Overall Rating Silver
Overall Score 53.91
Liaison Tom Hartzell
Submission Date Dec. 21, 2022

STARS v2.2

Calvin University
PA-7: Support for Underrepresented Groups

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.92 / 3.00 Michelle Loyd-Paige
Exec. Associate to the President for Diversity and Inclusion
President's Office
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Non-discrimination statement 

Does the institution have a publicly posted non-discrimination statement? :
Yes

The non-discrimination statement, including the website URL where the policy is publicly accessible:
At Calvin, we’re building a community of diversity and accessibility. We prohibit unlawful discrimination in hiring on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, religion, disability, gender, marital status, sexual orientation or other characteristics protected by federal, state or local statute or ordinance. As a Christian educational institution operated by the Christian Reformed Church, and in compliance with Title VII and other applicable law, Calvin reserves the right to give preference in employment based on religion
https://calvin.edu/offices-services/human-resources/careers/

Calvin University does not discriminate with regard to age, race, color, national origin, gender or disability in any of its educational programs or activities.

http://calvin.edu/admissions/facts-standards/

Bias response team 

Does the institution have a discrimination response protocol or committee (sometimes called a bias response team)?:
Yes

A brief description of the institution’s discrimination response protocol or team:
Calvin University is committed to performing all of our tasks as a caring and diverse community. Each person – faculty, staff, student, trustee, volunteer, visitor, contractor, and vendor – who has chosen to engage with the Calvin community thereby affirms he or she is willing to uphold the community's stated standards of conduct and ensure that Calvin University provides a safe environment for students, staff, faculty, and guests of the university.
The university addresses all complaints of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation through its Safer Spaces policy and team of investigations.
Harassment, discrimination and retaliation of any form are a violation of a person’s rights, dignity, and integrity. Such acts debase the integrity of the educational process and are contrary to the mission and values of Calvin University. In response to any reported misconduct, the university will take appropriate steps to eliminate the misconduct, prevent its recurrence, and remedy its effects. The university will review and investigate all reports, and provide for fair and impartial evaluation and resolution. Retaliation against a person who makes a good faith report of harassment or discrimination or anyone participating as a witness in an investigation or hearing is prohibited.
For the policy and list of investigators see https://calvin.edu/offices-services/safer-spaces/policy-and-process/

- example of a response: During 17 -18 year a complaint of racial harassment was filled against a staff member by another staff member. Through the information gathering stage we discovered a pattern that included 5 additional people willing to make the same complaint against the same staff member. Testimony was taken from witnesses, a discussion with held with the person the complaint was brought against. The person accused of racial discrimination was found to more likely than not to have exhibited discriminatory behavior and was terminated form the institution. Measures were taken to ensure that that those who brought the complaint felt safe and the college offered counseling services to those who thought it would be helpful.

Recruitment programs 

Does the institution have programs specifically designed to recruit students from underrepresented groups?:
Yes

Does the institution have programs specifically designed to recruit academic staff from underrepresented groups?:
Yes

Does the institution have programs designed specifically to recruit non-academic staff from underrepresented groups?:
No

If yes to any of the above, provide:

A brief description of the institution’s programs to recruit students, academic staff, and/or non-academic staff from underrepresented groups:
https://calvin.edu/offices-services/college-access-programs/
Recruiting students: Every year we offer a number of unique programs for students to grow and prepare for college life. We invite you to explore them all and see which might be a good fit. One of our signature programs, the Entrada Scholars Program, offers racial ethnic minority high school students a gateway to the future: the opportunity to experience college learning and living while earning college credit.https://calvin.edu/offices-services/college-access-programs/programs/entrada/

Calvin University is committed to recruiting and retaining a culturally, ethnically, and racially diverse campus community, including faculty. When requesting positions, chairs also submit the department’s plan for recruiting a diverse pool of candidates. The executive associate to the president for diversity and inclusion and the associate dean for diversity and inclusion can assist
chairs and direct them to current resources. https://calvin.edu/contentAsset/raw-data/225e6a56-bd6a-49a6-b7c9-a0992dc57399/fullTextPdf

Mentoring, counseling and support programs 

Does the institution have mentoring, counseling, peer support, academic support, or other programs designed specifically to support students from underrepresented groups on campus?:
Yes

Does the institution have mentoring, counseling, peer support or other programs designed specifically to support academic staff from underrepresented groups on campus?:
Yes

Does the institution have mentoring, counseling, peer support or other programs to support non-academic staff from underrepresented groups on campus?:
Yes

A brief description of the institution’s programs designed specifically to support students, academic staff, and/or non-academic staff from underrepresented groups:
The university offers: mentoring, peer support groups, academic support groups, and leadership development opportunities for underrepresented students.

At Calvin, we want to be known as an inclusive environment, where all students feel a sense of belonging. One way that we do this is through the programs designed and implemented by the Center for Intercultural Student Development (CISD).https://calvin.edu/offices-services/intercultural-student-development/index.html The office offers mentoring services, first--gen fellowships, and other programing to support underrepresented students.

Affinity group gatherings for employees of color are offered twice every semester.
One-on-one get-to-know you meetings between the lead diversity officer and all new faculty and staff of color are held each fall. Mentoring relationships develop out of these meetings.
The provost office offers scholarship development sessions for under-represented faculty (females and people of color)
Additionally, the university has an intention living-learning community called "Grassroots" where a self-selected set of 20 - 30 diverse students live on the same dorm floor and commit to exploring issues of race and racism together.

Support for future academic staff

Does the institution have training and development programs, teaching fellowships and/or other programs that specifically aim to support and prepare students from underrepresented groups for careers as faculty members?:
No

A brief description of the institution’s programs to support and prepare students from underrepresented groups for careers as faculty members:
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Optional Fields 

Does the institution produce a publicly accessible inventory of gender-neutral bathrooms on campus?:
Yes

Does the institution offer housing options to accommodate the special needs of transgender and transitioning students?:
Yes

Website URL where information about the institution’s support for underrepresented groups is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Safer Spaces policy https://calvin.edu/offices-services/safer-spaces/policy-and-process/safer-spaces-process-workflow.pdf

Grassroots floor: http://www.calvin.edu/housing/housing-options/living-learning-communities/residence-halls/2nd-van-reken/

Additional Resources for Transgender students: https://calvin.edu/dotAsset/3a87b0de-2a36-44f9-ae1b-5878fdcc9c65.pdf

Additional information on providing a safe enviroment: https://calvin.edu/offices-services/student-life/programs/sexuality-series/lgbt-homosexuality-faq.html

Information from the faculty handbook https://calvin.edu/directory/publications/handbook-for-teaching-faculty

Data from Michelle Loyd-Paige

The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.