Colgate strives to be an inclusive community — one that embraces and values diversity in an environment of mutual respect, communication and engagement.
University Messages
Learn more about what led to the development of a 21-point action plan, authored collaboratively by students and administrators, to help begin the work of making Colgate a more inclusive and welcoming campus for all students.
In Images: The March to Conclude a Peaceful Protest
Progress Report
The full 21-point action plan, along with current status updates, can be found below. The latest update was posted June 29, 2015.
The Plan
Because we understand that our earliest hopes for and expectations of Colgate are formed during our admissions process, we ask:
1.
- that admission staff, ambassadors, and tour guides be engaged in sustained diversity training (the training must include issues of race, class, ability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity etc.).
Colgate Response
We will begin to design training for staff and students immediately. Because Admission staff travel, we will need until December 15, 2014 to fully train all staff members, and will repeat annually. A semesterly training program for students will be finalized by December 15, 2014, and all student tour guides will be fully trained by February 15, 2015 (Vice President and Dean of Admission, Office of Admission and Associate Provost for Equity and Diversity, Office of Equity and Diversity).
Status: Complete
June 29, 2015
All tour guides attended a session led by Thomas Cruz-Soto in early April.
Admission student workers and volunteers will attend a training session on March 30, April 1, or April 2. This session will be led by Thomas Cruz-Soto, associate dean for multicultural affairs. The respective directors of the tour guide program, ambassador program, and fellows program, as well as the manager of work study positions in the Office of Admission, have all contributed to the content of the sessions.
All staff members from the Office of Admission have completed two diversity training sessions (on November 12 and December 15). Student staff and tour guides will receive similar training at the beginning of the spring 2015 semester.
The Office of Equity and Diversity, led by Associate Provost Lyn Rugg, will develop and facilitate the training sessions for admission staff. These sessions are scheduled for mid-November and mid-December. Topics to be covered include:
- Knows and adheres to university diversity and inclusion policies and practices.
- Understands how diversity and inclusion contribute to university culture, mission, and educational aspirations.
- Understands multiple cultural frameworks,* values, and norms.
*Cultural Frameworks: Includes race/ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, age, ability, international students, class, religion, indigenous populations, and multiracial individuals. - Understands implicit bias, stereotyping, and stereotype threat.
- Understands the dynamics of cross-cultural communication.
2.
- that all admissions tours address issues of diversity more fully in order to articulate our complex history and our hopes for the future.
Colgate Response
Colgate has a proud history, and this movement is one example of how members of our community have spoken out for positive change. We will integrate these stories more intentionally into the campus tours, highlighting moments that have helped to make Colgate a more inclusive campus. We will showcase campus communities such as the ALANA Cultural Center, LGBTQ programs, and the Women’s Studies Program, explaining how these spaces came into existence as an example of Colgate’s commitment to diversity (Vice President and Dean of Admission, Office of Admission and Vice President of Communications, Office of Communications, by November 1, 2014).
We also discussed the importance of ensuring that our Office of Admission reflect the diversity of our community. To better ensure the diversity of the student workers in the Office of Admission, we commit to five additional work study positions in the Admission office to serve in a variety of different capacities, including as tour guides (Vice President and Dean of Admission, Office of Admission for spring semester 2015).
Status: Complete
March 17, 2015
Five visit operations assistants started working in the Office of Admission early in the spring semester. These students have immediately and positively impacted the admission effort as enthusiastic, approachable, and professional ambassadors that represent the diverse backgrounds of our entire student body. They are a visible and almost constant presence as they are scheduled to cover business hours Monday through Friday, as well as all Saturdays when the office is open.
Tour guides have been trained on tour additions and message refinement, and these new tour stops and script have been in use since November 1.
3.
- that recruitment programming, including Multicultural Visit Weekends and April Visit Days, be reconsidered and restructured in ways that address varied multicultural experiences, and that prepare students for the challenges in our campus climate once they arrive on campus.
Colgate Response
Beginning this month, the Office of Admission will review these programs, in consultation with members of the community, for implementation throughout this academic year.
Status: Complete
All admission volunteers and overnight hosts who will be participating in the visit experience for April Visit Days will attend one of three mandatory diversity training sessions on March 30, April 1, or April 2. This is a collaborative effort between the Office of Admission and the ALANA Cultural Center. It is our goal that this training will facilitate a dialogue among our student volunteers and provide them with tools and resources necessary to interact with our visitors in an honest and informed way.
Diversity and inclusion will be a central theme of April Visit Days (April 8 and April 13). The Multicultural Recruitment Committee (an advisory group of students, faculty, and administrators) and admission staff are working together to select panelists and guests for the various April visit events, with the goal of representing a diverse array of interests, ideas, and backgrounds.
John Paul Ortiz ’10, assistant dean of admission, has established a multicultural recruitment committee comprised of students, staff, and faculty. The committee will advise on multicultural and inclusivity messages conveyed at programs for accepted students, including the Multicultural Open House and April Visit Days programs.
At the Multicultural Open House in November, eight ACC members participated in a panel discussion with prospective students in which they discussed the student demonstrations and the events and campus climate that led to the demonstrations being held.
4.
- that we create formal assessments of admission processes to determine the efficacy and inclusivity of admissions programs and protocols.
