Bentley University
PA-7: Support for Underrepresented Groups

Bentley University is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to providing equal employment opportunity to all employees and applicants in compliance with all applicable laws. Bentley does not discriminate and strictly prohibits discrimination against employees, applicants and any other covered persons because of race, color, national origin, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, marital status, age, citizenship status, disability, genetics, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected under applicable law. All Bentley employees and representatives are prohibited from engaging in unlawful discrimination. This policy applies to all employment practices and all terms and conditions of employment including, but not limited to, recruitment, hiring, performance reviews, training, development, promotion, demotions, transfer, compensation, benefits, educational assistance, layoff and recall, social and recreational programs, termination, and/or retirement.

For more information: https://www.bentley.edu/offices/human-resources/eeo-and-non-discrimination

Bentley has a Bias Incident Response Team (BIRT). The BIRT is responsible for responding to student reported bias incidents. Additionally, in working closely with appropriate administrators, students, faculty, committees, organizations and offices, BIRT plays an educational role in both fostering an inclusive campus climate and supporting targeted individuals when bias and/or hate incidents occur. The team has broad membership in order to support and affirm Bentley’s educational mission and to support our vision to create an institution in which people do not experience barriers because of aspects of their identity.

More information on the BIRT is here: https://www.bentley.edu/offices/student-affairs/birt

In addition, the Office of the Ombudsman provides a safe space for students, faculty, and staff to seek advice and assistance, and to pursue the resolution of any university-related concern through an independent, impartial, and confidential process. The use of these services is voluntary and free to any member of the Bentley community. The Ombudsman is an impartial dispute resolution practitioner whose major role is to provide confidential and informal assistance to students, staff, faculty and administrators.

More information: https://www.bentley.edu/offices/ombuds-office

Students
Bentley offers a variety of scholarships and programs to encourage the recruitment of a diverse student body. Some examples of these financial programs and opportunities include:

Women's Leadership Award and Program:
Established by the Center for Women and Business (CWB) in 2017 and managed by the Office of Gender and Sexuality Student Programs (GSSP), the Women's Leadership Program (WLP) is a four-year co-curricular program that empowers Bentley's woman students with the critical skills, real-world experiences, and confidence needed to step into leadership roles at Bentley and beyond. Each year, the Office of Undergraduate Admissions admits a cohort of WLP Leaders for this prestigious program. The WLP Award recognizes women who have demonstrated strong potential for leadership through various forms during their high school careers. WLP Leaders receive $10,000 each academic year as part of their scholarship. Additionally, students must apply to this program when first applying to Bentley in order to be admitted into this program.

MOSAIC Experience:
The MOSAIC Experience is a pre-orientation program for first-year students of color and their allies. Freshmen and transfer students are welcome to participate. The MOSAIC program begins three days prior to First-Year Orientation. That allows students of color and their allies to move into campus sooner and start adjusting to life at Bentley. During the program, students receive tools and training to prepare them for academic success and make meaningful connections within their new college community.

Bentley Leon Sullivan Scholarships:
The Bentley Leon Sullivan Scholarship Award is more than just a scholarship, it is an opportunity for young and inspired incoming BIPOC students with financial need to experience the true meaning of “business ethics.” Students will work as interns at the W. Michael Hoffman Center for Business Ethics during their undergraduate years.
The Hoffman Center for Business Ethics annually offers two $7,500 scholarships to entering, need based, first-year BIPOC students.

https://www.bentley.edu/centers/center-for-business-ethics/about-center/bentley-scholarships

Discover Bentley:
Discover Bentley is a graduate school exploration program open to juniors, seniors and recent graduates from US institutions who identify as Black, Latinx, Asian-American or Native American. Selected participants are invited to our Waltham campus, just 12 miles outside of Boston, where they spend three days exploring what the McCallum Graduate School of Business has to offer through class visits, conversations with current graduate students and faculty, networking with corporate partners, and getting an introduction to the admission and financial aid process.
https://www.bentley.edu/offices/diversity-inclusion/brave

Faculty
Bentley has a formal relationship with the PhD project which promotes African American, Hispanic and Native American PHD's in business. Bentley has recruited several faculty members as a result of this relationship. For more information on the PhD project: https://www.phdproject.org/

Staff
Bentley has a program to train managers and the H.R. department staff to recognize bias in interviewing and recruitment. Bentley has committed to having a diverse pool of candidates for as many positions as possible and uses the bias training as a tool to make sure as many underrepresented candidates are hired as possible. In order to increase diversity in the candidate pool Bentley HR will do targeted outreach to potential candidates through Linkedin or through a search committee depending on the position.

