# Designing for Change: Principles for STEM Programs That Foster Organizational Transformation

## TL;DR

This paper explores how STEM programs can be designed to drive organizational change and reduce inequities in higher education.

## Contribution

The paper introduces four design principles for creating equity-centered STEM programs that foster institutional transformation.

## Key findings

- Four design principles were identified to reconfigure structures and cultures in STEM programs.
- The principles are based on organizational change theory and a multi-site case study.
- These principles aim to address inequities and promote sustainable institutional change.

## Abstract

This study examines how STEM programs can be intentionally designed to serve as mechanisms for organizational transformation. Grounded in organizational change theory and findings from a multi-site qualitative case study of the Meyerhoff Adaptation Project, the study presents four design principles that illustrate how intentional choices can reconfigure structures, cultures, and power dynamics, which enable inequity within higher education. The principles offer guidance for developing sustainable, equity-centered STEM initiatives that advance institutional change.