Colgate Response
Led by the Admission team, and in concert with our strategic goals to create a diverse campus, we will consult broadly with members of the community as part of our formal and ongoing assessments of the admission process to determine the efficacy and inclusivity of our recruitment efforts (Vice President and Dean of Admission, Office of Admission, to begin this semester (fall 2014).
Status: Complete
June 29, 2015
Meetings last semester with ACC leadership led to helpful and productive conversations about staff and student training, the required application supplement essay, and access that prospective students have to current students for information about campus life. The supplemental essay for the Class of 2016 is: "At Colgate we strive to foster an inclusive community. Please discuss how your life experiences, family background, and/or culture has helped to shape you as a person. It would be especially helpful if you would also reflect on an experience which demonstrated your character and personal values."
Consultations on this assessment and review process began in fall 2014 and will continue in spring 2015. Meetings in spring 2015 will be dedicated to topics such as:
- The supplemental essay
- Admission travel and high school visits
- The applicant pool
- Admission messaging about inclusivity at Colgate
- Campus values as represented by the campus visit experience.
Because we aim to make Colgate accessible to all, regardless of socioeconomic status, we ask for these reforms in our Financial Aid system:
5.
- that financial aid administrators and staff be engaged in sustained diversity training and that the Office of Financial Aid hire a more diverse staff.
Colgate Response
We will begin immediately to develop this training and will have implemented the training fully by the end of the fall semester (Office of Financial Aid in consultation with Office of Equity and Diversity, December 15, 2014).
Status: Complete
December 23, 2014
All staff members from the Office of Financial Aid have completed two diversity training sessions (on November 14 and 25).
The Office of Equity and Diversity, led by Associate Provost Lyn Rugg, will develop and facilitate the training sessions for financial aid staff members. These sessions are scheduled for mid-November. Topics to be covered include
- Knows and adheres to university diversity and inclusion policies and practices.
- Understands how diversity and inclusion contribute to university culture, mission, and educational aspirations.
- Understands multiple cultural frameworks,* values, and norms.
*Cultural Frameworks: Includes race/ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, age, ability, international students, class, religion, indigenous populations, and multiracial individuals. - Understands implicit bias, stereotyping, and stereotype threat.
- Understands the dynamics of cross-cultural communication.
6.
- that our financial aid system be held accountable for providing full work study opportunities to all students who are guaranteed them in their financial aid packages; and that ample campus jobs and funds are available to meet that promise; indeed, that more monies are available to award to need-based students.
Colgate Response
In 2013-14, 41 students notified us that they were having trouble finding jobs, and ultimately only 10 of these were not working by year’s end. (That represents approximately 1% of students with work-study awards, and there were still jobs that went unfilled.) We are committed to working with all students so that they may receive their full award. Therefore, we will develop a semesterly orientation and job fair, where students learn tips for finding and interviewing for work study jobs, and learn of the range of available opportunities. The Office of Financial Aid will proactively engage students to better assist them in finding work-study employment (Director of Financial Aid, Office of Financial Aid, Associate Vice President for Institutional Advancement and Director of Career Services, Office of Career Services, by December 15, 2014).
Status: Complete
June 29, 2015
The student/staff committee met two additional times after Spring Break. Here are the items that were discussed:
- Discussed potential benefits and challenges of a 24/7 “virtual job fair” as opposed to a twice-a-year, in-person event and determined that it would be best to put time and effort into an online program that can be made available indefinitely, at any time of day or night, for students now and in future years.
- Determined that a series of short “webisodes” on individual topics (e.g. mechanics of how to find a job, job-search strategies, etc.) would be of more help than one longer program covering all topics.
- Discussed various topics to cover and how best to approach each one (e.g.,”person-on-the-street” interviews with students, or staff members making presentations, or using engaging graphics, etc.)
- Student members of the committee expressed strong desire for a webisode on topics such as “how to read your award letter” and “how work-study fits into your academic-year award and budget.” Indeed, because the consensus among our student members was that those topics were potentially even more important than some others, the students requested that when designing and producing webisodes, we first address these issues, even with the understanding that this would likely delay production of job-hunt-related webisodes. It is our intention to have a webisode in place on these two topics prior to the start of the fall term.
Short term goals that have been completed:
- Beginning with the spring 2015 term, supervisors have been advised that all jobs must be advertised through the student employment portal.
- Supervisors have also been asked to acknowledge all job applications. The Student Employment Handbook for Supervisors has been updated with suggested templates to help supervisors with this process.
- Job postings will expire automatically to guard against positions remaining posted after having been filled.
- An e-mail was sent on March 12 encouraging supervisors to do all their hiring for their Grade 3 and 4 positions for the next academic year. This was done to follow a similar timeline for recruitment and hiring of Community Leaders and many other current internship-type positions. This will enable supervisors to have a better idea of their job openings for Grade 1 and 2 for the next academic year and for students to be considered for the Grade 3 and 4 positions before the beginning of the fall term.
Additionally, the Center for Career Services and the Office of Financial Aid aim to review a prospective new job application-management system, and discussions continue about developing a student employment webinar.
Staff consultations on this action step began immediately and have expanded to include student representation. In spring 2015 a broad group will finalize initiatives to help maximize work-study opportunities.
7.
- that, because financial aid cannot remedy systemic socioeconomic disparities, including access to transportation services, Colgate reinstate a free and safe transport system to and from Syracuse for the entire population at Colgate. This would work to alleviate the experience of isolation on the basis of socioeconomic status.
