Conference: Travel and Conference Support for Students from Underrepresented Groups for the 2022 CDS meeting

The Cognitive Development Society (CDS) is committed to increasing and supporting the involvement of scholars traditionally underrepresented (URM) in cognitive development and has provided an ongoing mentoring program to URM scholars since 2015. CDS recognizes many dimensions of diversity, including but not limited to race, ethnicity, culture, sexual orientation, first-generation college status, and disability status. With the financial support of NSF, CDS has succeeded in supporting the conference travel and overall conference experience of many URM scholars who would not have otherwise been able to participate. This award continues that support. First, this award provides funds to support registration and travel to the in-person CDS conference. Second, the award provides funds to ensure that a positive mentorship experience continues at the conference for these young scholars. Several student events will be arranged, both online and in-person, to ensure an inclusive and positive mentorship experience. The award will fund CDS mentorship and support networking of past award recipients with current recipients. The award will also support a Burning Questions of the Professoriate session, which will be geared toward junior URM scholars and mentees. The activities funded by the award will enable these young scholars to forge new professional relationships that will have an impact that extends beyond the conference itself. The funded mentorship program and biennial meeting is designed to support CDS’s commitment to supporting greater diversity, inclusion, equity, and well-being in the society at all levels.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.