Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion (DEI)

Welcome to the Department of Mechanical Engineering’s (ME) Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Community page. In ME, we believe that each one of us—faculty, staff, postdocs, graduate students, and undergraduate students—plays an important role in building an environment where everyone can thrive as learners and leaders. This is because the work we do and the products we create as mechanical engineers are interwoven with social contexts and impacts. Join us in building momentum for impactful changes in diversity, equity, and inclusion so that our classrooms, department, campus, and field of mechanical engineering can make the world work better for everyone. 

What do we mean by diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)? 

At ME, we align our commitments to DEI with the University of Michigan’s campus-wide definitions:

1. Diversity: We commit to increasing diversity, which is expressed in myriad forms, including race and ethnicity, gender and gender identity, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, language, culture, national origin, religious commitments, age, (dis)ability status and political perspective.
2. Equity: We commit to working actively to challenge and respond to bias, harassment, and discrimination. We are committed to a policy of equal opportunity for all persons and do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, disability, religion, height, weight, or veteran status.
3. Inclusion: We commit to pursuing deliberate efforts to ensure that our campus is a place where differences are welcomed, different perspectives are respectfully heard and where every individual feels a sense of belonging and inclusion. We know that by building a critical mass of diverse groups on campus and creating a vibrant climate of inclusiveness, we can more effectively leverage the resources of diversity to advance our collective capabilities.