CREST at the Advancing Research Impact in Society Summit 2025

CUNY CREST HIRES Director and Deputy Director of the CUNY CREST Institute, Dr. Shakila Merchant represented the CREST at the Advancing Research Impact in Society (ARIS) Summit 2025 held in San Juan, Puerto Rico from April 22 to 25, 2025. The summit brought together its community members to explore various Broader Impacts (BI) themes and topics.

Dr. Shakila Merchant serves as the CUNY Principal Investigator (PI) of the National Science Foundation ARIS-BI Toolkit, led by the PI- Dr. Janice McDonnell, Rutgers University. During the Summit, Dr. Merchant participated in several engaging activities including inspiring keynote speeches, discussion sessions on broader impact, award ceremony, presentations, and pop quiz. Some of the highlights from the summit included a powerful performance by La Bomba and emphasis on public impact, interdisciplinary partnerships, and joy in community-building.  

The Summit provided a great opportunity for participants to network and learn about each other. Commenting on her experience of the Summit, Dr. Merchant said, “Broader Impacts are not just a requirement—they are a responsibility. Through ARIS, we are reimagining how research meaningfully connects with society by building strong, cross-sector partnerships. ARIS 2025 represented a collective step forward in making our impacts intentional, measurable, and lasting.” 

Learn more about the summit here.