RESCUE-Net planning has been led by founding members: Wallace M. Meyer, Pomona College; Nina Karnovsky, Pomona College; Joel Abraham, CSU Fullerton; Erin Questad, Cal Poly Pomona; George Vourlitis, CSU San Marcos; and Cinzia Fissore, Whittier College.
Current Rescue-Net Advisory Board Members are: Wallace M. Meyer, Pomona College; Nina Karnovsky, Pomona College, Erin Questad, Cal Poly Pomona; George Vourlitis; CSU San Marcos; Cinzia Fissore, Whittier College; and Jann Vendetti, Glendale Community College & LA County Natural History Museum.
New faculty collaborators are taking leadership roles in critical RESCUE-Net Working Groups:
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and Code of Conduct DEI/CoC Working Group
Contact: Nina Karnovsky, Pomona College: nina.karnovsky@pomona.edu
The DEI working group will oversee the RESCUE-Net Code of Conduct and facilitate revisions suggested by RESCUE-Net collaborators. DEI/CoC will also oversee DEI training, Code of Conduct oversight and annual revisions, and equitable student recruitment. Membership on this committee will be modified each year to exclude collaborations who are leading or participating in one of the RESCUE-Net projects to ensure Code of Conduct compliance is overseen by individuals who can remain impartial.
Current Members: George Vourlitis, CSU San Marcos; Jochen Schenk, CSU Fullerton; Heidy Contreras, CSU San Bernadino
RESCUE-Net Engagement Working Group
Contact: Erin Questad, Cal Poly Pomona; ejquestad@cpp.edu
The Engagement Working Group oversees building the network through connecting and expanded communications with RESCUE-Net collaborators and deepening connections through discussions. During the incubator phase, virtual lunch-time meetings were centered on topics relevant to ecological pedagogy and aspects relevant to DEI in RESCUE-Net were well attended. However, this committee will also explore other ways to engage with diverse faculty across multiple institution types with a focus on expanding interactions with regional Community Colleges. Finally, this committee will oversee implementation of the Southern California Undergraduate Ecological Research Conference and the Annual Faculty Meeting, and will manage new collaborator requests and be a resource for questions about the network. After successful implementation, this committee may be tasked to explore possibilities of joining our network to other undergraduate ecological networks (e.g., EREN-Net) and collaborating with field based networks (e.g. UFERN).
Current Members: Nina Karnovsky, Pomona College; Alex Pivovaroff, Glendale Community College; Darren Sandquist, CSU Fullerton
Future Funding Committee, Working Group
Contact: Wallace Meyer, Pomona College: Wallace.meyer@pomona.edu
The Future Funding Working Group is charged with connecting and working with advancement staff at their respective Institutions to fund expanded and future RESCUE-Net efforts.
Current Members: Cinzia Fissore, Whittier College; Jochen Schenk & Darren Sandquist, CSU Fullerton
Assessment Working Group
Contact: Joel Abraham, CSU Fullerton: jkabraham@Fullerton.edu
The assessment group will oversee annual student assessments of each project. A synthesis will be presented at the annual faculty meeting where recommendations for changes will be provided. Assessments will also help inform annual modifications to the Code of Conduct.
Current Members: Mallory Rice, CSU San Marcos; Lua Lopez Perez, CSU San Bernardino; Charlotte Chang, Pomona College; Alex Pivovaroff, Glendale Community College; Jim Blauth, University of Redlands