Nova Scotia Community College
PA-4: Diversity and Equity Coordination

The Office of Diversity and Inclusion (ODI) is committed to fostering an environment that is comfortable and welcoming to our NSCC community as well as external communities. The ODI currently consists of Director of Diversity and Inclusion, Respectful Workplace and Learning Environment Specialist, Staff Interpreter and Administrative Assistant. The Office works to strategically infuse diversity and inclusion at every level of the College, and connect to all College stakeholders in several areas, such as policy, education and awareness, leadership and accountability, complaint support/direct client service, measurement and analysis, communication and commitment. All staff, faculty and students are encouraged to take advantage of the services available through Diversity and Inclusion. For example: • Hosting and co-sponsoring various educational and awareness activities throughout the year that are intended to highlight the value and importance of diversity, inclusion and the promotion of a respectful working and learning environment. • Providing regular learning opportunities through partnership with NSCC Org Learning department. Development opportunities are offered in areas of cultural competence, conflict resolution, etc. • Developing resources for faculty and other College employees to promote diversity and inclusion College-wide. • Developing community partnerships and outreach opportunities. • Providing consultation, needs assessments and customized solutions to individuals, departments and campuses in areas of diversity, inclusion and the promotion of a respectful working and learning environment. • Ensuring informal complaints are processed in a fair, efficient and transparent manner. • Providing access and support to formal and informal Respectful Workplace and Learning Environment policy complaint resolution mechanisms, including alternative dispute resolution options (consultation, coaching, facilitated conversations, mediations and group work). • Monitoring compliance and evaluating the effectiveness of this policy and associated procedures. • Policy research, development, and referral services. Taking a leadership role in providing advice on policy provisions, addressing and providing assistance to resolve concerns and complaints. • Developing and implementing strategies to facilitate the prevention and elimination of organizational conflicts, discrimination, harassment and bullying, including policy development. • Provide support to the College in policy and program development to ensure that diversity and inclusion are integrated into college organizational culture. • The College continues to explore meaningful strategies, programs and policies that would assist in advancing diversity and inclusion. To this end, an Employment Equity and Educational Equity Working Group has been established. The primary goal of this working group is to develop two Equity Policies: Employment Equity and another separate policy referred to as an Educational Equity Policy. These policies will assist the College in achieving a represented workforce, advancing commitment to diversity and inclusion and inform NSCC's equity initiatives, This Working Group is comprised of all key College stakeholders. • As a Post Secondary Institution that is responsible for compliance under the Federal Contractors Program the College is committed to meeting the requirements of this Federal Government Program: The Federal Contractors Program was established in 1986 to further the goal of achieving workplace equity for designated groups experiencing discrimination in the Canadian labour market. These groups are Aboriginal/Indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities, visible minorities (racially visible) and women, in occupations where women are under-represented. Program Requirements: - Collect Workforce Information - Complete a Workforce Analysis - Establish short-term and long-term numerical goals - Make reasonable progress and reasonable efforts The College responded immediately to the FCP agreement and dedicated necessary resources to complete the prescribed elements of the workforce survey process. The College is carefully following the FCP Reference and Guidelines document to ensure that the required elements of the program are successfully met. An Employment Equity Self-Identification Survey was launched on September 26, 2016 inviting all NSCC employees to voluntarily self-identify. A solid communication was developed to assist the College in achieving the required 80% survey return rate. Due to the College's strategic commitments to diversity and inclusion, we recognize that groups other than those designated in the Federal Contractors Program, also face discrimination and systemic barriers that may limit their participation in the workplace. To this end, it is important to note that the College has gone beyond the Federal Contractors Program requirements of surveying the four designated groups and expanded this category to assist in achieving a barrier free work and learning environment for those who have been historically disadvantaged. The Diversity Leadership Council (“DLC”) acts as an advisory body to the President’s Office and the Executive Team for the College with matters related to Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, Citizen and Community Engagement. The Council’s overall responsibility will be to oversee Nova Scotia Community College’s progress in creating a more diverse, inclusive and culturally competent learning and working environment. This group will ensure that: ➢ NSCC is held accountable for its commitment to Diversity and Inclusion ➢ Priorities focused on equity, diversity and citizen and community engagement are set and measured annually