Policies & Procedures Manual and Operations Handbooks: Section 22
Updated February 2026
SECTION 22 BROADENING PARTICIPATION COMMITTEE
22.1 PURPOSE AND SCOPE
The purpose of the Broadening Participation Committee is to foster an environment in which all individuals are encouraged to participate and engage in Society activities and programs without regard to demographic factors. The Broadening Participation Committee shall support the Broadening Participation in Computing grant program. The Broadening Participation Committee shall provide regular reports to the Board of Governors and recommend new initiatives to broaden participation in the Society.
22.2 MEMBERSHIP
The Broadening Participation Committee shall consist of a Chair and eight members with staggered two-year terms. By 1 January of each year, the IEEE Computer Society President shall appoint four members to the Broadening Participation Committee for a two-year term. Consideration shall be given to ensuring the Committee composition represents the broad Society community and areas of engagement with the Society, such as but not limited to, conferences, publications, membership, standards, and education. Appointed committee members may not serve more than one consecutive two-year term. The Society President and Executive Director shall be ex officio, non-voting members of the Committee.
The Chair of the Broadening Participation Committee shall be appointed by the Computer Society president. If a current member of the Committee is appointed Chair or is unable to complete their two-year term, the President will appoint an additional member to fill the vacancy.
22.3 DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
The Broadening Participation Committee shall:
1. Develop strategies to broaden participation within the IEEE Computer Society.
2. Manage the Broadening Participation in Computing grant program call for proposals and selection process.
3. Continually identify processes within the Computer Society that are barriers to participation and suggest improvements.
4. Collaborate with IEEE committees and groups in broadening participation. Collaborate with other active groups, such as the IEEE Women in Engineering (WIE) Committee, CRA-WP and the Anita Borg organization. Recommend to the Computer Society President-elect the appointment of the Society representative to the IEEE WIE Committee.
