The lack of diversity in the STEM academic and industry workforce (i.e., in terms of race, ethnicity, gender, and disability status in disciplines that train students to participate in the STEM workforce) requires researchers who specialize in racism, sexism, and other forms of bias to be part of the discussion and search for solutions. Research on diversity in STEM frequently neglects how race and gender intersect within the complex structural dynamics of STEM. Much more often, such research has focused solely on gendered experiences within STEM, thus ignoring the experiences of many students who are affected through both race and gender. Our edited volume, Diversifying STEM: Multidisciplinary Perspectives on Race and Gender, serves as an extended discussion of the foundational concepts of our research group, the Explorations in Diversifying Engineering Faculty Initiative (EDEFI; pronounced “edify”).

The authors who contributed to this edited volume address the topical void in the literature by using research expertise from multiple disciplines of STEM education. Their scholarship includes race, culture, and social stratification; social justice in education; the affirmative personal and academic development of Black men and boys; mathematical and racial identity; racial socialization processes; and race and gender intersectionality. The voices of these multidisciplinary scholars offer a wide array of perspectives. Our hopes are that this volume will allow practitioners, teachers, students, faculty, and professionals to reimagine STEM across a variety of educational paradigms, perspectives, and disciplines, which is critical to finding solutions that broaden the participation of historically underrepresented groups within the STEM disciplines.