Colgate Response
We will review the costs of establishing regular transport between Hamilton and Syracuse. This fall we will survey students to estimate demand and, working with the student travel agency, run three pilot trips (e.g., late night programming) (Vice President of Finance and Administration, Office of Finance and Administration, and Director of the Center for Leadership and Student Involvement, Office of Finance and Administration, Center for Leadership and Student Involvement, by December 15, 2014).
Status: Complete
March 17, 2015
Three scheduled trips to Syracuse in the fall 2014 semester failed to meet the minimum number of participants. Upon evaluation of the pilot project, it was determined that there was a lack of student interest. No additional trips will be scheduled.
The Student Travel Agency, with advisement from the Center for Leadership and Student Involvement, scheduled three pilot trips to Syracuse during the fall 2014 semester. The university and representatives from the SGA and ACC agreed that a minimum of 10 registered student participants should be required for a trip to run. Registrations for each of the three trips failed to meet this minimum. The first two trips were cancelled, while the third proceeded as an exception so that feedback could be gathered from participants. The success of this pilot will be evaluated to determine what might be planned for the future.
Michael Maningas (director of the Center for Leadership and Student Involvement) and Denise Upton, (office manager for CLSI), held two meetings with representatives of ACC, SGA, and the Student Travel Agency to design a survey tool and analyze responses to determine demand for this service. They also established a three-weekend pilot initiative for a bus to Syracuse on November 8, November 15, and December 6. The assessment of the surveys and feedback from participants in the three pilot trips will be reviewed and discussed in the middle of December, and a recommendation will be made before the winter break.
Because campus life is shaped so fully and vibrantly by students’ relations with faculty as well as with their engagement with the curriculum, we ask:
8.
- that all faculty, staff, administrators regardless of tenure positions or academic departments and students be engaged in required and sustained diversity training, through programs such as NCBI (National Coalition Building Institute) or IGD (Intergroup Dialogue) in order to bring issues of diversity and intersectionality fully into the curriculum.
Colgate Response
Our work in this area will build on what Colgate currently offers to enhance employees’ and students’ understanding of how systemic structures shape power and privilege. Safe Zone trainings have thus far been voluntary, as we believe that is most effective; however, we will develop a more structured process that will serve more participants. In addition, Intergroup Dialogue (IGD) workshops have allowed faculty and staff to develop their perspectives and skills related to diversity, and we are committing additional resources to make the IGD program available to more faculty and staff throughout this academic year. Bystander Intervention Trainings, which were put in place to foster sexual respect and stop sexual violence, teach skills that are transferrable to speaking out against bias behavior of all kinds. We will expand these sessions throughout this academic year. We will implement a variety of training sessions this academic year on a number of topics to include (but not limited to) unconscious bias, communication across difference, and respect in the workplace (Associate Provost for Equity and Diversity, Office of Equity and Diversity).
For staff and administrators, we have incorporated diversity into our major job description project, which has been in progress for the past year. Colgate is revamping every non-faculty job description on campus. Inclusion and diversity will be a required competency for every employee. As a result, every performance evaluation done on an annual basis will include how employees work towards attending to diversity in their job. That allows us to offer required educational sessions for employees at all levels. The Office of Equity and Diversity will begin its preparation for this work immediately, in order that supervisor training will begin by December.
Given the centrality of faculty governance, professional development for faculty requires input from the faculty. The Faculty Affairs Committee (FAC) has unanimously decided to bring to the next Faculty Meeting (October 6th) a resolution that affirms the expectation that faculty will strive continually to make all students feel safe, respected, and fully included in the classroom; the resolution also supports the implementation of a coordinated set of professional development workshops through which all faculty can improve their capacities in managing a diverse classroom. If this motion passes a faculty vote, the development of this set of professional development programs will be immediately initiated by the Center for Learning, Teaching, and Research (CLTR) in partnership with the Office of Equity and Diversity, so that initial workshops can be offered in the spring semester. In addition, a session on teaching students from diverse backgrounds will be included in new faculty orientation (coordinated by Associate Deans of the Faculty, already implemented this year, to be expanded).
For students, understanding and living amid diversity will be a theme of orientation programming (whether during the pre-term orientation period or as a special program in the early weeks of the first semester) for all first-year students, and required diversity training will be provided to these student leaders on campus: student staff, Links, CLs, and leaders of RLCs. In addition, we will continue to offer diversity trainings for student organizations (e.g., student government association, fraternity and sorority leaders). The aforementioned will be planned starting immediately for a start date by January 2015, and an orientation program will be ready for the Class of 2019’s arrival in August 2015.
Status: Complete
June 29, 2015
An IGD reading group for faculty and staff met on a bi-weekly basis during spring 2015 to further personal understanding of modern-day racism and white privilege. An IGD facilitation training workshop was provided in May with six faculty and five staff members participating. Interest in IGD is growing and the hope is to offer IGD workshops on a regular basis to interested faculty and staff. A number of faculty, staff and students will attend the NE IGR Conference at Skidmore College in June.
The Intergroup Dialogue (IGD) Workshop in January 2015 had 32 faculty and staff participants. There is a bi-weekly reading group with IGD participants this spring to further develop their multicultural competence.
