About the WinSPIRE Organization
The WinSPIRE Organization is a volunteer-led organization at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-CH) that provides training and experience in STEM research and mentorship to people who identify as a historically marginalized gender in STEM (HMGS). HMGS identities include, but are not limited to women, transgender, non-binary, genderfluid, agender, genderqueer, and two-spirit. Our approach incorporates the education of high school-aged students through the WinSPIRE Summer Research Program and the training of graduate students, post-doctoral fellows, and university staff involved in STEM at UNC-CH.
Our History
Founded in 2017
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WinSPIRE was founded by Dr. Samantha Piszkiewicz during her time as a Ph.D. Candidate at UNC-CH. Her goal was to encourage and retain young women in STEM by providing them with research and mentorship experience early in their careers. In 2023, WinSPIRE formally expanded to support all historically marginalized genders in STEM. Since its founding, WinSPIRE has run seven successful Summer Research Programs collectively mentoring 59 students and training over 200 summer program mentors and volunteers. All of this work has been coordinated by more than 100 WinSPIRE Organization team members and assistance from departments across the UNC-CH campus.
The Team
The WinSPIRE Organization is currently made up of ~30 UNC-CH graduate student, post-doc, and university staff member volunteers. Team members work during the Fall and Spring semesters to curate the WinSPIRE Summer Research Program. WinSPIRE team members also participate in and host STEM community events, like the Strides for STEM 5K.
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The Organization is structured into sub-teams working towards a common goal. Our teams include:
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Research Mentor, Volunteer, and High School Student Recruitment and Coordination teams
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Volunteer Training team
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Alumni Engagement team
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Fundraising and Grant Writing teams
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Marketing, Communications, and Community Outreach Teams
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An administrative team of the co-chairs, program developer, secretary, and treasurer.
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Interested in becoming a WinSPIRE Organization Team Member?
Affiliations
The WinSPIRE Organization is a registered student organization at UNC-CH. We are affiliated with the Office of Graduate Education in the UNC-CH School.