For many years, the U.S. has underutilized its human resources, as evidenced by the pervasive underrepresentation of several racial and ethnic groups within academia in general and the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines, in particular. To address this underutilization, academic departments within U.S. universities must develop grassroots efforts that both recruit and retain students from all segments of the U.S. population. While many departments have noted this need and are earnestly trying to increase the diversity of their programs, very few have successfully achieved this laudable goal. This inquiry into the salient features of successful diversity agendas within STEM academic departments provides key insights into "how" departments can increase and sustain the doctoral degree attainment of students from underrepresented racial and ethnic minority groups.