Project Lead Gareth Lawson explains how pro:NE can help minority ethnic students into postgraduate research and beyond.
What is pro:NE?
pro:NE is a network created by five leading universities in our region (Durham, Newcastle, Northumbria, Sunderland and Teesside) to widen access and participation for racially minoritised students and staff in postgraduate research.
The project aims to strengthen the pathway into academic employment for students of colour. To do so, it has established four key pillars: mental health, mentoring, development and admissions.
Now in the second year of its four-year cycle, the project has total funding of over £2.5 million, including a £798,972 grant from the Office for Students.
Offering tremendous potential in supporting students of colour, the original idea was conceived and developed by Professor Jason Arday, Honorary Professor in the Department of Sociology (and recently announced as the youngest ever Black professor at Cambridge).
Project Sponsor Dr Shaid Mahmood (Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Equality, Diversity & Inclusion) said:
pro:NE can offer students the support and recognition that I had to fight really hard for during my studies.
"This project resonates with me particularly strongly because of my own experience. When I was doing my PhD, it was clear to me that I stood out in my research group. I was different, and not just because I was from a minority group but also because I was researching in an area that was not well developed. The need to fulfil the obligations of my religion and community was not really recognised, nor was it taken into account during my research studies."
How will pro:NE achieve its aims?
The project intends to provide unique opportunities, activities and events, including workshops and training, e-conferences, and mentoring for staff and students of colour. It will also offer PhD studentships.
Its mental health strand, led by colleagues from Newcastle Psychological Therapies Clinic, is examining student wellbeing and the pastoral care already available across the five partner institutions. A pilot programme to improve support for racially and ethnically minoritised students is being developed.
The admissions strand will be reviewing current practices within the partner institutions to implement changes through admissions processes. The project also plans to significantly increase the number of admissions from students of colour across all five universities through identifying leakages in the pipeline and unconscious bias, providing recommendations for prevention.
pro:NE will create spaces of belonging by breaking down elitism and building local communities, making each university a more welcoming place to be for students and staff of colour.
The latest project news
The pro:NE website will be launching in the coming weeks, so look out for that and all the development opportunities that will be advertised there.
The mentoring programme will start in March. This will see early career researchers of colour paired with senior academic leaders to support mutual learning, complementing peer mentoring across the North-East network.
Please keep an eye on the University website for our PhD Studentships, which are soon to be advertised.
Finally, we will be holding a pro:NE conference at one of our partner institutions in June or July. This will include workshops and discussions on all things pro:NE, as well as on the issues the project is hoping to address.
- To get involved or for more information, email: pro.ne@durham.ac.uk