The LEADER Consortium: Launching Equity Across the Dayton Entrepreneurial Region

The LEADER Consortium, funded in part by the National Science Foundation ADVANCE Program, is a partnership of four diverse institutions of higher education in the Dayton (Ohio) region: the Air Force Institute of Technology, Central State University, University of Dayton, and Wright State University.

Launched publicly in November 2008, the LEADER Consortium is a member of the fourth cohort of ADVANCE award recipients and is the first of its kind in the ADVANCE Program.

What makes the LEADER Consortium unique is that the cultural norms of the partner institutions are as diverse as their demographics and histories. The Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) is a federal institution; Central State University is a public, minority-serving institution; the University of Dayton (UD) is a private, Catholic institution, and Wright State University is a public, doctoral institution.

Together, we aim to identify, research, and implement best practices to increase the recruitment, advancement, and retention of tenure-track women faculty in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics), and it is our vision that the Dayton region gain renown as a STEM community that welcomes women scientists and engineers, providing an environment that promotes equity, satisfaction, and success in the academy for all STEM scientists.