Category: Diversity and Inclusion

As NASA looks toward the National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM), NASA employees celebrate diversity with a heartfelt video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fMUZ1HDo3Ko

Did you know that Title IX regulations expand beyond just football and basketball?  NASA currently provides approximately $1 billion in Federal funding to some 600 grant recipient institutions, many of them university and college science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) programs nationwide to facilitate women achieving their goals and dreams in STEM. One of the requirements to receive funding is that these university and colleges must be compliant with Title IX regulations.

Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and NASA’s implementing regulations and policy prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex in educational programs and activities receiving Federal financial assistance. NASA conducts Title IX compliance reviews of university and colleges to ensure their students, faculty, and staff are not subjected to discrimination. NASA also recognizes those universities and colleges that implement various policies, procedures, and outreach efforts that further the effectiveness of Title IX (collectively, promising practices). By highlighting these promising practices, NASA is encouraging all universities and colleges to enhance the effectiveness of their own Title IX programs.

NASA will continually highlight those universities and colleges that are implementing programs in each of these areas that will hopefully enable collaboration among these dynamic schools and increase the effectiveness of their respective Title IX programs, while also furthering dialogue within their respective schools to better serve their students, regardless of gender.

In our first post, we are highlighting the University of Texas Southwestern School of Medicine (UT Southwest) and three of their programs that we consider to be promising practices. Their first program provides a one-page graphic of the types of support available under Title IX: https://utsouthwestern.edu/about-us/title-ix/assets/supportive-measures.pdf

Their second program highlights the additional resource of a Title IX liaison, within the auspices of the Title IX Coordinator function, that may be able to provide unbiased and impartial support to students to voice their concerns about the Title IX or sexual misconduct process at the University:

https://utsouthwestern.edu/about-us/title-ix/coordinators/

Their third program is an employee resource guide highlighting the resources available for Title IX complaints spanning from filing a report to requesting safety assistance in general: https://utsouthwestern.edu/about-us/title-ix/assets/employees.pdf

To learn more about these promising practices and related efforts, visit the Agency’s MissionSTEM website at https://missionstem.nasa.gov/.

NASA concluded its 2021 celebration of Black History Month with several activities that also help us kick-off Women’s History Month. Please click on the links below for more information on NASA’s celebration of African Americans and women at NASA:

• NASA Celebrates ‘Hidden Figure’ Mary W. Jackson with Building Naming
• NASA Ceremony to Name Headquarters after ‘Hidden Figure’ Mary W. Jackson
• Vice President Kamala Harris Calls NASA Astronaut Victor Glover
• Spacewalkers Conclude Spacewalk on February 28, 2021
• NASA’s Celebration of Women’s History Month
• From Hidden to Modern Figures

The Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) has developed a site in coordination with the Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity (ODEO) to centralize critical resources for users with accessibility needs. The site also provides information for all NASA employees to help create accessible experiences for the workforce: https://nasa.sharepoint.com/sites/accessibility.

The Workforce Recruitment Program (WRP) released its 2021 database. The WRP database contains applications from more than 2,500 qualified college students and recent graduates with disabilities from 380 campuses nationwide who seek summer or permanent employment in federal agencies. Anyone with a federal government email address can register to use the database at www.wrp.gov. Federal employers who already have a WRP account can log in directly. Everyone is Schedule A eligible, and employers can search the database to find applicants with the specific skills they need. The WRP is managed by the U.S. Department of Labor and the U.S. Department of Defense.

• Register as a federal employer to search the WRP database

NASA Internships is highlighting the personal stories of interns and their journeys to their internship – sharing stories and the impact people with disabilities play within our organization, as they add to the inclusive workforce at NASA.

Please join us in welcoming Teersa Joy Kramer, Intern at Glenn Research Center!

NASA Internships is highlighting the personal stories of interns and their journeys to their internship – sharing stories and the impact people with disabilities play within our organization, as they add to the inclusive workforce at NASA.

Please join us in welcoming Evanjelin Mahmoodi, Intern at Marshall Space Flight Center!

During National Disability Employment Awareness Month, we recognize the immeasurable contributions that Americans with disabilities make to our workforce.  Their achievements not only strengthen our economy and communities but also exemplify the power of every American to help shape the future of our country.  This month, we recommit to advancing an American workforce where everyone can fully pursue their God-given potential.

Three decades ago, our Nation took a substantial step toward enabling Americans with disabilities to realize their full economic potential.  With passage of the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act, these citizens obtained expanded access to employment opportunities, including government and community services.  Since then, our Nation has made great strides to create a more inclusive workforce and secure a future of purpose for every American.  My Administration has built on these successes by delivering unprecedented opportunities for more than 61 million Americans who have a disability.  Due to these efforts, Americans with disabilities had the lowest annual unemployment rate on record last year.  As we continue to restore our economy following the coronavirus pandemic, we will once again ensure historic employment opportunities for this incredible group of people.

Now, more than ever, technology is at the forefront of our evolving national workforce.  Accordingly, my Administration is harnessing emerging technologies that enable Americans with disabilities to work in new ways and in new environments.  The Department of Labor’s Partnership on Employment and Accessible Technology developed the Emerging Technology Playbook, which provides step-by-step guidance to ensure accessibility is being built into new technology from the start.  Additionally, the Department of Health and Human Services has convened the Interagency Accessibility Forum to foster best practices in accessibility across the Federal Government.  My Administration is also working with State and local policymakers through the State Exchange on Employment and Disability initiative to build a more disability-inclusive employment landscape.  While there is still progress to be made, I am committed to expanding rewarding, family-sustaining careers to Americans with disabilities in each and every State.

This month, we recognize the talent and skill of Americans with disabilities.  Their resolve and determination strengthen our country and inspire us all.  Together, we will continue to advance and promote an inclusive workforce in which everyone can provide for themselves and their families, achieve the American Dream, and enjoy the prosperity of our great Nation.

The Congress, by Joint Resolution approved August 11, 1945, as amended (36 U.S.C. 121), has designated October of each year as “National Disability Employment Awareness Month.”  Most appropriately, this year’s theme is “Increasing Access and Opportunity.”

NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim October 2020 as National Disability Employment Awareness Month.  I call upon government, employers, labor organizations, and the great people of the United States to recognize the month with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities across our land.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirtieth day of September, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-fifth.

DONALD J. TRUMP

The Honorable Tony Coelho will be speaking at NASA for the 30th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) on Thursday, August 13 at 1 pm to celebrate the groundbreaking law he sponsored.

The U.S. Black Engineer Information Technology magazine, sponsor of the annual Black Engineer of the Year Award (BEYA) and Women of Color Conferences, has posted an article regarding NASA’s decision to name its Headquarters building after the Agency’s first Black female Engineer, Mary W. Jackson. Ms. Jackson’s accomplishments are celebrated in Margot Lee Shetterly’s book, Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race, and the movie that followed.