Building an Inclusive Culture in Academia: A Case Study
Monday, March 18th: 12:15pm – 1:30pm MDT (11:15-12:30pm PDT, 1:15-2:30pm CDT, 2:15-3:30pm EDT)
Many higher ed institutions are working with matters of diversity, equity and inclusion, and, relatedly, with culture and climate. This session uses a case study approach from one institution to look at the complexities and value of creating inclusive culture in academia. Though this institution has been focused from its beginnings on embodying a social justice mission, it too has found a need to initiate specific inclusion work. In 2015, it created a Strategic Diversity Plan as an integral part of its Strategic Plan. The plan identified 5 areas of impact: culture, competence, faculty diversity, curriculum, and student experience. To accomplish the desired goals, the plan included the formation of an Inclusion Council and, later, the hiring of a Chief Diversity Officer.
In mid-2017, after a national search, the institution chose Dr. Plácida Gallegos to be the inaugural Chair of the Inclusion Council. Her first task was to create the Inclusion Council. Thus began an inclusion initiative with an unusual trajectory, where the community involvement grew from the intended 8-10 to over 60 alumni, students, faculty, and staff.
In this session, Dr. Gallegos will look at the unfolding and impact of this process so far, and reflect on her own and the institution’s experience. What worked well and why? What did not turn out as expected? What has the institution learned and gained through this process? What has changed, and what not? How do the institutional qualities specific to higher ed influence the process? The session will be interactive, with opportunities for both questions and discussion.
Firerook’s Karen Williams, also a member of the institution’s Inclusion Council, joins Plácida in the exploration of the process.
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