Programs for Students

1. Mosaic Experience:
The MOSAIC Experience is a pre-orientation program for first-year students of color and their allies. Freshmen and transfer students are welcome to participate.

The MOSAIC program begins three days prior to First-Year Orientation. That allows students of color and their allies to move into campus sooner and start adjusting to life at Bentley. During the program, students receive tools and training to prepare them for academic success and make meaningful connections within their new college community.

3. Counseling Center services include:
-Individual, short-term therapy sessions
-Group counseling for issues such as anxiety, relationships, surviving the death of a loved one; and support for LGBTQ, ALANA, or international students.
-Group process consultations for academic groups
-Downloadable podcasts to help induce relaxation or sleep
-Disability services for students with diagnosed learning, psychiatric, medical, or other disabilities
- Services that cater to BIPOC & Asian-specific mental health challenges

4. ALLY group
Allies are individuals who help create a safe place for our LGBTQ students, faculty and staff, and are some of the most effective and powerful voices of the LGBTQ movement. Not only do allies assist people in the coming-out process, but they also help others understand the importance of equality, fairness, acceptance and mutual respect.
More than 130 faculty and staff members, representing more than 50 departments, have completed ally training to become members of the Faculty and Staff Ally Network
http://www.bentley.edu/campus-life/student-life/lgbtq/allies

Rainbow Scholars Program
Launched for the first time in September 2022 as a partnership between the Office of Gender and Sexuality Student Programs (GSSP) and Center for Women and Business (CWB), the Rainbow Scholars Program is a one-year long intersectional leadership development program providing LGBTQ+ and allied undergraduate students with the opportunity to grow professionally and personally. Through engagement in various workshops focusing on identity, identity awareness and more, Scholars are equipped with the tools necessary to exercise the skills of intersectional leadership and advocacy. In the spring semester, Scholars lead and facilitate workshops focused on LGBTQ+ identity and various intersecting topics in the culmination of the Rainbow Conference. Rainbow Scholars receive a $1,000 stipend for their involvement in this program (distinct from a financial aid based scholarship). Students regardless of class-year status can apply to this program each fall.

Programs for Staff and Faculty

Faculty & Staff of Color: The Faculty & Staff of Color affinity group was created to provide a forum for networking and support of employees who identify as African-American, Latino, Asian-American, Native American, or multi-ethnic. The group meets monthly during the academic year for professional development, training, and informal networking.

LGBTQ @ Bentley
Bentley University strives to create an inclusive and welcoming environment for all members of the LGBTQ community and their allies. Our campus fosters an atmosphere that values and supports all individuals no matter their sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression. Through cross-departmental collaborations, educational programming and workshops, the Bentley community dedicates itself to openness and mutual respect for all.

Bentley has a formal relationship with the PHD project, supporting the organization and recruiting faculty from it's memberhsip.

The PhD Project was founded upon the premise that advancements in workplace diversity could be propelled forward by increasing the diversity of business school faculty. Today, our expansive network of supporters, sponsors and universities helps Black/African-Americans, Latinx/Hispanic-American and Native Americans attain their business PhD and become the business professors who will mentor the next generation of leaders.

In collaboration with the PhD project, Bentley hosted a teaching seminar in 2019. For more information: https://www.bentley.edu/news/bentley-hosts-teaching-seminar-diverse-future-professors

The publicly accessible inventory of gender neutral bathrooms can be found here: http://www.bentley.edu/campus-life/culture-diversity/lgbtq/lgbtq-resources