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In this episode, Dr. Barabino shares how she responded to a lack of mentorship, where she found supportive networks, and how she’s creating inclusive environments so that marginalized students don’t have to face the same obstacles.
Mentorship is essential to the development of anyone in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, or medicine, but did you know mentorship is a set of skills that can be learned, practiced, and optimized?
In this 10-part series from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, you’ll hear the personal mentorship stories of leaders in academia, business, and the media, in their own words. Learn how evidence-based mentorship practices can help you develop the skills to engage in the most effective STEMM mentoring relationships possible.
If you are a mentor, a mentee, or have a role in mentorship, this podcast is for you.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
Welcome to The Science of Mentorship. Nobody wants to be dismissed, ignored, or overall be made to feel like they don't belong because their identity is different from those around them. People with marginalized identities, especially those entering STEM fields in academia and the private sector, often find themselves isolated and misunderstood. From the beginning of her education through much of her career, Dr. Gilda Barabino found that being an African-American woman in STEM led to many experiences as the first and sometimes only woman or person of color in her environment.
While many of her experiences were isolating and difficult, she was able to navigate her career by seeking support through a variety of relationships and communities. Today, Dr. Gilda Barabino is a fierce advocate for mentorship that embraces people from all backgrounds for their unique identities. A biomedical engineer trained in chemical engineering, Dr. Gilda Barabino has specialized in sickle cell research, cellular and tissue engineering and the role of race, ethnicity, and gender in science and engineering. She earned her PhD from Rice University in 1986 and is a member of both the National Academy of Engineering and the National Academy of Medicine. In 2020, she became president of the Olin College of Engineering. When she entered graduate school, Gilda Barabino knew she would be the only African-American woman in her environment. And she was prepared.
Dr. Gilda Barabino (01:57):
I started my career in chemical engineering. There were not many mentors or role models who looked like me, and I was navigating my career solo. I was entering a department where I was the first African American admitted into the graduate studies in that department. I was prepared for solo status, and I definitely experienced that environment as being somewhat isolating at the start.
Speaker 1 (02:28):
Armed with an undergraduate degree in chemistry, Gilda decided to make a career shift for graduate school, one that put her in an unusual position and added to her unique identity.
Dr. Gilda Barabino (02:41):
When I started, I think I was such an anomaly in many ways. I was coming from a different background chemistry rather than chemical engineering. I was already married. I was the only African American. There was one other woman in my interviewing class, and even some of the faculty made a point of pointing out to me that I was an unusual entering student. So the heightened attention of being both very visible in some ways, but also invisible in some ways.
Speaker 1 (03:15):
She was fortunate to have support at home to help her through.
Dr. Gilda Barabino (03:18):
My husband. He was my biggest advocate and I found drawing on that familiar support was very important, particularly early on.
Speaker 1 (03:29):
But home life couldn't provide all the support she needed in her graduate studies. Dr. Gilda Barabino (03:35):
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Finding a way to connect around culture, race, gender, that was much tougher. I had the natural mentoring that occurs between advisor and an advisee, I did not have throughout my career others playing that role as a mentor.
Speaker 1 (03:56):
Gilda saw that she would need to take action on her own.
Dr. Gilda Barabino (04:00):
What I would do was just reach out to anyone with some similarities in background and goals and objectives, and have conversations with them and find support there.
Speaker 1 (04:13):
Her desire to give back to her community led to a whole new environment of support.
Dr. Gilda Barabino (04:18):
Support networks can come in multiple forms, including those surrounding an area that you are working in. One of the reasons why I chose sickle cell disease for graduate studies is because I was interested in giving back to my community and sickle cell disease disproportionately impacts African-Americans. So one source for me in terms of a supportive community was the sickle cell community. I've talked to individuals with the disease and their family members, and that became yet another community on which to draw some mentorship and companionship around the research and the topic.
Speaker 1 (05:02):
It wasn't only patients and their families that formed the community. Gilda's scientific specialization made her a member of a unique community of chemical engineers in Houston, Texas.
Dr. Gilda Barabino (05:13):
There was such an emphasis on the petroleum industry, to have this subset of engineers who are using chemical engineering principles towards problems in medicine was a whole nother community in which we could connect with one another instead of oil flowing through a pipe, we're looking at blood flowing
through a blood vessel. So it was very rewarding and comforting to have this community of engineers who were interested in medical applications.
Speaker 1 (05:53):
Dr. Barabino's unique path to a PhD in chemical engineering left her without some key experiences. So she chose to leave academia for the next phase of her career. It would prove to be foundational to her future as a mentor.
Dr. Gilda Barabino (06:07):
I had gone from a chemistry background to a graduate degree in chemical engineering and had not had internships in chemical engineering. So my first position after getting the PhD actually was with a chemical company called Rohm and Haas, and I was a research process engineer. My goal was to practice hardcore chemical engineering and that I did. I did everything from pilot plant studies to full scale plants, where you produce chemicals. And it was quite the experience.
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Speaker 1 (06:47):
When she returned to academia, that experience proved to be invaluable.