The Center for Learning, Teaching, and Research has coordinated a number of events for faculty throughout the spring semester. Some of these included:
- "Negotiating Diversity in the Classroom and in the Workplace," led by members of the Winter Institute, University of Mississippi, and in conjunction with Professor Kezia Page, Sio Chair of Diversity (February 23)
- "Teaching into the Difficult: Race, Diversity, and ‘Colgate for All’," co-sponsored with the Religion Department and CORE 152 (February 27)
- "Creating a Welcoming Learning Environment That is Inclusive of All Genders and Sexualities," facilitated by Hélène Julien, associate professor of French and women's studies and Khristian Kemp-DeLisser, assistant dean/director of LGBTQ Initiatives (March 6)
- “Advocacy in the Classroom," facilitated by Ryan Solomon, assistant professor in writing and rhetoric; Suzanne Spring, senior lecturer in writing and rhetoric and coordinator of second language writing; and Nagesh Rao, lecturer in university studies (March 27).
Colgate also sent over a dozen students to the White Privilege Conference in mid-March, and nine students and two staff members attended the Sustained Dialogue Conference in early March in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
For staff and administrators:
The Office of Equity and Diversity began its diversity training this semester, with sessions for both library faculty and museum staff at the request of these offices. These trainings will serve as a model for future sessions for all staff supervisors beginning in spring 2015.
An Intergroup Dialogue workshop for faculty and administrators, featuring facilitators from Skidmore College, is scheduled for January 15-16, 2015. The opportunity was communicated via an e-mail to faculty and administrators on November 6, and registration is full.
Progress on faculty sessions was noted in the October update and will continue into the spring.
For students:
Khristian Kemp-DeLisser, assistant dean and director of LGBTQ initiatives, worked with the Office of Equity and Diversity to develop a Bystander Intervention training program with a diversity focus. Student facilitators will be trained early in the spring semester and will begin training other students on campus immediately.
A committee comprised of faculty, students, and staff has developed a program for first-year orientation titled Community Conversations for which students will be asked to complete selected readings related to campus climate. Student Link staff, faculty, and staff will then lead small-group discussions about these readings and how they impact our goal to develop a caring, respectful Colgate community. These conversations will take place immediately following Dr. Maura Cullen's lecture and the "In Your Company" program, both of which have been longstanding components of orientation.
Thomas Cruz-Soto, associate dean for multicultural affairs, has developed an educational diversity training session. He has run this training with student leadership groups including fraternities and sororities, Links, and residential life community leaders. This training will be integrated into future student leadership training.
Additionally, during spring 2015 a group of students and staff will attend a conference on Sustained Dialogue to determine if it can be integrated into campus programs. Sustained Dialogue is a peer-led program that allows students to have meaningful, small-group conversations over time about campus social issues.
A “Sense of the Faculty” resolution was passed by an overwhelming margin at the Faculty Meeting on October 6, 2014, which stated:
“Whereas we expect faculty to strive to make all students feel welcome, respected, and fully included in the classroom, and whereas we believe faculty should have the capacity to respond when challenging situations arise, we, the faculty, support the sustained implementation of professional development workshops through which all faculty may become more effective teachers of a diverse student body.”
Tamala Flack (director of equal employment opportunities and affirmative action) and Lyn Rugg (associate provost for equity and diversity) met with Doug Johnson (director of the Center for Learning, Teaching, and Research) to discuss a multi-pronged approach to faculty training, to include continued teaching tables and other diversity programming for spring 2015 and beyond.
A teaching table called “Effectively teaching in a diverse classroom” was held on October 24. An additional session called “Tips for teaching and advising international students” is scheduled for November 13. Intergroup dialogue workshops for faculty and administrators, facilitated by colleagues from Skidmore College, have been scheduled for mid-January. In addition, a faculty reading group on “Pedagogy Addressing Power and Privilege” has already been scheduled for November and December.
9.
- that all applications to work for Colgate (faculty and staff) state that Colgate requires or strongly suggests each candidate be familiar with conversations/issues about diversity, privilege, and intersectionality on college campuses and in the world.
Colgate Response
We will do this. We have increased and prioritized our targeted outreach for open positions across all departments. The Director for Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action, Office of Equity and Diversity, analyzed our staff hiring process, identified gaps, and proposed significant revisions with the goal of creating a diverse and inclusive workforce that reflects our student population and models our educational aspirations. These revisions also address barriers to that goal by standardizing objective candidate evaluation, diversifying search committees, and designating diversity advocates to serve on staff search committees. Candidate evaluation will include assessment of candidate's ability to foster an inclusive workplace.
We have already made progress on the faculty side, with further advances to be made over this annual search cycle. We have piloted language in a number of faculty ads that strongly encourages candidates to describe their strengths and experiences in teaching diverse student populations and in promoting a diverse and inclusive educational environment. Based on successful experiences in the piloted searches this year, the Dean’s Advisory Council plans to make such language standard for all faculty searches moving forward.
Status: Complete
June 29, 2015
The job description project is being implemented. Descriptions now include “the ability to foster an inclusive workplace” as an “essential competency” for every staff member. On the faculty front, all tenure-stream searches now include the standard expectation that “candidates are able to teach in a diverse and inclusive educational environment.” Faculty representing all tenure-stream hires now attend workshops on diversifying the Colgate faculty.
