for loan to students, faculty, and staff without cost to standardize use across the University. Online training videos on disability etiquette will also be produced.

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Startup Tree

Social Innovation Pilot: Creating an Inclusive, Diverse, and Engaged Student Community across Harvard. Piloting a platform that will help create a "facebook" to pool all students and help them connect with each other and the social innovation resources across Harvard.

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Teaching Decision Making

An assessment tool to enable faculty to design learning experiences for wider inclusion as opposed to the average aggregate learner.

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Teachly

Utilizing data and technology to maximize the efficacy of Harvard faculty’s understanding of their classroom environment. Teachly dashboards aggregate student participation patterns and provide data visualizations to help faculty conceptualize class participation and identify neglected students.

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This Is How You Say My Name

A name recording tool that allows students to say their name in my.harvard. The name recording functionality will now be made available for use within Human Resources and across several other applications used at Harvard.

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Whiteness: An Ethnographic Question

Using an ethnographic lens to spark an interdisciplinary conversation on the role of whiteness in research, pedagogy, and institutional life. Includes a podcast series that engages whiteness as an ethnographic question through collaborative and experimental writing.

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Your Campus

Your Campus aims to provide an educational networking platform for first generation low-income (FGLI) students and reshape the narrative of what it means to be FGLI at an Ivy League Institution.

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