Responsibilities: ➢ Advise NSCC through the Vice President of Learner and College Development on diversity and inclusion matters as they pertain to key business, educational and community issues ➢ Provide advice to the College to ensure the focus of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion plan aligns with the NSCC Strategic Plan and its key priorities ➢ Be Diversity and Inclusion Champions for the College – on campus, and in industry, government, corporate and community settings ➢ Function as a resource to the College in its work to eliminate all forms of discrimination and racism within the College ➢ Assist the College in learning to use a diversity and inclusion lens for all of its policies, processes and procedures at every level of the College ➢ Actively support initiatives for the DLC membership and the NSCC Executive Team that will continue to enhance their knowledge and skills in leading large organizations with a diversity and inclusion mandate ➢ Set annual provincially focused targets and milestones for its work, reporting annually to the College and to the citizens and communities it serves ➢ Oversee the ongoing institutional monitoring and accountability process for diversity and inclusion ➢ Review Terms of Reference (“TOR”) annually to ensure their ongoing alignment with the changes and growth of the College

• Understanding Diversity and Building Bridges workshop - mandatory for all current staff and an integral component of new hire on-boarding. • Diversity & Inclusion Leadership Competency learning program for Executive members and Executive Direct Reports. • Development and delivery of Diversity Learning workshop for Board of Governors. • Deliver Diversity and Inclusion workshop during Student Orientation and Student Ambassador Conference. • Develop Diversity Discussion Starter Handbook for Student Ambassadors. • Development/review/renewal of Respectful Workplace and Learning Environment Policy managed by RWLE Specialist. • Consultation and recommendations on Sexual Violence policy. • Contribute to the development of Diverse and Inclusive curricula, supporting classroom diversity and inclusion infusion and supporting the development of a rubric to assist faculty with textbook selections. • Leads in the coordination of celebration and NSCC's participation in Halifax Pride Week Events, including participation in the Halifax Pride Parade. NSCC has received rave reviews from the Halifax Pride Committee Chair and its members for being a leader in support of Halifax Pride Celebrations in comparisons to other local Post Secondary Institutions. We have built a great relationship/partnership with the Halifax Pride Committee that we are very proud of. • Various customized training offered to departments and campuses that include module /discussion on creating space for diverse perspectives. • Individual coaching for employees and students on diverse perspectives in relation to complaint resolution. • In partnership with Organizational Learning the ODI has worked to provide educational workshops on topics such as Cultural Competence, Intercultural Competence, Gender Diversity and Unconscious Bias, for all employees. • The College has supported three employees to participate in training to become Qualified Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI) Administrators. These individuals help to elevate our in-house capacity to provide intercultural competency awareness throughout the organization. The IDI is a world renowned theory-based assessment of intercultural competence. It provides individuals with an in-depth understanding to how they make meaning of cultural differences. It is a useful tool to help individuals understand where they fit on the IDI continuum and allows them to understand the areas where they may wish to further develop to become more culturally competent. Leave for Change: International Volunteerism Leave for Change (L4C) is a component of the Uniterra international development programme. Since 2009, NSCC Organizational Learning, NSCC International and Uniterra have been sponsoring interested NSCC employees to undertake a variety of international short-term placements overseas with the goal of skill-sharing and capacity building; to the benefit of both the volunteer and the host agency. NSCC employees have volunteered in a number of countries over the past eight years in Ghana, Vietnam, Malawi, Burkina Faso and Nepal. Intercultural competency training is required prior to departure on the Leave. NSCC employees travel to Toronto or Montreal for two-day intercultural competency training followed by a three to four week placement abroad. L4C employees maintain a blog and complete pre, during and post-placement reflections, as well as make presentations to the College community. As a requirement of the L4C placement, NSCC employees are required to make a commitment to give back to the NSCC community after their return from their Leave. Conversations on Learning: The International/Intercultural Classroom Since 2012, NSCC Organizational Learning and NSCC International have collaborated on a workshop for employees called Conversations on Learning: The International/Intercultural Classroom. All employees are welcome to register for this 3-day workshop. Workshop description: Conversations on Learning: The International/Intercultural Classroom Communities and classrooms are changing as new learners with valued cultural backgrounds are welcomed to Nova Scotia and NSCC. Awareness of cultural identities and their implications is critical to working and learning together. This workshop creates space to have dialogue and practice the impact of culture and learning at NSCC, explore how to improve communication skills with learners from other cultures, and how to broaden the concept of internationalization of education.