The Human Resources Department and the Office of Equity and Diversity continue to collaborate on incorporating the evaluation of a candidate’s ability to foster an inclusive workplace and campus into the staff hiring process. The faculty hiring guidelines now include a focus on diversity and, as a standard part of the search process, all tenure-stream faculty candidates must describe their approach to teaching and/or scholarship in a diverse and inclusive educational environment.
Lyn Rugg (associate provost for equity and diversity) and Georgia Frank (associate dean of the faculty) are working with search committee chairs to ensure broad and targeted outreach for the currently active searches. The Office of Equity and Diversity is also working on a revised recruitment process for all staff positions that will address both compliance and diversity concerns.
10.
- that our core curriculum be revised to bring in explicit study and understanding of systemic power dynamics and inequities; and how these shape even our most personal relationships with others and ourselves
- including revising the GE requirement so it reflects the original proposal where there are discussions about international relations, imperialism, privilege, political conversations about “studying abroad,” critical conversations about “difference,” etc. Professors should also be capable of having those conversations as a prerequisite for teaching the course.
- additionally, ensuring the core courses include national and worldwide perspectives, not just Western traditions.
Colgate Response
The curriculum, including the Core, is in the purview of the faculty. The Faculty Affairs Committee has agreed, as a first step, to place on the next Faculty Meeting agenda (October 6, 2014) a discussion of diversity in the Colgate curriculum. The FAC is inviting student leaders of the recent demonstrations in James B. Colgate Hall to speak briefly at the Faculty Meeting.
Status: Complete
June 29, 2015
The annual Core curriculum retreat, held at White Eagle May 11 and 12, focused on “Power, Privilege, and Pedagogy.” All Core course faculty teams discussed ways to incorporate these themes into courses. Such reflection and adaptation of courses will be ongoing until the next scheduled major core revision, slated for 2019-2020.
In February, the Core program co-sponsored a two-day visit by Melanie Harris, associate professor of religion at Texas Christian University, and Jen Harvey, associate professor of religion at Drake University. They led workshops for faculty that addressed concerns related to diversity and the curriculum. The faculty teaching Core 152, Challenges of Modernity, were one of their key constituencies. The faculty of Core Communities and Identities has also addressed how to conduct difficult conversations in the classroom regarding diversity. Suzanne Spring joined the Communities and Identities staff for the meetings where these discussions took place. Conversations among the common core faculty will continue at the end-of-year staff meetings in May.
The faculty retreat at White Eagle, May 12-13, 2015, will highlight power, privilege, and pedagogy within the Colgate and core curricula. The first morning of the retreat, which is for faculty campus-wide, will focus exclusively on this theme. There will also be a “town-hall” style meeting on Global Engagements (GE). Among other things, this will focus attention on the 2010 core revision document, which includes power, privilege, and oppression as an important area of concern that GE courses can address. The retreat will also feature afternoon workshops that will allow for continued conversations on the main theme. Particular recommendations for addressing diversity in core components will be discussed in staff meetings on the second day of the retreat.
The CORE university professors are actively planning for the annual faculty-wide curricular retreat at White Eagle Conference Center in May to have a significant focus on diversity in the curriculum.
As a first step, there was a discussion of diversity in the Colgate curriculum at the faculty meeting on October 6, which followed remarks from student representatives regarding the demonstrators’ goals and hopes for curricular reform. The Academic Affairs Board (AAB) has discussed diversity in the curriculum twice, including with the University Professors of the Core program. The AAB will continue to work on these issues.
11.
- that we hire and retain more faculty across aspects of minority identities, as noted above, from both domestic and international backgrounds; and that we actively create the conditions for them to thrive.
Colgate Response
We commit to work with all faculty search committees on hiring practices to expand our faculty from multicultural domestic and international backgrounds. For current searches this fall and spring, the Office of Equity and Diversity will continue its practices to help on-campus recruitment of candidates (e.g., confidential interviews with associate provost of equity and diversity, meetings with colleagues beyond the department with mutual interests/backgrounds) and will implement additional orientation on diversity in hiring for all search committee members. Planning will begin this October to set up an expanded program for full implementation for all searches during next academic year.
Status: Complete
June 29, 2015
Tenure-stream hiring for fall 2015 yielded a strong cohort, with 10 hires. Of these 10, five are female, five are faculty of color, and three are international. The first of four scheduled workshops on diversifying the faculty took place in May and was attended by 38 faculty members and two staff. The focus on building an inclusive faculty is now fully woven into the hiring process, and efforts on each search will continue moving forward.
As noted above in action step 9, the faculty hiring guidelines now include a focus on diversity and, as a standard part of the search process, all tenure-stream faculty candidates are to describe their approach to teaching and/or scholarship in a diverse and inclusive educational environment. In addition, we are finalizing workshops for faculty search committee members.
There is ongoing support for the efforts of search committees to identify talented individuals from diverse backgrounds and to attract them into candidate pools.
Lyn Rugg (associate provost for equity and diversity) presented at a faculty search chairs meeting on September 24. She will also meet with the Dean’s Advisory Council at the end of October to discuss diversity hiring best practices, and will continue to work with search chairs to ensure diverse applicant pools.
12.
- that we offer full financial support to current efforts that seek to establish an Intergroup Relations Program as an academic discipline.
