The College of Human Sciences kicked off their annual Human Sciences Week on Monday which included the first ever networking and mentoring event, Introducing the College’s Human Scientists of Color.

The event wasn’t exclusively for students and faculty of the college, as all of Iowa State was invited to attend and learn more about the opportunities possible for people of color.

The idea for the event came as Tera Jordan and her colleagues started a conversation about wanting to get together and give people of color the opportunity to network, engage and mentor. Especially since people of color aren’t always represented, Johnson said. The event offered just that.

It provided a variety of faculty throughout the College of Human Sciences to “speed mentor” participants in areas such as choosing a mentor, community involvement and applying to graduate school.

“If I had one piece of advice, identify people that have an expertise, identify a time frame and choose a mentor that will be mutually beneficial,” said Connie Hargrave, associate professor in the school of education. “We’re always looking for bright, engaged people.” 

By networking at the event, students were able to get their name out there, a key component in community involvement.

Noreen Rodriguez, assistant professor in the school of education, recommends that students find out what organizations are out there and start networking. Getting involved in these types of experiences is good not just for students, but for Iowa State as well.

Faculty outside of the college were invited to attend and take part in the event too. Jose Rosa, professor of marketing, was advising students on applying to gradute school. Though he comes from a different college entirely, his goal was the same as his colleagues.

“People will stay in higher-education when they see someone like themselves there,” Rosa said. “Our goal is to change demographics. When humans and faculty comes together it benefits everyone.”

Though the faculty that attended were valuable resources and made up the event as a whole, the students were the focus of the event and Human Sciences Week. Most students there were seniors in the College of Human Sciences or graduate students.

This provided a chance to mingle and find out more information in an area about which they’re passionate. Each faculty member identified themselves as “human scientists” for one reason or another and the students did as well.

“I feel like as students you go out into the world with a hypothesis,” said Toni Lampley, graduate student in the College of Human Sciences. “Everybody should figure out what speaks to them. You’re going to be happy in that moment.” 

Introducing the College’s Human Scientists of Color was an opportunity for students and professors to connect with each other. As Human Sciences Week continues, there will be another event similar to this one.

Wednesday night Connect Four and the College of Human Science’s Office of Multicultural Affairs will be hosting the CHS Multicultural Networking Dinner from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. and is open to everyone.