In the Vermaak Lab we strive to enhance diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) on campus and beyond. There is much more work to do.

The evolving collection of DEI resources and information created by members of the Lehigh community is a great place to start. As is my colleague Dr. Lesley W. Chow’s recent collaborative article on a framework for department-level accountability to diversify engineering.

• Vermaak honored for professional service as (TMS) The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society’s DEI Chair (2022).
• Vermaak initiated Wikipedia Edit-A-Thons for Diversity at MS&T conference (2021, 2022).
• Eric N. Brown, Emily Rinko, Richard Otis, Viola L. Acoff, and Natasha Vermaak “Engaging with the Government and Public to Advance the Materials Science and Engineering Field and TMS Members“. JOM 73(5) pp. 1224–1226, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11837-021-04657-3 (2021).
• N. Vermaak and M.E. Gardiner, “Stairway to STEM: Providing Resources for Autistic Students/Students on the Autism Spectrum“, JOM–The Journal of The Minerals, Metals&Materials Society,73(9), pp. 2581-2583, https://doi.org/10.1007/ s11837-021-04828-2 (2021).
• Vermaak part of Lehigh MEM’s Soaring Together Celebration: 50 years of gender-inclusive undergraduate education (2021).
• PhD student Xiu Jia awarded the P.C. Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science 2019 Graduate Student Leadership & Service Award! Well done Xiu! (2019).
• Vermaak participates as a TMS representative in the 2019 Workshop on the STEM Inclusion Study (2018) led by Prof. E.A. Cech and Prof. T. Waidzunas (NSF Grant No. EEC-1539140, HRD 1535385 & HRD 1535360). The workshop goal was to gather leaders and representatives of STEM-related professional organizations that participated in the 2018 STEM Inclusion Study for a day of discussion and brainstorming about how these organizations can promote equality and inclusion among the STEM communities represented by their membership (2019).
• M. Korey, A. Murphy, S. Pasebani, P. Sepehrband, and N.Vermaak, “Diversity Breakfast Raises Awareness for Inclusive Engineering Workplaces“, JOM –The Journal of The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society (TMS), 70(12), p. 2795, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11837-018-3227-z (2018).
• N. Vermaak, M. Cordill, A. Clarke, P. Sepehrband, S. Malekjani, E. A. Holm, “Raising Diversity Awareness and Myth-busting with a Digital Quiz“, JOM – The Journal of The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society (TMS), 69(2), p. 126, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11837-016-2250-1, (2017).
• Vermaak led outreach event in partnership with the Girl Scouts of Eastern PA, creating a new 1-day STEM Spotlight badge for Girl Scout Ambassadors (2016).
• F.A. Leibfarth, N. Vermaak, “Hope for graduate school childbirth policies“, Science, 333 (6048), pp 1380, https://doi.org/10.1126/science.333.6048.1380-a (2011).