Fleming College
PA-6: Support for Underrepresented Groups

LINK: https://flemingcollege.ca/student-experience/diversity Fleming College promotes a welcoming and inclusive environment for students, staff, and guests from the community. INCLUSIVITY STATEMENT Fleming College believes that diversity and inclusion are cornerstones of global citizenship, equity, and success for students and staff. Our promise is an inclusive community where we can Learn, Belong, Become. Our actions demonstrate that we are committed on an on-going basis to removing barriers and actively evolving culture of respect, recognition, accommodation, and celebration of each other’s unique contributions to Fleming’s learning and working environment. LINK: https://department.flemingcollege.ca/human-rights/ Fleming College is committed to fostering a working and learning environment that is free from harassment and discrimination and one where all individuals are treated with respect and dignity. The College acknowledges that groups/individuals covered under this policy have a right to full participation in employment and the receipt of education and related services and confirms that it is committed to the goal of eliminating discriminatory barriers where and if they exist. Our policy will confirm Fleming College’s commitment to fostering a diverse and inclusive working and learning environment that is free from all forms of harassment, discrimination and bullying as enshrined in the Ontario Human Rights Code (OHRC), the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act 2005 (AODA) and its related Standards/Regulations, the Pay Equity Act, the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA), the Occupational Health & Safety Act (OHSA), and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms The College has three policies that related to discrimination and our commitment to ensuring that Fleming is a free from harassment and discrimination. We have our Sexual Violence Prevention Policy (#3-343) which overlaps with any discrimination directed towards someone because of their sex, gender identity, or sexuality; the Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities (#3-341) that ensures the College is barrier-free and that persons with disability are free from harassment, discrimination, and able to participate fully within the College environment; and, the Harassment and Discrimination Prevention Policy (#3- 311) which speaks more broadly to the College’s commitment to ensuring that everyone is able to work and learn in an environment free-from discrimination. Statement: Fleming College is committed to fostering a working and learning environment that is free from harassment and discrimination and one where all individuals are treated with respect and dignity. The College acknowledges that groups/individuals covered under this policy have a right to full participation in employment and the receipt of education and related services and confirms that it is committed to the goal of eliminating discriminatory barriers where and if they exist. This policy will confirm Fleming College’s commitment to fostering a diverse and inclusive working and learning environment that is free from all forms of harassment, discrimination and bullying as enshrined in the Ontario Human Rights Code (OHRC), the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act 2005 (AODA) and its related Standards/Regulations, the Pay Equity Act, the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA), the Occupational Health & Safety Act (OHSA), and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. URL: https://department.flemingcollege.ca/policies-procedures/human-resources/

Over the past three years, the College has worked to ensure that we are more responsive to the needs of our diverse community and that we have preventative programming in place. The College hired its first-ever full-time position dedicated to specifically human rights and inclusion in 2018. The College is committed to ensuring that they have supports and resources for diverse communities and invested additional funds into the Indigenous Student Services and hired two diversity coordinators. The Fleming Harassment Prevention, Anti-Violence, Accessibility, and other policies can be found at https://mycampus.flemingcollege.ca/group/portal/resources. Bias Response Example: If the complainant or witness is a student, Fleming has support options available through the Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities (SR&R) https://flemingcollege.ca/student-experience/student-rights-and-responsibilities and Counselling services https://flemingcollege.ca/student-experience/counselling. Options for support often include some education about hate crimes, bias as it relates to the incident, or acts of discrimination. The purpose of the education is to validate the concerns of the complainant while also working with them toward understanding that what they experienced or witnessed was not their fault. The office of SR&R also provides advocacy support to complainants. If a Complainant needed support or assistance through the adjudication process, advocacy and support options could include walking with the person through the process, ensuring they know their rights, helping complete paperwork (for internal or external processes) and linking with external resources as appropriate. Counselling support is offered to both complainants and witnesses to mitigate any ongoing harm as a result of their experience. If the complainant or witness is an employee, they have access to support through their union representatives for judicial support and advocacy. They also have access to their EAP and benefits to access supportive counselling. Any incident regardless of whether the complainant is an employee or student may also require the creation of a safety plan. In these such cases, persons are referred to the Security department or the Office of SR&R to discuss safety on and off-campus. Incidents of hate crimes could include sexual violence, in which case the response would be managed under the Sexual Violence Prevention Policy. All of the above is true, with additional services and referrals specific to this issue. Please see the support page for more information: https://department.flemingcollege.ca/sexual-assault/ Fleming has a written Harassment and Discrimination Prevention Policy, with detailed responsibilities for members of the College community, along with a Human Rights Office responsible for investigation and response in compliance with the policy (#3-311OP). The accompanying 21-page procedure (attached below) details the response to workplace harassment and discrimination based on grounds within the Ontario Human Rights Code, including sexual harassment; racial harassment; gender/sexual orientation harassment, and disability harassment. This operating procedure and complaint protocol are administered by the College's Human Rights Officer, along with clearly identified roles and responsibilities for Campus Principals and School Deans, in addition to the responsibilities of all college staff. The detailed policy and procedure for complaint response, investigation, appeal process, and resolution, covers staff, students and all college administrators including the President and Board of Directors. Summary of College Supports: The College has several avenues depending on whether the individual is a student, staff, or faculty member. If someone alleges to have experienced or witnessed an act of discrimination or an incident of bias, there are several options available to them. If the individual is a student, they can seek out supports and resources through the Manager, Student Rights, and Responsibilities and if the individual is an employee, they can seek out supports and resources from either their union or from the Human Rights and Inclusion Specialist. When someone comes forward and alleges that they have experienced or witnessed an act of discrimination, the following options are available to them: mediation; informal resolution; informal fact-finding process; formal resolution; formal investigation; workplace assessment; workplace restoration; Indigenous-specific interventions (i.e. sharing circles, etc.). In addition to these options, the College also occurs supports and resources to students, staff, and faculty. The College has the following supports: Counselling Centre – the counseling center is available to all enrolled students and there have access to mental health counseling services Indigenous Student Services – have cultural appropriate supports and resources for Indigenous students, including access to Elders Prayer Spaces – the campus has quiet and reflection spaces for all students of all faiths Community resources – the College has relationships with the local Sexual Assault Centre and can provide referrals for students to access their counseling services For Employees Only: There are specific support services for employees only such as the Human Resources and the Employee Assistance Program (EAP). The Human Rights and Inclusion Specialist is a confidential resource for faculty and staff to provide information about policies, procedures, services, and your rights and responsibilities. The EAP is a work-sponsored program that provides free, confidential short-term counseling, referral, and follow-up services at not cost

