Strategic Action Plan on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion

In March 2006, President Alan B. Donovan charged the Office of Equity and Inclusion to create the College's Strategic Action Plan on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion. This charge provided the College with the opportunity for engagement on the part of its constituency groups in creating the College we aim to have in five years.

The Office of Equity and Inclusion invited the members of the President's Cabinet to work with their divisions in selecting a specific number of individuals to represent each division - the constituency groups - on the Strategic Action Plan's Team. From August 2006, to the present, the Director of the Office of Equity and Inclusion has been working with the Team in creating the draft plan.

Strategic Plan Statement of Values

We hold ourselves to the highest standard of integrity, recognizing our common purpose in creating a truly diverse campus community that respects and values each and every member.  We support open, yet responsible communication among all members of the campus community.  Honest inquiry and dialogue, when rooted in civility, will generate greater appreciation and understanding for our individual and group differences.  We affirm that our many differences are also our greatest strengths as a community, that we are all enriched by learning from each other's life experiences, backgrounds, and cultural perspectives.  Just as we affirm the worth and dignity of every member of our campus community, so, too, do we support an inclusive environment for learning and working.  We recognize that an exemplary education includes the study of diverse points of view that reflect our increasingly pluralistic society.  We recognize that such learning, including the exchange of ideas and learning opportunities, both inside and outside the classroom, will thrive if free from intimidation, bias, prejudice, and discrimination.  Finally, we constitute a campus community whose members embody and promote the values of equity, diversity, and inclusion.

Goals and Objectives

The Strategic Action Plan on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion has three main goals, and one umbrella goal and seventeen objectives.

GOAL 1: CREATE A COLLEGE COMMUNITY THAT VALUES AND PROMOTES
                 EQUITY, DIVERSITY, AND INCLUSION.

The College will accomplish this Goal with the following eight objectives:

1.1.  Engage 25% of employees in professional development opportunities related to equity, diversity, and inclusion.

1.2   Increase collaborative initiatives among all segments of the College to foster respect, civility, and a welcoming campus environment by 20%.

1.3.  Assess the campus climate on equity, diversity,  and inclusion every three years.

1.4.  Increase recruitment and retention of under-represented students by 20%.

1.5. Increase recruitment and retention of under-represented faculty at the College by 25%.  (see also Goal 3, Objective 3)

1.6.  Increase the recruitment and retention of under-represented staff and administrators at the College by 25%.

1.7   Increase the recruitment and retention of international students as well as the geographical diversity of recruitment countries by 15% respectively.

1.8.  Create and implement recognition opportunities celebrating those at the College whose work contributes to advancing equity, diversity, and inclusion.

GOAL 2:  BUILD AN ENVIRONMENT THAT PROMOTES COMMUNICATION AND
                 FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION

The College will accomplish this Goal with the following three objectives:

2.1.  Create intentional opportunities to foster collaboration, visibility, coordination and information dissemination regarding available venues and programs dedicated to providing awareness and appreciation for equity, diversity, and inclusion.

2.2   Increase the participation of employees and students by 10% annually in training and programming that raise cultural competences and promote equity, diversity, and inclusion.

2.3   Develop programs, policies, and means to promote freedom of expression in regards to sexuality and gender identity and expression.

GOAL 3:  CREATE A COLLEGE ENVIRONMENT THAT PROMOTES INCLUSIVE
                 TEACHING AND LEARNING

The College will accomplish this Goal with the following six objectives:

3.1.  Communicate educational rationale of equity, diversity, and inclusion to 20% of campus faculty annually.

3.2   Allocate resources to develop skills and provide opportunities for inclusive learning, teaching, and scholarship to 20% of faculty annually.

3.3   Commit to increasing by 25% both the recruitment and retention of under-represented faculty and administration. (see also Goal 1, Objectives 5 and 6)

3.4.  Promote faculty efforts to infuse equity, diversity, and inclusion in their teaching and/or research by 25%.

3.5.  Increase participation opportunities for all students through courses, programs, and travel to enhance their abilities to live, work and lead in a diverse world by 30%.

3.6.  Increase Americans with Disabilities Act compliance of all classrooms by 10% by 2010.

UMBRELLA GOAL:

The College Community is knowledgeable of, and committed to, successfully implementing and completing within the timetables, this Strategic Action Plan on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion.

The Umbrella goal will be accomplished through the implementation of the above three goals.