The Building Blocks of Inclusion
Inclusive environments are essential for engagement and learning. The building blocks for developing an inclusive climate are psychological safety and cultural humility. A psychologically safe environment promotes high-level engagement and performance, encouraging participants in the environment to make robust contributions for examining the full complexity of problems and developing comprehensive solutions for real-world issues.
There are four stages of psychological safety: inclusion safety, learner safety, contributor safety and challenger safety. Development of psychologically safe and inclusive environments is significantly enhanced when approached with cultural humility. While this approach began in the medical field for improving the quality of medical care provided to diverse and underserved populations, it is being applied with great success across many disciplines and fields. Developing psychological safety with cultural humility is a deliberate process that creates a highly engaging environment ideal for learning.
Margie Vela earned her Ph.D. in Water Science and Management from New Mexico State University (NMSU) as a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Institute for Food and Agriculture (NIFA) Fellow. Dr. Vela has devoted her career to diversity and equity in higher education and Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). Her contributions to broadening participation of underrepresented groups include serving as Senior Project Manager for the National Science Foundation (NSF) Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) National STEM Resource Hub and as the Assistant Director for the Science and Mathematics Initiative for Learning Enrichment (SMILE) at Delaware State University (a Historically Black University). Additionally, she served the Department of Defense at Fort Lee, Virginia as the Project Director for the HIRED! Program, an apprenticeship and college preparation program for high-school-age dependents of military personnel. Throughout her career she has designed and delivered diversity training and programming for institutions of higher education.
As a scientist and researcher, Dr. Vela successfully engaged community-based research focused on water equity and educational attainment for communities on the Southern U.S. Border. This study engaged over 160 high school students and three undergraduate researchers, mentored and supported by Dr. Vela’s independent funding, during her doctoral studies. The results of this study have been reviewed for policy changes by high level stakeholders and politicians.
In addition, Margie has served as a USAID volunteer consultant to rural organic farmers in Colombia for water use and to a community-based non-profit organization for developing organizational infrastructure. Dr. Vela has served as a Governor appointed public servant for the State of New Mexico as Regent for the New Mexico State University System, working with the board to lead and direct 2-yr and 4-yr colleges, the New Mexico Department of Agriculture, 32 extension offices, and 8 research centers.
She is an alumnus of the SACNAS Postdoctoral Leadership Institute and earned a Certification in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion from Cornell University.