Students: Grad recruiters are hired annually by the student recruitment office. In the past two years, Fleming has hired a student recruitment facilitator dedicated to recruiting underrepresented groups. This position provides outreach to potential students who may not consider post-secondary education to be an option. The position will work closely with guidance counsellors, teachers, community groups and individuals to identify potential students who have been marginalized and to help increase participation rates among under-represented groups, primarily in the Peterborough-Kawartha catchment area, with some activity in the Durham region. Specifically, this position will work to increase PSE participation among individuals identified as likely to experience greater difficulty accessing PSE: first-generation, rural, racialized, LGBT+ new Canadians, people with disabilities, crown wards and fostered/CAS-supported youth individuals with lower high school GPAs or those returning to education. This position will also support existing staff on Indigenous student recruitment. The position is funded through an Ontario Postsecondary Access and Inclusion Program grant. Staff/Faculty: In 2019, the College has taken the step in identifying the need for a more robust strategy to attract, retain, and promote individuals from underrepresented groups. The College is establishing a program to be able to census the current staff and faculty, identify gaps in representation, and create a recruitment strategy geared towards filling identified gaps and attracting top talent from underrepresented and historically marginalized groups. The College has recently joined Equitek which is a recruitment firm that assists the College is advertising to underrepresented groups and assists in ensuring that individuals from underrepresented groups are represented in the applicant pool. The college also advertises all full-time positions on the Indigenous Link Job Board, as well as adding local Indigenous communities to our job posting distribution list. For more information on Accessibility at Fleming College please see our Accessibility Page Fleming Recruitment "Careers at Fleming" website: Fleming is committed to supporting a diverse and inclusive college community. We welcome applications from any qualified persons who wish to contribute to excellence in student learning, including Aboriginal persons, immigrants, members of sexual minority groups, persons with disabilities, racial/visible minorities and women. An Inclusive and Accessible Workplace Sir Sandford Fleming College is committed to building an inclusive and accessible learning and working environment. We believe in and promote the rights of all persons with disabilities as enshrined in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Ontario Human Rights Code, and the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA, 2005) and its related Accessibility Standards Regulations. To meet this commitment, Fleming College will make appropriate accommodations available throughout the recruitment, selection and/or assessment process to applicants with disabilities. If selected to participate in the recruitment, selection and/or assessment process, please inform our Human Resources staff of the nature of any accommodation(s) that you may require to ensure your equal participation.

Fleming College offers support programs for underrepresented groups, in particular, Indigenous students, persons with disabilities (students and employees), First Generation students, and members of sexual minorities (students and employees). Programs supporting students include: Aboriginal Students: Aboriginal Student Services offers a meeting place (Aboriginal Student Lounge) and support staff at Fleming’s two largest campuses (Sutherland and Frost), as well programming (elder visits, tipi gatherings, cultural days, trips, etc.). Persons with disabilities: Disability Services/Learning Support Services offers a large range of services and programs for students with disabilities, including assessments and accommodations, summer orientation programs, tutoring, adaptive technology, and more. Human Resources offer accommodations for employees with disabilities, in partnership with Learning Support Services and Facilities. First Generation students: Programming includes expanded bursaries, additional supports during orientation, a club for mature learners, and peer mentoring. LGBTQ students and employees: Members of sexual minorities are supported via the Positive Space Program which offers additional support to LGBTQ students and employees via a partnership with a local agency (PARN Your Community AIDS Resource Network).

Fleming College believes that diversity and inclusion are cornerstones of global citizenship, equity, and success for students and staff. Our promise is an inclusive community. Our actions demonstrate that we are committed on an on-going basis to removing barriers and actively evolving a culture of respect, recognition, accommodation, and celebration of each other’s unique contributions to Fleming’s learning and working environment. Fleming's Accessibility Hub is supporting Fleming employees in developing the accessible and cross-cultural communication skills needed to serve an increasingly diverse student body. Practical workshops are offered to faculty and support staff, as well as student leaders. Fleming's student services and International Student Services also collaborates with local partners such as the New Canadian’s Centre and Workforce Development Board to make these kinds of opportunities available to local service providers and businesses.