Overall Rating Silver
Overall Score 52.66
Liaison Grace Afflerbach
Submission Date March 8, 2024

STARS v2.2

Purchase College - State University of New York
PA-7: Support for Underrepresented Groups

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 2.00 / 3.00 Grace Afflerbach
Sustainability Coordinator
Facilities
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Non-discrimination statement 

Does the institution have a publicly posted non-discrimination statement? :
Yes

The non-discrimination statement, including the website URL where the policy is publicly accessible:
Purchase College is committed to fostering a diverse community of outstanding faculty, staff and students, as well as ensuring equal educational opportunity, employment, and access to service, programs, and activities, without regard to an individual’s race, color, national origin, religion, creed, age, disability, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, familial status, pregnancy, predisposing genetic characteristics, military status, domestic violence victim status, or criminal conviction. Employees, students, applicants, or other members of the Purchase community (including vendors, visitors, and guests) may not be subjected to harassment that is prohibited by law or treated adversely or retaliated against based upon a protected characteristic.

https://www.purchase.edu/live/blurbs/1551-nondiscrimination-policy

Bias response team 

Does the institution have a discrimination response protocol or committee (sometimes called a bias response team)?:
Yes

A brief description of the institution’s discrimination response protocol or team:
The Bias Response Team is a cross representative team of Purchase College community members that review, assess, and respond to crisis level high-impact global campus-wide incidents of bias and/or discrimination that may occur. This team is mobilized to determine necessary action and communications in a timely manner.

Procedural steps are detailed below:
-Focus on safety first.
-Denounce hateful acts, address fears and reiterate our campus values.
-Provide supportive resources and services to the individual(s) that were affected.
-Mobilize and involve the entire campus community (students, faculty, staff and leadership) in finding solutions and resolving the matter.
-Conduct a thorough, comprehensive and unbiased investigation to get the facts.
-Recommend and implement changes to College policy and procedures to remove and eliminate potential systemic barriers.
-When necessary and determined, enforce appropriate consequences.
-Continually work towards and fostering unity, cohesion and synergy on our campus.

Recruitment programs 

Does the institution have programs specifically designed to recruit students from underrepresented groups?:
Yes

Does the institution have programs specifically designed to recruit academic staff from underrepresented groups?:
Yes

Does the institution have programs designed specifically to recruit non-academic staff from underrepresented groups?:
Yes

If yes to any of the above, provide:

A brief description of the institution’s programs to recruit students, academic staff, and/or non-academic staff from underrepresented groups:
Students: The Educational Opportunity Program (EOP) and Merit Access Program (MAP) are for underrepresented groups. These are programs designed for students who have not yet reached their full academic potential. EOP/MAP students are assigned a personal counselor who provides academic strategies and advice.

Academic Staff: "Promoting Recruitment, Opportunity, Diversity, Inclusion and Growth" or PRODiG is a grant that aims to increase the representation of historically underrepresented faculty. This grant has enabled the school to hire, support, and retain more faculty from underrepresented groups.

Non-academic staff: When hiring staff members, the search committee must comply with Affirmative Action laws and must work towards the campus mission of cultural diversity. During the candidate search, all involved departments must ensure that the ideals of diversity and equal opportunity are reflected in the pool of applicants. To ensure this, job openings are posted on minority and women-targeted publications.

Mentoring, counseling and support programs 

Does the institution have mentoring, counseling, peer support, academic support, or other programs designed specifically to support students from underrepresented groups on campus?:
Yes

Does the institution have mentoring, counseling, peer support or other programs designed specifically to support academic staff from underrepresented groups on campus?:
Yes

Does the institution have mentoring, counseling, peer support or other programs to support non-academic staff from underrepresented groups on campus?:
Yes

A brief description of the institution’s programs designed specifically to support students, academic staff, and/or non-academic staff from underrepresented groups:
Students: The Success Fellows is a support program specifically designed for first-year, first-generation, and underserved students. This program takes place the summer before the student's first semester and helps with the transition to college to maximize academic success and improve retention. Success Fellows are paired with student mentors and faculty/staff who meet throughout the school year for the duration of the students' four years.

Academic and non-academic staff: The Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee (DEIC) is a standing committee of the Purchase College Senate. The voting members consist of both academic and non-academic staff, though any campus community member can attend the meetings. DEIC's mission is to ensure that the institution’s goals- both existing and future- continue to align themselves with a strong commitment to diversity. The Committee achieves this by assessing current resources and tools on a continual basis and researching and developing new initiatives. In adhering to these steps, the goal of an inclusive community is realized.
The Employee Assistance Program (EAP) is the department charged with helping employees and their families resolve issues, both mental and physical, that may impact job performance and overall wellbeing.
The Multicultural Center also offers trainings and support to members of the campus community to assist with and educate about diversity, equity, inclusion, and social justice.

Support for future academic staff

Does the institution have training and development programs, teaching fellowships and/or other programs that specifically aim to support and prepare students from underrepresented groups for careers as faculty members?:
No

A brief description of the institution’s programs to support and prepare students from underrepresented groups for careers as faculty members:
---

Optional Fields 

Does the institution produce a publicly accessible inventory of gender-neutral bathrooms on campus?:
No

Does the institution offer housing options to accommodate the special needs of transgender and transitioning students?:
Yes

Website URL where information about the institution’s support for underrepresented groups is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
https://www.purchase.edu/live/files/67-discrimination-complaint-procedure

https://www.purchase.edu/diversity/committees/

https://www.purchase.edu/diversity/multicultural-center/

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.