Colgate Response
Colgate will fund up to five faculty course development proposals in Intergroup Relations (IGR) or similar pedagogies in the summer of 2015, so that courses using the IGR or similar pedagogy could be offered in academic year 2015-16 and/or thereafter, with the possibility that faculty would offer their courses multiple semesters. Course proposals from faculty will be due in the spring (Center for Learning, Teaching, and Research). Any academic program would be proposed by faculty members for consideration by the Dean’s Advisory Council.
Status: Complete
June 29, 2015
Course development grants have been awarded in connection to five different courses that use Intergroup Relations or related pedagogies. Courses will be offered and taught as follows: Spring 2015: Suzanne Spring and Drea Finley; Academic Year 2015-2016: Meika Loe and Christina Khan; Janel Benson; Carolyn Hsu and April Baptiste; Catherine Cardelus.
The call for proposals for summer 2015 course development grants to teach courses in Intergroup Relations or similar pedagogies was issued to the faculty on February 10, and proposals are due on April 1. This action item continues on schedule.
The plan for a spring semester call for proposals to faculty to receive course development grants and offer additional IGR courses continues ahead of schedule.
One course using IGR will be taught in the spring 2015 semester, and one course in the 2015-16 Sophomore Residential Scholars program will employ IGR.
13.
- that we fully publicize the EGP (Equity Grievance Panel) accountability structure so students can effectively address issues of classroom bias and inequity. We ask for stronger disciplinary action for hate speech of any kind.
Colgate Response
We will do this. In order to encourage greater reporting of bias incidents, we will communicate broadly about our Equity Grievance Process (EGP). We will clarify that the EGP is designed to address complaints not only of sexual assault and gender-based violence, but harassment of all kinds, including cases of bias and inequity (Associate Provost for Equity and Diversity, Office of Equity and Diversity, by November 2014).
Status: Complete
June 29, 2015
Our efforts to publicize the EGP policy and process will continue in the coming academic year and beyond.
A brochure on the EGP process went out to all students and employees at the beginning of the spring 2015 semester. We placed advertisements in the Maroon News this spring about the EGP process and its panel members. A flowchart of the EGP process was posted outside the Office of Equity and Diversity, which is a high-traffic area for students, and additional brochures are available in a holder nearby. There are ongoing, sustained efforts to continue to publicize the EGP policy and process.
The Office of Equity and Diversity has developed an ongoing communication plan leveraging various media to continue educating students about the EGP.
Flowchart posters illustrating the equity grievance process were posted throughout bathroom stalls in academic buildings in mid-October, and will be in all residence halls by the end of October.
14.
-that we offer specific training for faculty advisors so they can help students address previous educational experiences that have left them less prepared for Colgate’s curriculum. One way this could be possible is by making the training Colgate already provides, “Academic Advising of the Whole Student,” mandatory. Initiatives like these show that Colgate both acknowledges and responds to systemic disparities in education.
Colgate Response
Colgate is implementing an integrated advising system that prepares and brings together academic and administrative advisors, along with other mentors and resource people for each student. Orientation of these advisors will include supporting students from all social locations and backgrounds within a disparate educational system, and better coordination of information among a student’s advisors. The advisors will be better equipped to provide targeted and tailored support for students from various backgrounds. The Advising Committee, with support from the Optimization, Analytics, Knowledge (OAK) project, is already working on implementation of this program. As one example, support for first-generation students is being built into this program (planning and a pilot project already ongoing).
Status: Complete
June 29, 2015
Plans continue on track to offer a pilot for integrated advising to select first-year seminar groups in fall 2015. Following that pilot, we plan to roll the program out to a broader student base in the spring of 2016.
We are working on a pilot for integrated advising that will be rolled out to select first-year seminar groups in fall 2015. Following that pilot, we plan to roll it out to a broader student base in the spring of 2016.
We remain on target to begin phase one of the integrated advising system rollout in August 2015.
Plans for a new integrated advising system are underway. The system will allow for better communication between academic advisors and administrative deans. In addition, advisors will have access to members of a student’s support system, including coaches, current instructors, Links, community leaders, etc. The new integrated advising platform, along with the new degree audit program, Degree Works, will provide more information so that advisors will have a holistic view of each of their advisees.
15.
- we ask for trainings for Colgate students and faculty as preparation for study abroad. This training will include some literature and conversation about the politics of studying abroad, what it means to be “immersed” in another culture, “voluntourism,” and cultural awareness. These study abroad trainings should also include conversations on engaging with differing structures of power and privilege on a global scale. One conversation, for example, might advise students of color when they study abroad in predominantly white countries.
Colgate Response
This year Colgate has fully implemented a system for study abroad that allows students to apply their financial aid either to Colgate study groups or to a list of over 100 approved programs around the world. This program of “portable financial aid” has opened up a full and equitable choice set for students on financial aid to learn in a setting that fits their academic program.
Colgate will expand its orientation for both students and faculty joining Colgate study groups, using in-person and online resources. Faculty will be encouraged and supported to welcome and work well with students from diverse backgrounds, and to help students experience the rich cultural resources of their study-group locale. Students will receive orientation materials that prepare them for the cross-cultural interactions they will experience. This will be incorporated into the mandatory general pre-departure orientation for all students studying abroad in the spring 2015 (orientation will take place late Fall 2014). We will also address these issues in the training for spring 2015 study group directors (Associate Dean for International Initiatives and Office of Off-Campus Study).
