University of Dayton
PA-6: Support for Underrepresented Groups

University Policy Statement on Nondiscrimination The University adheres to all federal and state civil rights laws prohibiting discrimination in private institutions of higher education. The University of Dayton does not discriminate on the basis of age, race, color, creed, religion, ancestry, national or ethnic origin, sex/gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, disability, genetic information, military status, veteran status, familial status or any other protected category consistent with the requirements of applicable local, state or federal law, ordinance or regulation. This includes protections for those opposing discrimination or participating in any such reporting process on campus or within the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Ohio Civil Rights Commission or other human rights agencies, in the planning and administration of its admissions policies, educational programs, scholarships, loans, and other financial aid, athletic and other school-administered programs, services, and activities, or in employment. Sexual harassment, which includes acts of sexual violence, is a type of sex discrimination. This policy covers nondiscrimination in employment as well as access to educational opportunities. It is the policy of the University of Dayton, while reserving its lawful rights where appropriate to take actions designed to promote the Catholic, Marianist principles that sustain its mission and identity, to not discriminate or permit discrimination in its educational programs or employment opportunities. Therefore, any member of the campus community, guest or visitor who acts to deny, deprive or limit the educational, employment, residential access and/or benefits required by applicable law, and/or opportunities of any member of the campus community on the basis of their actual or perceived membership in the protected classes listed above (which denial, deprivation or limitation constitutes “discrimination” under this policy) is in violation of this policy. This includes failing to provide reasonable accommodations to persons with disabilities, when that accommodation is consistent with state and federal law. https://udayton.edu/policies/finance/nondiscrimination-policypage.php#statement

The Office for Diversity and Inclusion provides a form for reporting incidents of harassment, including, but not limited to sexual violence, and discrimination that any community member believes may be in violation of the University of Dayton’s Discrimination and Anti-Harassment Policy. This link is accessible from any UD webpage. The Office of Finance houses a Nondiscrimination Resource Center which provides complaint, reporting, and appeal forms; posts the university’s nondiscrimination and anti-harassment policies; and guides for filing equity complaints. Respondents have the option of submitting reports anonymously. The school also implemented a Bias Related Incident Process and Reporting Form, available on-line, for faculty, staff, and students. After a Form is Submitted Information submitted via the electronic complaint and report forms is sent to the Title IX/Section 504 Coordinator and Equity Compliance Officer, who will determine what, if any, action by the University is necessary. The reporting person will ordinarily receive a follow up message from the Equity Compliance Officer within three business days. Any next steps are dependent on the nature of the case and the status of the alleged perpetrator (i.e., faculty, staff, student or visitor). The Equity Compliance Officer follows the Equity Complaint Process for Resolving Complaints of Harassment, Sexual Misconduct and Other Forms of Discrimination. He or she may determine: no action is necessary, no violation of the Nondiscrimination and Anti-Harassment Policy has taken place, but the case should be referred to another University official to investigate other possible policy violations; informal resolution is an option; and/or formal investigation and dispute resolution is required. The University strives to complete its process within 60 days of receipt of the complaint or report. Individuals experiencing a hate crime are referred to Public Safety where they are provided the necessary support to stay safe on campus. https://udayton.edu/publicsafety/index.php A variety of supports and confidential resources are provided for individuals who feel targeted by or have witnessed discrimination. Students are referred to supports which include the Counseling Center, Campus Ministry, and the Office of Multicultural Affairs. Faculty and staff are asked to contact the Employee Assistance Program, Human Resources, the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, or the Equity Compliance Office. https://udayton.edu/finadmin/divisions/equity_compliance/student-resources-page.php https://udayton.edu/finadmin/divisions/equity_compliance/employee-resources-page.php https://udayton.edu/finadmin/divisions/equity_compliance/confidential-resources-page.php In example of an action taken in the past year: a student brought a complaint to the Title IX office. The Office worked with the student within one month to address the situation and the student's concerns. The Title IX office contacted units and individuals on campus involved in the situation to address the situation, and offered to be of continued assistance. https://udayton.edu/studev/_resources/Bias%20Related%20Incident%20Protocol.pdf https://udayton.edu/studev/_resources/bias%20fullsheet.pdf https://udayton.edu/finadmin/campus/nondiscrimination/index.php

