Both the IUPUI Mission Statement and Strategic Plan make diversity and creating an inclusive climate key objectives. Using Daryl Smith’s (2009, 2015) diversity model framework, the IUPUI Diversity Plan addresses four diversity indicators: Institutional Viability and Vitality; Education and Scholarship; Climate and Intergroup Relations; and Access and Success.
Institutional Viability and Vitality Initiatives
Building institutional capacity for diversity through the recruitment and retention of a diverse professoriate and staff; level of diversity in university boards and the level of engagement of these boards in diversity matters; strategies for monitoring progress; as well as communications about inclusion and equity are among the components addressed in this indicator.
- Diversity of faculty and staff by level
- Institutional history on diversity Issues and incidents
- Institutional strategies and resources
- Centrality of diversity in the planning, mission statements and program reviews
- Frameworks and indicators for monitoring diversity
- Public constituency perceptions of institutional commitment to diversity
- Board diversity and engagement
- Re-Institute but revamp Associate Vice Chancellor for Diversity in Academic Affairs to manage START Program and ensure diverse faculty have opportunities for success; unlike previous iterations of this position, this MUST be a tenured faculty member with both expertise and competence to support faculty of Color, women faculty, etc.
- Revamp Diversity Report to more accurately and meaningfully monitor progress including a disaggregation of groups
- Pair OEO/Affirmative Action Plans with Diversity Plans, where appropriate
- Development of a Communication Plan (including Inside IUPUI) for the Diversity Report highlighting the importance of diversity, improvements and plans for improving less than satisfactory findings
- Tie merit reviews for all leaders at the Director level and above to improved climate, equity and inclusion
- Incorporate diversity, equity, inclusion and climate in all required reports (Annual Report, Budget Meeting required discussion points where university leaders highlight key initiatives and progress for students, staff and faculty, as well as in the curriculum). Diversity (its importance, successes, etc.), must be woven into every document/report required of university leadership.
- Intentional development of the IUPUI Diversity Advisory Board to include, but not exclusively, members and leaders from various diverse communities (race, gender, sexual orientation)
- Make regular reports to the IUPUI Diversity Advisory Board and all IUPUI Boards about the IUPUI climate, Diversity Report statistics
- Ensure that all IUPUI boards have diverse membership
- Engage the Diversity Advisory Board in the recruitment of students, faculty and administrators
- Working with IU Communications, ensure that the Chancellor has regular columns and/or interviews in diversity publications about the importance of diversity, the university’s progress, etc.
- Include IUPUI Diversity Board members on key search committees (deans, vice chancellors, etc.), not merely diversity-related positions
- Create and empower Task Forces on African American, Latina/o, LGBTQ, etc., student, staff and faculty success
- Expand and build upon current trainings and professional development for faculty and staff with 2, 4 and 6 hour trainings and workshops focusing on race, gender, sexual orientation, disabilities, veterans, etc.
- Introduce a Diversity Curriculum Program for faculty
- Conduct university-wide assessment of diversity funding and resources
- Introduce the IUPUI or Chancellor’s Diversity Speaker Series for students, staff, faculty and the Indianapolis community
- As part of the Diversity Speaker Series, incorporate a Social Justice Book and Lecture Program for all University College students, interested staff, faculty and community members
- Formalize a process to take Intergroup Dialogue into the classroom
- Develop Best Practices document for recruiting and retaining diverse faculty
- Introduce Critical Conversations Lunch series for the entire campus
- Identify Diversity Assessment Director for the campus
- Introduce Disability Advocate Awards to acknowledge and celebrate key faculty and staff working to make IUPUI welcoming for differently-abled individuals
- Revamp current Chancellor’s Diversity Committee to include subgroups to make recommendations on American Indian students, staff and faculty; Latina/o students, staff and faculty; Black students, staff and faculty; LGBTQ+ students, staff and faculty, etc.
- Ensure that diversity is central to/in the planning processes, mission statements, program reviews
- Include diversity in all administrative reviews
- Incorporate diversity into all staff performance reviews
- Include diversity (importance of, achievements, etc.), in all major Chancellor address not merely diversity-related events
- Incorporate Best Practices to recruit and retain diverse faculty in chairs’ meetings
Education and Scholarship
Ensuring that every university constituent has access to the information, materials and experiences necessary to engage an increasing diverse world competently is key to this indicator. Are we preparing students with the knowledge and skills to function across difference? How does the institution contribute to and create opportunities for faculty to enhance their capacity to engage students in coursework and research that will empower students to function in a pluralistic society? Does the university offer sufficient coursework to address these needs? Are students and faculty encouraged to pursue diversity in their research for capstone courses, advanced degrees and/or promotion and tenure?