Status: Complete
December 23, 2014
The staff of the Office of Off-Campus Study researched and reviewed literature related to cultural identity and diversity issues when going abroad. They also consulted with Lyn Rugg of the Office of Equity and Diversity regarding training approaches for students and faculty.
Following this research, the off-campus study office redeveloped and implemented its pre-departure orientation program for students studying abroad in spring 2015, and the office developed and offered diversity training to faculty directors. Included in students’ orientation materials is a newly developed brochure covering subjects of diversity abroad. The office has also published a new web page about diversity issues when studying abroad.
Planning for orientation is currently underway. The Off-Campus Study staff is in the process of researching and reviewing literature and online resources related to cultural identity and diversity issues when going abroad. This information will serve as the foundation for a new web page on diversity abroad on the Off-Campus Study website, which is expected to be completed in December. For spring 2015 student groups, student orientation will take place in November and faculty director orientation will take place in December.
16.
- a specific faculty member within the natural sciences to advise underrepresented students.
Colgate Response
Colgate has submitted an S-STEM (Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) grant proposal to the National Science Foundation (NSF) to increase the number of well-prepared students with financial need graduating with degrees in the sciences or mathematics. Our proposed program targets students from economically or educationally disadvantaged backgrounds, or from historically underrepresented communities. Even if this grant is not funded, Colgate will still identify a faculty member to provide this academic support (grant request pending with NSF).
In addition, Colgate is committed to support all students who seek to concentrate in the natural sciences, mathematics, or economics. The new half-credit course, Essentials of Mathematics, is available to any students who wish to strengthen their math background before or concurrent to other math/economics/science courses.
Status: Complete
June 29, 2015
An open meeting for students and faculty was held on April 17, 2015 to consider the role of a faculty liaison group for science-interested students from underrepresented groups; in late April and early May, an anonymous survey was distributed to gather input from additional students regarding their concerns and needs, and also to begin to consider which faculty members might be best suited to serving as members of such a liaison group. Over the summer, the faculty liaison group will be formed, with the goal of introducing the incoming class and other students to the group in late August.
Colgate learned in January 2015 that we did not receive the NSF S-STEM grant. After learning this, we began planning for a Natural Sciences and Mathematics (NASC) advisory group or faculty liaison group. Student input for this initiative has been and continues to be vital. Following spring break, the division director of NASC, the director of the Office of Undergraduate Studies program, and other faculty will meet with students with the goal of forming the liaison/advisory group and clarifying their role before the end of the academic year so that it will be in place for incoming first-year students.
We expect a decision from the NSF on our proposal in early 2015.
Additionally, to address issues that affect student life, we ask:
17.
- for the addition of multicultural sororities and fraternities to our community as they have the potential to provide nation-wide networks that are currently unavailable for all students.
Colgate Response
A discussion concerning any increase of fraternity and sorority life at Colgate is a complex one that is informed by the opinions of faculty, staff and students, and ultimately is a decision of the Board of Trustees. The Board has determined that in the near term, we will focus our efforts on implementing the Living the Liberal Arts strategic plan, in which we will create faculty-led residential learning communities (RLCs) for first- and second-year students on the hill, and each learning community will have an affiliated annex on Broad Street. In this model, all students will be members of a residential learning community that promotes a sense of belonging, peer-to-faculty engagement, self-governance, and access to highly-sought-after social space on Broad Street. The RLC program will launch in fall of 2015, including the first annex on Broad Street. We also commit in the short term, until the RLC program has been fully rolled out, to offering a space on Broad Street that promotes diversity and inclusion (Dean of the College, by fall 2015).
We agree that we need increased parity on how social life is regulated in Broad Street communities and are now committed to having one office oversee the registration and management of Broad Street social events to allow for consistent application of our policies. This will include improved oversight of all Broad Street events to ensure that they are managed within the boundaries of our existing social policies (Dean of Students and Associate Dean for Campus Life, Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs, by October 15, 2014).
Status: Complete
March 17, 2015
One individual now oversees registration of social events on campus. The residence at 100 Broad St. was identified as a social space that can be used by students to host events. We have increased the number of TIPS training opportunities and advertise these more widely. The social hosting policy is clearly outlined on a the Colgate website. Bunche House continues to serve as an interest house for diversity and inclusion in the short term, while the residential learning community program that will launch in fall 2015 will address student access to Broad Street social spaces in the long term.
The Office of the Dean of the College has identified Bunche House to serve as a Broad Street interest house for diversity and inclusion in the short term, while the university continues developing a long-term, campus-wide program for residential learning communities.
As of mid-October, the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs is now the sole office responsible for social event registration. A working group was convened to discuss social host policy implementation to allow for greater parity and continued safety measures. Brenda Ice (associate dean for residential facilities and administration) is meeting with student representatives from ACC and SGA to identify a plan for a Broad Street house that promotes diversity and inclusion. A proposal will be completed by the end of the fall semester.
18.
- for cameras with audio on the cruisers as a means of accountability. This initiative responds to reported instances of racism, aggression, and micro-aggression that take place on the cruiser.
Colgate Response
We will consult with Birnie Bus and ensure that cameras are placed in the cruisers and that signage is put in place to alert patrons to that effect (Vice President for Finance and Administration, Office of Finance and Administration, by December 1, 2014).
