Overall Rating Bronze - expired
Overall Score 38.83
Liaison Emma Parsley
Submission Date Dec. 16, 2019
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Texas State University, San Marcos
PA-6: Support for Underrepresented Groups

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.75 / 3.00 James Vollrath
Director
Office of Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

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:

http://policies.txstate.edu/university-policies/04-04-46.html

Texas State is committed to an inclusive educational and work environment that provides equal opportunity and access to all qualified persons. Texas State, to the extent not in conflict with federal or state law, prohibits discrimination or harassment on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, sex, religion, disability, veterans’ status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression.

This policy describes reporting procedures for filing discrimination complaints with the Office of Equity and Inclusion and the process used to investigate and resolve them.

Texas State forbids discrimination in any university activity or program. Faculty members, staff employees, and students who discriminate against others in connection with a university activity or program will be considered to have violated this policy and are subject to disciplinary sanctions.


Does the institution have a discrimination response protocol or committee (sometimes called a bias response team) to respond to and support those who have experienced or witnessed a bias incident, act of discrimination or hate crime?:
Yes

A brief description of the institution’s discrimination response protocol or team (including examples of actions taken during the previous three years):

Texas State University has a program called "Bring it Up Bobcats", which is our discrimination response protocol and bias response team. This program is under the Office of Equity and Inclusion. If a student feels they have experienced an bias incident, they can go to the Office of Equity and Inclusion's website (https://www.txstate.edu/oei/Bias-Response-Protocol.html). Here, they have a tab that defines a bias incident and even if the incident would be considered a hate crime. If a student feels a bias incident is a hate crime, they are given the Texas State University police phone number or advised to call 911. If there was a bias incident, the website provides a Bias Incident Log, where students can see an example of how an incident should be reported. The student then can use the website to submit a Bias Incident Report. When submitting the report, students can choose to stay anonymous, but this may limit the ability to follow up. If identity is given, they ensure to do their best to keep confidentiality. Once the report is submitted, a Bias Response Team member will review and assess the report. All requests will be reviewed within 72 hours of submission. The team will respond to the complaint with resources and/or referrals for the reporter to utilize. Published in 2018, Texas State's Office of Equity and Inclusion adopted the "Speaking the Truth and Acting with Integrity: Confronting Challenges of Campus Racial Climate", which is rubric assessing our current capacity to respond to campus climate and culture crisis and for developing action plans designated to strengthen our capacity to build a more exclusive environment. (https://www.txstate.edu/oei/campus-climate-capacity0.html). All of these are set in place to ensure our university is inclusive and safe.


Does the institution have programs specifically designed to recruit students from underrepresented groups?:
No

Does the institution have programs specifically designed to recruit staff from underrepresented groups?:
No

Does the institution have programs specifically designed to recruit faculty from underrepresented groups?:
No

A brief description of the institution’s programs to recruit students, staff and/or faculty from underrepresented groups:

The university does not use gender, race, or religion in the recruitment process. We recruit all students who can qualify for our general admissions standards. Minority enrollment has steadily increased in recent years, with Hispanic and African-American students now accounting for over 46 percent of the fall 2017 enrollment.


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

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

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

A brief description of the institution’s programs to support students, staff and/or faculty from underrepresented groups:

The Underrepresented Student Advisory Council (USAC) is a multicultural programming and leadership development council composed of various recognized, university student organizations. The council welcomes and supports organizations whose majority membership includes persons from groups that have been and continue to be underrepresented in higher education and include a multicultural and cross cultural educational component in their programming. The mission of USAC member organizations is to represent and promote diversity and equal opportunity programming initiatives in support of a more inclusive society.

Staff and Faculty have corresponding support programs they can both join such as ALLIANCE and "Recruit Diversity", Coalition of Black Faculty and Staff, and The Hispanic Policy Network.


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:
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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?:
No

The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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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.