Not Everything That Happens in Vegas Should Stay in Vegas – A Latinx’s SRAI Annual Meeting Experience
The 2022 SRAI Annual Meeting in Las Vegas was quite an experience for me. The meeting brought together research administrators from across the United States and around the world from places like Qatar and Puerto Rico. Being able to attend such an event was quite a big deal. Upon arrival at Caesar’s Palace, I located the ballroom where the first session I had selected would take place. As I looked around the room, I realized that this grand space would undoubtedly fill up. This was larger than life!
My career path has not always been clear to me. At the young age of 16 I held my first job as a mentor for at-risk youth through a local youth employment opportunity development program. This program’s purpose was to help youth achieve educational and/or professional goals through peer advising, supportive service referrals, workshops, coaching, and employment preparation. At the time I was considered to be at-risk of not achieving my educational goals because of my family’s economic and educational background, not to mention being the daughter of Latino immigrant parents. “Isn’t it fascinating how far I’ve come?” is one thing I asked myself after that first SRAI session.
“How much further will I go? What is my purpose in research administration?” This is what I have been exploring in the past couple of weeks. The annual meeting was energizing for me because it pumped ideas in my brain, gave me some additional understanding in research compliance, and reinforced the importance of research administration. Besides all the learning that took place, it was also refreshing to mingle and network with like-minded colleagues outside my institution. In the exhibit hall there were several booths where conferees could meet others who shared their curiosity for research administration software, tools, CRA certification, and even JOBS! By the conference’s second day, however, there was one thing that stood out to me. I didn’t notice many Latinx attendees.
Is research administration uncommon for Latinxs?
I did meet a few SRAI members from San Juan, Puerto Rico but in my observation I felt Latinx people were under-represented. This is no fault of SRAI. Research administration is very niche and for some of us – like me – it is a career one sort of stumbles into and grows to like and understand. Latinos make up only 10.3% of all research administrators. Additionally, “women predominate in the research administrator position over time.” Based on the data presented on this site, the percentage of males in this career has declined yearly since 2010 from 48% to 32%; female administration has increased from 51% to almost 68% through the latest data recorded in 2019. Coupling this information with my experience at the SRAI meeting I would agree that I observed more women at the conference; however, the Latinx ratio was significantly low. Perhaps my expectation was to see more diversity in the pool of attendees. I took this with me into the next panel.
I also attended the session “Hello Leadership, It’s Me, ___” led by a diverse panel that focused on issues within an organization where inclusivity and diversity seemed important but one’s voice was still unheard. Several interesting topics were explored and experiences shared. The panelists leading the session were part of SRAI’s diversity task force; after sharing some experiences with one panelist I was urged to reach out with any questions or join the task force – so I did! With this I hope to contribute to the diversity of research administration –not only within SRAI – but within the field in general.
In summary, my takeaway from the SRAI annual meeting was more than positive. There was a plethora of information, networking, and growth opportunities. Not everything that happens in Vegas should stay in Vegas – certainly not the memories and experiences gained from the SRAI Annual Meeting.
Missed the 2022 SRAI Annual Meeting in Las Vegas? Check out the Encore iSessions taking place now through March highlighting sessions from the meeting, including “Hello Leadership, It’s Me, ____,” mentioned in the article.
Authored by Lyset Castillo, Research Administrator, Department of Neurobiology
University of California Los Angeles
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