About Us

Our Mission
The Compassion Initiative fosters empathy, kindness, and understanding through scientific research, educational curriculum, service programs, and outreach initiatives.

Our Vision
We aim to inspire the next generation of citizens and leaders to apply the science and practice of compassion to solving the complex social and environmental challenges of the 21st century. We aspire to expand the program to other colleges, universities and K-12 schools worldwide.

Who We Are
The Compassion Initiative is co-developed by faculty, staff and students from UCI’s School of Social Ecology and the Blum Center for Poverty Alleviation.
References
Brewer, S. (2019). STEAM and STEM activities that promote a growth mindset in students. Retrieved March 03, 2021, from https://www.steampoweredfamily.com/education/stem-activities-growth-mindset/
Canning, E. A., Muenks, K., Green, D. J., & Murphy, M. C. (2019). STEM faculty who believe ability is fixed have larger racial achievement gaps and inspire less student motivation in their classes. Science Advances, 5(2). doi:10.1126/sciadv.aau4734
Deloitte and The Manufacturing Institute. (2018). Skills gap and the future of work study. Retrieved September 15, 2020, from https://www.themanufacturinginstitute.org/research/2018-deloitte-and-the-manufacturing-institute-skills-gap-and-future-of-work-study/
Dweck, C. S. (2019). The choice to make a difference. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 14(1), 21-25. doi:10.1177/1745691618804180
Hacisalihoglu, G., Stephens, D., Stephens, S., Johnson, L., & Edington, M. (2020). Enhancing undergraduate student success in STEM fields through growth-mindset and grit. Education Sciences, 10(10), 279. doi:10.3390/educsci10100279
Limeri, L. B., Carter, N. T., Choe, J., Harper, H. G., Martin, H. R., Benton, A., & Dolan, E. L. (2020). Growing a growth mindset: Characterizing how and why undergraduate students’ mindsets change. International Journal of STEM Education, 7(1). doi:10.1186/s40594-020-00227-2
Miller, D. (2015). Fostering a growth mindset is key to teaching STEM. Retrieved November 14, 2019, from https://www.usnews.com/news/stem-solutions/articles/2015/07/10/fostering-a-growth-mindset-is-key-to-teaching-stem