Mentorship programs
Our Mentorship Opportunities in Science and Agriculture for Individuals of Color (MOSAIC) mentorship program opens doors for BIPOC students to connect with supportive mentors from diverse backgrounds, creating valuable relationships for underrepresented students outside of their program advisor(s). Mentorship contributes to underrepresented minoritized students’ educational and professional development by increasing access, promoting persistence, and allowing students to visualize what success looks like throughout every stage of their training.
Expectations of MOSAIC mentors
MOSAIC mentors are involved in one-on-one mentorship of UW graduate students and postdocs. Our mentors include BIPOC UW faculty, staff, graduate student peers and those working in industry. Expectations of mentors include:
- In conjunction with the mentee, develop and establish expectations to be achieved
- Conduct one-on-one regular meetings with the mentee to evaluate and assess mentee progress
- Provide guidance and support mentee’s success
- Maintain professional confidentiality of all exchanges
- Participate in MOSAIC group gathers that include lunches, discussions, and other social activities
MOSAIC hosts two mentorship programs
- Professional Network: Career discovery, guidance and development.
This program intends to foster connections between professionals (faculty, staff, post-docs, and those working in industry), exchanging guidance and support. Interested professionals who would like to serve as Mentors will advise and guide graduate students.
– Mentors in this program, who bring a wealth of experience, resources and connections to the table, will enhance their teaching and leadership skills and learn fresh perspectives, leading to personal growth and contributing to the mentee’s success and community building.
– Mentees in this program can benefit in various ways, such as (but not limited to): exploring career options, academic and professional guidance during the graduate degree, advice in navigating the job market, enhancing skills when facing professional issues, etc. - Graduate Peer Support Network
This program intends to foster more supportive communities between graduate students, exchanging wisdom and solidarity. Interested graduate students who would like to serve as Peer Mentors will advise and guide newer and incoming graduate students.
– Mentors in this program will gain experience in mentorship relationships and involvement with peers, leading to an extended network and contributing to their personal and professional growth.
– Mentees in this program can benefit from getting a better sense of the UW system, academic and professional guidance, and general information needed when navigating graduate school.
Meet current MOSAIC mentors
Previous MOSAIC mentors
- Valentin Picasso
- Judi Simcox
- Lucia Gutierrez
- Jennifer Van Os
- Christelle Guedot
- Laura Hernandez
- Thierno Diallo
- Natalia de Leon
Acknowledgement & Gratitude
In addition to our volunteer mentors, we would like to thank the following people for their support, guidance, encouragement, and helpful feedback all along the way. We are thankful to you for championing this cause:
- Jo Handelsman (Director, Wisconsin Institute for Discovery)
- Lindsay Stoddard (Faculty Services, Office of the Secretary of the Faculty)
- Claudia Calderon (Faculty Associate, Department of Horticulture)
- Parmesh Ramanathan (Associate Dean, Graduate School)
- Christopher Yue (Interim Assistant Dean, Office of Diversity, Inclusion, and Funding, Graduate School)
- Cheryl Gittens (Interim Deputy Vice Chancellor for Diversity & Inclusion, Elzie Higginbottom Vice Provost & Chief Diversity Officer)
- Abbey Thompson (Associate Director, SciMed GRS)
- Liza Chang (Postdoctoral Fellow, WISCIENCE)