| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 65.31 |
| Liaison | Amanda Whittingham |
| Submission Date | Oct. 22, 2024 |
Fanshawe College
PA-6: Assessing Diversity and Equity
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
0.88 / 1.00 |
Joseph
Pazzano Director, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Office of the President |
Has the institution engaged in a structured assessment process during the previous three years to improve diversity, equity and inclusion on campus?:
A brief description of the assessment process and the framework, scorecard(s) and/or tool(s) used:
In 2020, Fanshawe’s Strategic Enterprise Solutions (SES) team initiated an EDI research project to study how the issues of gender identification and expression, race, Indigenous background, sexual orientation, and ability influence personal experiences of students and employees at the College. The first phase of the study involved interviews, focus groups, and consulting meetings, and the second phase was a survey administered to all employees and students in the College.
The survey examined six factors crucial to EDI in organizations: discrimination and harassment; organizational culture and climate; feelings of inclusion and belonging; immediate supervision or management’s attitude towards EDI; organizational policies and procedures; and education and support.
In spring of 2022, the EDI and Anti-Oppression Task Force was launched, and over 110 interested students and staff put their names forward to participate. Of those, approximately 30 staff and students with varied lived and professional experiences were selected to serve initial two-year terms on the inaugural Task Force. The Task Force is chaired by the Director of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion and the Anti-Racism and Inclusion Specialist serves as an ex-officio and administrative resource for the Task Force.
Since summer of 2022, the Task Force has been meeting regularly to envision a future for EDI work at Fanshawe, identify and discuss barriers to a sense of belonging, identify themes and priorities for the College to consider, and map and analyze existing College processes pertaining to equity-related disclosures.
In May 2023, the Task Force endorsed the EDI Framework for presentation to the Executive Leadership Team.
Does the assessment process address campus climate by engaging stakeholders to assess the attitudes, perceptions and behaviors of employees and students, including the experiences of underrepresented groups?:
Does the assessment process address student outcomes related to diversity, equity and success?:
Does the assessment process address employee outcomes related to diversity and equity?:
A brief description of the most recent assessment findings and how the results are used in shaping policy, programs, and initiatives:
The survey confirmed findings of external EDI research and the experience of other post-secondary institutions:
• The demographic composition of the College employee group differs significantly from the student population that it serves and also the communities within which it is situated. Equity-deserving communities are underrepresented and thus further exploration of barriers for equity-deserving candidates and employees is necessary.
• Members of equity-deserving groups identify experiencing more incidents of discrimination and harassment than colleagues and classmates from dominant groups. They are experienced at even higher rates beyond the College community.
• Members of equity-deserving groups experience the College in less positive ways than other groups: they experience and witness more discrimination; find the organizational culture to be less inclusive; report lower feelings of belonging; and are less likely to believe the College has effective reporting mechanisms.
• Among equity-deserving respondents, the main reported concerns related to anti-Asian, anti-Black, and anti-Indigenous racism, transphobia, homophobia, sexism, microaggressions and bullying, feeling unsafe to voice experiences with discrimination, the absence of a clear and safe mechanism to report EDI concerns, and cultural stereotypes/lack of cultural competence.
Are the results of the most recent structured diversity and equity assessment shared with the campus community?:
A brief description of how the assessment results are shared with the campus community:
Through the release of the EDI Strategic Framework and through presentations to College leaders and teams. Internal reports that evaluate outcomes & progress of strategic commitments. A summary of progress is found in annual reports located on fanshawe's corporate info / strategic plan and annual reports page
Are the results (or a summary of the results) of the most recent structured diversity and equity assessment publicly posted?:
The diversity and equity assessment report or summary (upload):
Website URL where the diversity and equity assessment report or summary is publicly posted:
Optional Fields
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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.