Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
The Gray Matter Lab is a place of learning and progress, where we seek to promote equity in all that we do. In this way, the lab has dedicated itself to providing all patients and students with the means they need to be successful in our lab. While we continue to seek more ways to support students and patients to create a diverse and inclusive lab space, our on-going action items that promote equity in our work include the following:
- Loan laptops and other electronics to patients who do not have access to materials necessary for remote therapy services;
- Intentionally recruit students who are bilingual, first generation, BIPOC, or who otherwise might face barriers to joining a research lab in order to ensure our lab reflects the population we serve at large (Chaudhary, 2020);
- Lead informed antiracism discussions within our lab to provide a safe space for these issues to be discussed and to provide training on culturally responsive care for future clinicians (Chaudhary, 2020);
- Address any racism or microaggressions that occur in our lab;
- Write and submit grants that advance diversity, equity, and inclusion;
- Updating patient onboarding documents to be more accessible and inclusive;
- Updating diagnostic materials so that they are more inclusive of diverse populations. Regarding standardized assessments, we will adhere to publication guidelines (e.g., Boston Naming Test);
- Reading scientific articles by Black researchers.
While this list is not comprehensive in any way, the Gray Matter lab acknowledges that being anti-racist takes deliberate effort to root out any vestiges of systemic racism within institutions in order to stand and fight against them and so we will continue to provide an equitable space for all.