The Understanding Interventions (UI) work began with the idea of a conference to facilitate dissemination and exchange of hypothesis-based research on interventions and initiatives that broaden participation in science and engineering research careers. Co-organized and led by Anthony DePass and Founding Co-Chair Daryl Chubin, the conference design encourages dialogue among behavioral/social science and education researchers, evaluators, and faculty in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) fields who participate in intervention programs. Graduate students in these fields are also strongly encouraged to attend.

UI conference workshops, ​training sessions, symposia, and posters communicate effective strategies from successful STEM intervention programs, present results from empirical research studies, and synthesize the translation of research findings into practice on STEM learning, undergraduate research, graduate education, and student retention. This has now expanded many other activities and resources that anchor communities of scholarship, assessment, and practice.

Our broader mission is to positively impact the outcomes of efforts aimed at broadening participation in science and science careers through the expansion and dissemination of the relevant body of knowledge, and facilitate its implementation in practice, policy development, training, and professional development.

This work began with the idea of a conference to facilitate dissemination and exchange of hypothesis-based research on interventions and initiatives that broaden participation in science and engineering research careers.

In recognition of the paucity of equal representation in STEM education and careers, Understanding Interventions aims to mutually inform scholarship and practice, develop and enhance the community interested in educational interventions, and provide professional development for all STEM persons.