The Who, What, How, Why
Who are we?
The IINSPIRE-LSAMP Alumni Committee (ILAC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that unites IINSPIRE alumni to facilitate a successful undergraduate career for current Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) students in STEM.
What do we do?
We provide practical academic, financial, and professional advice and assistance through our Initiatives like the Mentoring Program, Lending Library, ILAC Award, ILAC Intern, and more!
How do we do it?
ILAC fosters a welcoming and stable environment of reciprocity for both students and alumni. Alumni attend the Annual IINSPIRE LSAMP Conference where we host workshops and opportunity fairs, judge posters, moderate sessions, initiate discussions, and distribute financial awards. We also serve as mentors, participate in virtual panels, and assist in the planning and implementation of conferences.
Why do we do it?
Our goal is to establish a level of BIPOC representation in academia, industry, healthcare, business, government, and other sectors that meets or exceeds BIPOC representation in the United States by helping increase BIPOC retention in STEM at the undergraduate and graduate levels.
Mission
Our mission is to provide practical academic, financial, and professional advice and assistance to BIPOC STEM students and alumni of the IINSPIRE LSAMP Alliance institutions in Iowa, Illinois, and Nebraska.
Vision
Our vision is to establish a level of BIPOC representation in academia, industry, healthcare, business, government, and other sectors that meets or exceeds BIPOC representation in the United States by helping increase BIPOC retention in STEM at the undergraduate and graduate levels.
ILAC C.A.R.E.S. We Inspire Leaders and Community via:
Collaboration: We value teamwork and the process of working in groups within our organization and forming partnerships with outside organizations whose missions align with ours. Collaborations help us create ideas and goals beyond what is immediately imaginable or achievable.
Authenticity: We value interacting with one another in an authentic way. Authenticity includes being reliable to each other and to ourselves and telling the truth, especially when it might not be well-received.
Reciprocity: We value individual and institutional reciprocity, the practice of exchanging things, ideas, and privileges with others for mutual benefit. We believe that our members have mutual dependence, action, and influence on each other and on ILAC as a whole.
Edification: We value edification pertaining to the instruction or improvement of a person morally or intellectually. This may include acquiring a growth mindset, learning new skills, growing an individual’s or ILAC’s network, and finding new and ambitious ways to improve our communities.
Support: We believe financial, institutional, informational, and emotional support is essential for inspiring members and future leaders in the ILAC community. ILAC strives to provide these measures of support through operations like paid internships; the lending library; panels at conferences; community discussions; connections to leaders in academia, industry, and business; and formal and informal mentoring.
Values
Our Impact