Dr. Gilda Barabino (06:52):
My first academic position was at Northeastern University in Boston. Northeastern's a co-op school and had to teach students who had actually worked in industry as part of their co-ops. It was so fun for students to say to me, "I bet you've never worked in a plant yourself and you don't know what this is like, it's just in the book like." Oh, contraire, I have worked in a plant and I do know real-world experiences.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
Dr. Barabino's career often put her in unique positions.
Dr. Gilda Barabino (07:26):
In my career, I became very accustomed to being the only African-American or the only African American woman. And the first in a particular role, I actually was the first African-American female hired into a tenure track position in chemical engineering in the nation.
Speaker 1 (07:45):
And those positions often came with negative expectations from peers and supervisors.
Dr. Gilda Barabino (07:51):
There was this constant barrage of messaging that said, "I don't expect you to succeed. Didn't even expect you to be here." And that messaging takes different forms. It could be someone not giving you the same encouragement that they give others. It could be you just don't see anyone that looks like you, and you don't have anyone to have those kinds of shared conversations with.
Speaker 1 (08:26):
For Dr. Barabino, years of negative messaging stirred up a passion for making a difference.
Dr. Gilda Barabino (08:32):
That really hardened my determination to open doors and make a difference for others. Understanding the lack of role models and mentors, it was very important for me to make sure that those coming behind me would not have to face the same kinds of obstacles that I did and that they would be able to see themselves in the profession, carrying out the different roles, faculty member, or practitioner, and not only see themselves but also be poised to help bring others into the profession.
Speaker 1 (09:11):
She began to understand that individual's identities often guide them to what's most familiar and that it takes work to move past this, to provide everyone the support that caters to their unique identity.
Dr. Gilda Barabino (09:24):
We always do try to mentor people to be like ourselves. That's what we know. That's what we understand. And I think when we think about mentoring relationships, it's important to make visible the
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invisible because we oftentimes assume that someone's being cared for. Someone's looking out for them. Well, what's not seen is the grooming that happens for those who are grooming those who look like themselves. And so that's not being seen, it's not being picked up. And I think it's important for us to make those kinds of things visible and not just make assumptions. This model of the heroic mentor that comes in and saves the day, we should really rethink that model.
Speaker 1 (10:14):
Race, ethnicity and gender all play a role in how students develop academically and in their careers, that drives Dr. Barabino's philosophy toward individual identities and mentorship.
Dr. Gilda Barabino (10:27):
I think it's important for us to treat individuals for who they are, let them bring their whole authentic selves to the table, to the relationship, and then try to build on that. If we're being good mentors, we are actually helping them come into their own, not necessarily looking like us.
Speaker 1 (10:52):
That philosophy carries through to her latest role as the president of the Olin College of Engineering.
Dr. Gilda Barabino (10:58):
One of the exciting things about Olin, and one of the reasons why I was so excited to have the opportunity to lead Olin, in its founding, Olin was very committed to being an inclusive environment, in its founding precepts, it says we have to have gender parody in our entering classes. And then to this day, entering classes at Olin are roughly 50% women.
Speaker 1 (11:29):
Dr. Barabino is a leader in STEM education and mentorship. One who understands that leaders create environments that could have a positive or a negative impact on STEM students experiences.
Dr. Gilda Barabino (11:42):
Leaders need to be held accountable for creating environments in which mentors and mentees, all members of the community, can thrive. It's not just about relationships between individuals, it's happening within a context. And those settings are determined by our environments, our cultures, what we need for success for mentors and mentees are environments that are inclusive and that are supportive. At the end of the day, we all want to belong and creating an environment where everyone can have that sense of belonging is the best way to have an inclusive environment.
Speaker 1 (12:37):
Lack of mentorship didn't stop Dr. Barabino from advancing her career, but she wants to be sure others don't experience a similar sense of isolation. So she works hard to create environments where mentoring relationships benefit everyone involved.
Dr. Gilda Barabino (12:53):
A definition of mentorship that I think is really important that I've taken from Stacy Blake-Beard is that it's a mutually empowering relationship where both parties learn and benefit. I think some of the best work comes out of those types of relationships where there's that value and trust that's mutual and
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each individual participating is empowered. And you see each other as co-learners working on a journey together. I'm glad there's this attention around mentoring because it's proven that having mentors and role models does make a difference.
Speaker 1 (13:34):
Dr. Barabino knows what happens when mentors adopt a colorblind view, focusing only on a mentees performance without factoring in the mentee's identity. Even when the mentor's intentions are good, the effect can still place underrepresented students at risk. She's on a mission to make effective mentorship the norm.
Dr. Gilda Barabino (13:55):
Create this army of people who believe in mentorship that can be mutually empowering that believe in giving opportunities to those who may not have had them, who believe that that's part of their responsibility. We are people working together to benefit other people. That's what we do.
Speaker 1 (14:25):
To learn more about the science of effective mentorship in STEM and for a guide to implementing best practices at your institution visit nas.edu/mentoring.
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