Enter the text here that is the new abstract information for your application. Systemic inequities, defined as the ‘structures, policies, practices, and norms that assign value and determine opportunity based on the way people look or their backgrounds,’ permeate all aspects of society and are ever present in academia. These inequities are perpetuated through normative, and often unconscious, biases and behaviors. In recent years, academic institutions have devised new policies and initiatives to promote inclusive excellence, and in doing so have put a greater burden on underrepresented (UR) faculty to lead these efforts. Yet, many UR faculty are continuing to disproportionately leave the academy, indicating that academic institutions have not succeeded in their goal of dismantling systemic inequities and making academia more inclusive. As charged by the expansive array of governing bodies and civic leaders in their declarations that these systemic inequities have led to a public health crisis, people, communities, and institutions must develop and embrace comprehensive, strategic, and systems-thinking approaches to realize a more equitable and inclusive society. We developed an intervention that uses structured cognitive behavioral training (SCBT), an organized cognitive-based process that employs systematic, highly-structured practices, to break down socialized, unconscious biases and behaviors, replacing them with behaviors that are more aligned with personal values. To build the knowledge base of evidence-based interventions that address systemic inequities, we are testing our intervention using a cluster randomized trial across 26 institutions. We will follow participants for two years to study the impact of the intervention. We will also study the factors that impacted the participants by engaging in qualitative research using participant interviews. Finally, we will study the neuro response before and after the intervention. When the trial is concluded, we will disseminate the intervention to the wait-list controls as well as other institutions for a broad dissemination. Our work aims to improve the culture for postdocs, fellows, and junior faculty in the biomedical research workforce and to promote inclusive excellence.

Systemic inequities permeate all aspects of society and negatively impacts the work environment. We will conduct a cluster randomized trial to test an intervention designed to promote inclusive excellence. We will follow participants for two years to assess the impact of the intervention. Additionally, we will study neuro responses before and after the intervention.