| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 66.71 |
| Liaison | Christie-Joy Hartman |
| Submission Date | Sept. 13, 2024 |
James Madison University
PA-6: Assessing Diversity and Equity
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
0.88 / 1.00 |
Arthur
Dean Associate Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Office of Inclusive Excellence & Engagement |
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:
Framework: The responsibility of assessing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion happens at two levels: in JMU’s strategic plan and annual reporting and through responsibility/oversight of key initiatives by the Vice President of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. JMU’s strategic plan has performance measures and core qualities that are assessed annually. Embedded within the core qualities are the key goals of the university. Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is listed in all three categories (performance measures, core qualities and goals). Thus, divisions and departments that connect or have responsibility in one of the three areas directly articulate how they are meeting the measure, quality or goal. JMU uses STAR Tool as the system to capture strategic planning and measurable updates.
Assessment Process: JMU has implemented two major initiatives during the 2020-2023 academic years to assess and improve DEI efforts: the Task Force on Racial Equity and "Speak Up, Dukes" Climate Study. These efforts aimed to make JMU more accountable and inclusive for all its members: faculty, staff, students, and alumni. The climate effort entailed forming a Climate Study Working Group, creating and administering a campus climate study survey, and producing a report shared by a consulting company.
The timeline was as follows:
Survey Development: Fall 2020/Spring 2021
Survey Implementation, seeking input from all students, faculty, and staff: mid-Fall 2021
Reporting of Results: Spring 2022
Development of actions, facilitated by dialogue groups: Fall 2022
As further detail on the process, JMU’s Climate Study Working Group (CSWG) was charged with directing JMU’s climate survey. After a review of potential vendors, the committee selected Rankin & Associates Consulting to conduct the survey. Rankin & Associates reported directly to the committee. The CSWG was responsible for developing the survey questions, assisted by the consulting company that has administered climate assessments to more than 200 institutions across the nation with a repository of questions. The survey was open to all current students, staff and faculty.
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:
We used the results of the climate study and task force to take immediate action and improve our campus while forming a long-term implementation team that will continue the work. The Task Force on Racial Equity (https://www.jmu.edu/president/racial-equity/index.shtml) developed 53 recommendations to address racial equity/inequity within the University. Those recommendations can be found at https://www.jmu.edu/president/racial-equity/recommendations.shtml.
An example of a completed objective is to write and share a "Faculty Syllabi Statement on DEI & Access". The publicly-posted objectives shape programs by providing accountability to a VP and key leader to continue to implement or and evaluate each recommendation.
Some results of the "Speak Up, Dukes", Climate Study (https://www.jmu.edu/climate-study/index.shtml) include forming action groups such as the Coalition to End Sexual Violence, Council on Health and Well-being, Campus-Wide Accessibility Committee, Campus Council on Alcohol Policy and Enforcement, and Shared Governance.(https://www.jmu.edu/climate-study/actions-so-far.shtml)
An example of a result is that the Council on Health and Well-being is creating a plan for a healthy campus. The findings of both the above initiatives are impacting the landscape of JMU. Councils, initiatives, programs and coordinated change have taken place due to the reports and efforts to influence change at JMU.
One tangible result is the creation of a new initiative for 2023-24, under the leadership of Dr. Carter-Hoyt - The 30+30: Awareness to Action Inclusive Future Tour (https://www.jmu.edu/inclusion/index.shtml).
•The 30+30 format provides an opportunity for the leaders of each initiative to provide an update. Also members of the JMU community are able to engage with additional thoughts, ideas or questions on how to better implement or support that initiative. Begun in September 2023, the tour is a platform to provide short presentations for each of the 53 Task Force Recommendations, 7+ Climate Study efforts or other important DEI initiatives and activity.
•During these virtual presentations, individuals can share status, resources needed and partnerships.
•Our community is welcome to attend all sessions and there will be time for audience participation where Dukes can share intelligence, expertise, and skill in the context of continuous improvement, taking our campus from Awareness to Action.
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:
The results of the climate study and task force are shared in multiple formats:
-Rankin & Associates Consulting presented the results of the “Speak Up, Dukes!” JMU campus climate study on April 5 and April 11, 2022 to the JMU community with in person and virtual options as follows:
- Tuesday, April 5, 9-10:30 a.m., in-person — Wilson Hall Auditorium
- Tuesday, April 5, 12-1:30 p.m. in-person — Wilson Hall Auditorium and virtually on YouTube
- Tuesday, April 5, 2;30-4 p.m., in-person — Wilson Hall Auditorium
- Tuesday, April 5, 7-8:30 p.m., in-person — Wilson Hall Auditorium and virtually on YouTube
- Monday, April 11, 12-1:30 pm, virtually on YouTube
-A climate study report is available to the JMU community located on the individual websites for each initiative. A report is also available to those with a JMU website log in.
-Presentations about task force work and the climate study results were made to leaders at various JMU key groups including the Diversity Councils, Student Government, Faculty Senate, Cabinet and other campus leadership entities.
-The 30+30 tour assists with accountability and collaboration on each individual goal or initiative that was captured through the task force and climate study.
-Information is housed on the President’s website and JMU’s inclusion hub.
-Graduation and retention rates are tracked by race/ethnicity and gender by Planning, Analytics, and Institutional Research. https://www.jmu.edu/oir/retention-graduation-rates.shtml
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:
For the results public posted, "No" was selected because the results of the climate survey require a JMU login.
Some information is available at https://www.jmu.edu/climate-study/index.shtml.
JMU's campus climate survey includes employee satisfaction questions, and information about that is available under PA13: Assessing Employee Satisfaction.
Responsible Party: Arthur Dean, Executive Director, Campus and Community Programs, Office of Access and Inclusion. Information provided by Art Dean and entered by Amanda Bodle, ISNW, on February 22, 2024.
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.