Status: Complete
March 2, 2015
A camera system was installed and activated on the six Colgate Cruiser buses on March 2, 2015. Colgate announced the addition of the cameras through a campus email and signage was placed on each bus to inform riders. Information obtained through the video and audio recordings will be handled in a manner consistent with existing university policies.
Birnie Bus, the Colgate Cruiser contractor, has agreed to work with us to place cameras with audio on their buses. Technology and policy/use research are underway.
19.
- for a campus climate survey specifically on race (not “diversity”).
Colgate Response
While we appreciate the need to focus on race relations on campus, Colgate is already slated to conduct a comprehensive survey (the Diverse Learning Environments survey) because it measures multiple aspects of the campus climate, with direct attention to race relations (e.g., discrimination and harassment, positive cross-racial interaction, academic validation in the classroom, sense of belonging, student financial difficulties, curriculum of inclusion, student support services, and satisfaction with diverse perspectives). This survey will be administered to sophomores and juniors, which is a current gap in our assessment of students’ experience. We will also be able to benchmark these findings against other institutions, and this survey allows us to learn more about climate, practices, and outcomes as it relates to race relations and other important areas of inclusivity. We will disseminate these findings widely, including through the ALANA Affairs Committee (Associate Vice President for Institutional Planning and Research, Office of Institutional Planning and Research, by October 2014).
Status: Complete
March 17, 2015
Preliminary results of the Diverse Learning Environments survey have been shared with the ALANA Affairs Committee, Student Affairs Board (SAB), and the Colgate Administrative Group. Results will be shared further with governance committees and student groups throughout the semester, this summer, and during the fall semester.
The Diverse Learning Environments (DLE) survey for sophomores and juniors, launched as planned in October, closed on December 5. Results show 661 students participated in the survey (45.4 percent) and 462 completed the survey (31.7 percent). The Office of Institutional Planning and Research is currently analyzing the results so they may be shared with the ALANA Affairs Committee at the beginning of the spring semester.
The Diverse Learning Environments (DLE) survey was launched to sophomores and juniors on October 21.
20.
- for the retention rate of racial minority groups to be published alongside each class year’s racial breakdown.
Colgate Response
We will develop a profile on ImFirst.org website (Associate Vice President for Institutional Planning and Research, Office of Institutional Planning and Research, by December 15, 2014).
We will create two work-study positions/interns that will help us promote programs and services that are available to underrepresented and first-generation students (Dean of the College and/or Dean of the Faculty, student hires by October 31, 2014).
Status: Complete
March 17, 2015
Two interns were hired in January 2015 and are working with the Office of Equity and Diversity. The interns are working on outreach related to the EGP policy and process, on the student-facilitated trainings to interrupt bias (a new name for the Bystander Intervention training addressing bias and discriminatory harassment), and on supporting the effort to bring Sustained Dialogue to Colgate.
The Center for Student Opportunity has accepted Colgate’s application to the I’m First! project. The Colgate profile was launched on the I’m First! website in mid-December, thus this element is complete.
During the fall semester, the Office of the Dean of the College collected applications for work-study positions promoting programs and services available to underrepresented and first-generation students. Out of respect for the busy schedules of students on the search committee this semester, the committee will re-start in the beginning of the spring 2015 semester and fill these positions shortly thereafter.
An application was submitted to the Center for Student Opportunity, which manages the ImFirst.org website, on October 27. They will schedule an interview with us in November and we anticipate full partnership and profile listing on their site beginning January 1, 2015, per their campus partner specifications. The process for designing intern positions and searching to fill those roles is underway.
21.
- for a professional staff-level supervisor on the BAC whose job is to ensure resources are being distributed equitably across all recognized student groups (keeping in mind that some groups require more funding than others; equal distribution of funds is not always just).
Colgate Response
The Budget Allocations Committee (BAC) is advised by a professional staff member presently. We agree that SGA should work with students and regularly review its process for appointing students to the BAC, and for creating a fundamentally fair process for distributing BAC funds (Director of the Center for Leadership and Student Involvement, Center for Leadership and Student Involvement, by January 1, 2014).
Status: Complete
March 17, 2015
As a result of the listening tour from the fall semester, the following will be implemented:
The BAC will use a time-stamp on unseen proposals and review the oldest proposals first in the following term.
The BAC will allow groups to submit proposals for annual events (e.g., MLK, black history month) a semester in advance.
The BAC will improve its website and make its processes more transparent and easy to understand, providing examples and “how-to” videos for student leaders new to the process.
BAC representatives will meet with advising departments and provide an introduction to BAC funding processes.
The BAC will continue to improve its officer transition so that newly elected officers fully understand the responsibilities of the position and can apply lessons learned from prior administrations.
The BAC and the SGA, under the advisory leadership of Michael Maningas, director of the Center for Leadership and Student Involvement, executed a “listening tour” during the fall semester to learn first-hand about students’ impressions and concerns about the BAC process.
Suzy Nelson, vice president and dean of the college, then held two meetings with a committee including representatives from the SGA and the ACC to discuss the issues that surfaced and how they might be addressed. Additional meetings with the committee will prepare recommendations to share with the student affairs board in spring 2015.
Deans Nelson and Brown and Dean of the College colleagues held meetings to identify detailed concerns with the BAC process, and future meetings have been scheduled to focus on strategies to address these concerns. Suzy Nelson, dean of the college, will lead this initiative.