Rethinking Diversity

Diversity has become an important issue and agenda item today, in corporate contexts as well as educational institutions. As an educator and administrator, I'm especially interested in how schools as well as colleges today claim to be spaces that foster diversity, that value diversity, and that seek greater and greater diversity. Whether it is through their marketing materials on the web or in the Chronicle, or in the numerous committees and strategic plan documents they create, diversity is an absolute and unquestioned value. What constitutes diversity across these different types of institutions varies: while some tend to focus on racial and ethnic diversity, others have recognized that gender, disability, nationality, and socio-economic location also profoundly shape the look and feel of a truly "diverse" and inclusive community. These are all steps in the right direction: the more schools and colleges recognize that a more diverse classroom also makes for a more equal and just community, the more they fulfill their mission to educate and enlighten their constituents.

However, the challenge in fostering and nurturing a campus and community that is truly diverse is more complex: Is it enough to have a student body that is multi-cultural? Is it enough to have a more or less equal ratio of women and men, and an accepting space for those who are transgender? What about the faculty? Are the faculty in different departments truly representative of the general population? Are there women, African Americans, Asian Americans, and other minorities in the faculty ranks? This dimension of creating diversity has been a challenge in higher education, and especially in its leadership. This can be grasped in many ways: for example, a cursory look at a school's monthly newsletter that goes out to alumni and the student-parent community might reveal the complexity of the diversity challenge. Many college magazines, from the elite R-1s to small liberal arts colleges often still profile more male faculty than female; they might often profile more male trustees, than they do the female trustees. Often, while racial minority students appear in photos that claim to represent the diversity of the school, there is a disconnect: the pictures of the faculty and researchers tend to focus more on male subjects, and few people of color. These representations matter. They tell a story, about the presence and value of some persons over others in a particular community. Thus, even after the hiring of ethnic and gender minorities, institutions must be vigilant about how processes of mentoring, visibility, promotion, and support are unfolding for their minority faculty.

There are no simple solutions. However, there are many small and simple steps toward fixing how bias and unconscious prejudice might shape the life of a college. For starters, department heads, deans, and provosts all need to consider the specific case of minority faculty: in the interest of recruitment and retention, and towards creating a more equitable and inclusive workplace. This would entail placing diversity on the agenda, yes, but as backed by a substantial allocation of time and resources. Further, at every level, leadership needs to consider: are women and minority faculty being given the same kind of mentoring and research support, within and outside departments? What is the evidence of this? Are processes in their departments transparent? How is the climate in the department, and do minority faculty feel as if they have a cohort, a community in which they are valued and supported? This entails creating welcoming spaces for dialogue on campus: dialogues that connect minority faculty with each other across departments, as well as with the university administration. This also entails allocating resources to pay for the lunch for a faculty gathering, or for creating a Working Group that forms an intellectual community of vibrant exchange and nurture. Such new circles or spheres of influence can also create mentorship networks for women and minority faculty, and generate vibrant collaborations in research and teaching.

These and other steps often do not require intensive resource allocations that will put a dent in any college budget; they DO require an honest commitment from leadership at all levels-from departments to deans-to take a clear-eyed look at how processes are unfolding in their departments/colleges. This entails asking the tough questions: How many women are at the table? How many women sit on the important committees? How many faculty of color sit at the table when it comes to crucial decisions? How many of the women and faculty of color at the table actually speak frequently in meetings? How many women and faculty of color are being promoted, or are in important positions of leadership? How many women and faculty of color have been profiled recently in the college magazine? etc. etc.

These are all tough questions. However, answers to these questions provide a measure of the quality and climate in your workplace; they also point us to the roadmap for what needs to change. These are small steps-of reflection, dialogue, and assessment-that will vastly improve the climate at colleges for women and minority faculty. If the minority faculty do not feel mentored, supported, valued, and included, then, despite the admissions of more minority students, the work of creating true diversity at a campus remains unfinished. This impacts and diminishes the student experience as well. Numerous studies have shown that the more diverse a workplace-and the college is a workplace- the better the unit or team performs, and the result will be a better educational experience for our increasingly diverse and complex student body across colleges and universities in America.

Image Credit: Christina @womenintechchat.com

#gender #diversity #women #race #inclusion