- Availability (presence of diversity-related courses and requirements, degree to which courses include diversity issues and placement of such courses)
- Experience (course-taking patterns of students, research that engages society)
- Learning (quantity and substance of students learning about diversity, capstone and dissertations about diversity)
- Faculty capacity (level of faculty expertise on diversity-related matters, level and diversity of faculty participating in diversity efforts; research, publishing)
- Create a Diversity in the Curriculum Program for Faculty
- Formalize Intergroup Dialogue in the Classroom wherever possible
- Initiate one-on-one meetings between DEI VC and all faculty of Color and women in STEM at the assistant professor/tenure track level
- Assess current curriculum to better understand both availability and need
- Develop instruments to assess student learning in diversity courses
- Introduce Annual Diversity or Social Justice Book and Lecture Program
- Introduce New Diversity Awards—Dissertation, Master’s Thesis, Undergraduate and Graduate Student Research; Faculty Research
- Introduce Community-based Research Awards—Dissertation, Master’s Thesis, Undergraduate and Graduate Student Research; Faculty Research and Teaching with the caveat that all nominations require letter of support from a community representative
- Create an assessment of faculty capacity and willingness to teach and conduct diversity and community related courses and research.
- Introduce an Excellence in Diversity Publication Award for students, staff and faculty
Climate and Intergroup Relations
Programmatic efforts designed to improve campus climate for students at all levels, staff and faculty are essential to this indicator. Further, attention is paid to the level of engagement and perceptions and satisfaction with treatment and about the climate.
- Type and quality of group interactions
- Perceptions of the institution (climate, commitment, fairness)
- Quality of experience/engagement on campus, satisfaction
- Make use of IUPUI’s rich assessment history and capacity by benchmarking current perceptions of campus climate and study for improvement every 4 years
- Assess satisfaction, learning and use of the varied diversity initiatives found across campus (including programming, trainings, Multicultural Leadership Education Program, Social Justice Scholars, Jagversity Peer Educators, etc.)
- Assess need and availability of staff development opportunities; create necessary training and programming
- Assess and encourage the diversity of participation in diversity-related campus events
- Establish annual retreats for faculty of Color with DEI Vice Chancellor
- Establish annual one-on-one meetings with tenure track assistant professors of Color and tenure track women assistant professors in STEM Schools (Dentistry, Engineering & Technology, Informatics & Science) with DEI Vice Chancellor
Access and Success
Traditionally these indicators have been limited to undergraduate success. While important, attention must be given to graduate student enrollment and success as well. Additionally, the growing need for better representation in STEM fields makes participation by diverse students in these areas essential.
- Undergraduate/graduate student population by fields and levels
- Success of students (graduation, persistence, honors, STEM fields, gateways)
- Transfer among fields (especially STEM)
- Pursuit of advanced degrees
- Increase representation of undergraduate and graduate students of Color and all women enrolled at IUPUI (disaggregated) to match or surpass our aspirational peers
- Increase the representation of all women and students of Color (disaggregated) in STEM fields to match or surpass our aspirational peers
- Improve graduation rates of undergraduate and graduate students of Color to surpass our aspirational peers
- Increase the diversity of Honors students to match or surpass our peers
- Increase the number of women faculty in STEM departments
- Increase the number of Latina/o staff in all employee classifications to surpass the number of Latina/o residents in Central Indiana
- Increase the number of Black, Latina/o and Indigenous tenured and tenure-track faculty
- Make tenuring and promoting of faculty of Color the rule rather than the exception
- Place all searches at the director level and above on hold when the on-campus interview pools are not diverse (race and gender) until the search committees can diversify the pool
- Require diverse search committees (more than one person) and reward those individuals required to serve on multiple committees due to the university’s low number of available participants.
Benchmarking
The following metrics are recommended for measuring improvement
- Change over time
- Change in relation to specific goals
- Change in comparison to national, statewide or peer institutional data
- Change in comparison to outstanding performers
- Change in comparison to other IUPUI academic units