Lehigh University
PA-5: Diversity and Equity Coordination

The Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Equity was created with the hiring of the inaugural Vice President for Equity & Community in February of 2017. The office is responsible for developing and implementing a comprehensive plan to enhance and build on Lehigh’s efforts to advance its commitment to a more diverse and inclusive campus. We do this through strategic planning, training, education and research, community relations, policy development and communications. Our office coordinates with all University assets, including students, staff, senior administrators, deans, department heads, trustees and local community leaders and groups. The division is comprised of advocacy centers (the Center for Gender Equity, the Office of Multicultural Affairs, the Pride Center for Sexual Orientation & Gender Diversity, and the Chaplain’s Office), Student Access and Success, and a Multicultural Community Liaison.

The Council for Equity and Community is a committee of Lehigh faculty, staff and students committed to serving as a campus resource and agent of cultural change. We encourage constructive dialogue and work toward building community at Lehigh. We advise the Vice President for Equity & Community.

Cornerstones of Community is a career enrichment track that brings together courses, programs and experiences with the goal of building a community that exemplifies the Principles of our Equitable Community. Portions are required for all staff, and the remainder are required for all supervisory-level positions. Curriculum includes:

Not Anymore- Staff and faculty online harassment and discrimination training (required for all staff)
Inclusion Insights- This course will show you how to use creativity and innovation (one of Lehigh’s Success Factors) to contribute to our Equitable Community by seeking different perspectives, new ideas, knowledge and experiences.(required for all staff)
Cornell Interactive Theatre Ensemble (CITE): Your Story, My Story- This theatrical program provides an opportunity for audiences to hear, explore and experience each other in a manner that illuminates their similarities rather than their differences. The primary objective is to stimulate discussion about the opportunities for greater understanding of diversity and inclusion. Listening to the stories of the characters in the theatrical piece will provide an opportunity for learning about:

Experiences of exclusion and inclusion in the workplace; Experiencing empathy for and identification with all of the characters; Seeing the commonality of our human experience that flows underneath all the stories; Our own unconscious bias (required for managers, open to all staff)

VISIONS- VISIONS trainings are about enhancing Lehigh's capacity to create an equitable campus community by introducing staff, faculty, students to the VISIONS framework and common language: guidelines for effective dialogue, target/non-target, modern "isms" and internalized oppression,etc. (required for managers, open to all staff)

PowerPlay: Bystander Intervention- This facilitated, interactive workshop allows participants to identify incidents of bias and then build the ability to address these issues in a positive and constructive way (required for managers, open to all staff)

LUally through the Pride Center: LUally delivers skills-based, educational opportunities for the Lehigh community, while centering the philosophy that allyship is a continuous process that looks different for everyone. Participants have the ability to personalize their learning to meet their own goals as an ally and track their engagement with the Pride Center and LUally-affiliated opportunities. (For faculty, staff and students)

Diversity Champions through Office of Multicultural Affairs: an interactive workshop series called Diversity Champions geared to support faculty and staff in increasing their cultural awareness and interpersonal effectiveness. Subjects include inclusive language, exploration of identity, unconscious bias, communication and cross-cultural conflict, and cultural humility. (For staff)

Inclusive Excellence in Teaching workshops through Center for Innovation in Teaching and Learning (CITL) and Office of Diversity, Inclusion & Equity (ODI&E): offers definitions of and practical applications and tips for faculty to make their classrooms more inclusive (For faculty)

Diversity and equity coordination was not impacted by COVID-19. The trainings that we have are limited in attendance numbers even during a normal year because smaller groups are better for the in-depth interactions we need for the subject matter. So even in a normal year, improvements from previous years would have occurred. Therefore, the data above is representative of a normal year.