Students: The College of Arts and Sciences transitional strategic plan (2015-2017; on-going) addresses this issues: STRATEGIC INITIATIVE 4.3 Support as a valued educational and institutional resource the engagement of a racially, ethnically, culturally, religiously, and socioeconomically inclusive University of Dayton community. » Tactic 4.3.A — Improve recruitment, academic and scholarship support, persistence to graduation, and an inclusive environment for domestic minority and international undergraduate and graduate students, with particular attention to diverse underrepresented minority and international student populations. Some of the specific programs which support the recruitment of underrepresented students are: the Montgomery County College Promise/UD Flyer Promise Scholarship program; UD and other regional Upward Bound programs; UD Leadership and Service local high school recruitment program; partnership with college access organizations in the three major urban cities in Ohio; the Adult Degree Advancement Program; partnering with the Dayton Early College Academy high school so that students attend UD courses free of charge for college credit; participation in the Infinite Scholars program; and the UDayton Global pathway program that supports international students from recruitment to student success. Staff and Faculty: The 2020 Strategic Plan identifies recruitment and hiring of underrepresented groups: Goal 4, Strategy 4.1., Initiative 6: Support the Committee on Equity and Leadership Development and College's Equity Advisors as they advise departments and make recommendations to the dean's office concerning equitable hiring practices and work environments relating to gender, race, and ethnicity, and other forms of indifference. Faculty Equity Advisors' duties and responsibilities include conducting workshops and training on topics such as implicit bias in hiring or in promotion and tenure. They serve as a resource for departments and programs by developing materials on equity for faculty searches, respond to interviewees’ questions and meet with interviewees when requested by the hiring supervisor. [https://udayton.edu/blogs/artssciences/17-01-12-faculty-equity-advisor.php] Additionally, the College of Arts and Sciences transitional strategic plan (2015-2017; on-going) addresses this issues: STRATEGIC INITIATIVE 4.3 Support as a valued educational and institutional resource the engagement of a racially, ethnically, culturally, religiously, and socioeconomically inclusive University of Dayton community. » Tactic 4.3.B — Improve recruitment, advancement and leadership opportunities for faculty and staff from groups underrepresented in the university community. The School of Engineering's Strategic Plan calls for increasing and supporting faculty diversity of women and underrepresented domestic minorities. To this end, the school has appointed an Associate Dean for Faculty and Staff Development (2016) and has begun a marketing and recruiting campaign, attending Engineering conferences with the specific purpose of marketing to prospective faculty. The school also hosts lunch and learn opportunities at other Engineering schools as opportunities to interact with faculty and promote the University of Dayton to underrepresented groups. The school has changed its on-boarding process and created first-year faculty development programs to support new faculty arrivals, including underrepresented groups. The Associate Dean also recruits women and minorities for university-wide leadership training programs. Most recently (2017-2018), the VP for Diversity and Inclusion is convening the Hiring and Advancement for Diversity, Inclusion, and Mission Working Group. To identify, develop, implement and measure best and promising practices that will result in more effective and efficient recruitment, hiring, retention and promotion/advancement of faculty, staff and administrators from domestic underrepresented racial/ethnic populations at predominantly white institutions (PWIs) and to achieve gender equity. This process intentionally and strategically targets historical and contemporary patterns of underrepresentation of these groups. The process, however, will also inform the University and better position it to understand, develop, and implement best and promising practices associated with underrepresented persons from other diverse populations. (e.g., LGBTQ+, faith traditions, etc.)

The Office of Multicultural Affairs (OMA) offers multiple programs to support underrepresented groups on campus, including but not limited to the following: PEERS Mentoring Program, OMA Study Tables with faculty tutoring available, Individual Student Consultation Meetings, Faculty/Staff-Student Mentoring Program, Transitions Pre-Orientation Program, Student Organization Support, Leadership Development Experiences, Peer-led Programming, Cultural Programming, and financial support through scholarships and book support. Offices on campus that provide resources to University of Dayton all students and employees including those underrepresented are the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, Women's Center, Campus Ministry, Center for International Programs, Equity Compliance and the Office of Human Resources. Specifically in Human Resources, staff will connect employees to appropriate resources such as the Employee Assistance Program (lifeworks.com) coaching, counseling and/or a mentor. The Black Faculty Association provides support and mentoring to underrepresented faculty. Additionally, the School of Engineering houses the Diversity Engineering Center, supporting women and underrepresented groups in the school, and collaborates with the Office of Multicultural Affairs for programming. Other programs include METEC summer camp for rising senior HS underrepresented male students; promotion of affinity groups such as the National Association of Black Engineers; WISE (Women in Science and Engineering) Learning Living Community; summer bridge programs; and minority leaders program which is a consortium funded through the US Air Force to build a diverse engineering research base. This program supports underrepresented students through internships on campus and at the Air Force base. UD's Office of Diversity and Inclusion, under the direction of the Executive Director of Inclusive Excellence Education has launched the Inclusive Excellence Academy Learning Series (IEA) in the Fall semester of 2017. The series offers faculty and staff learning opportunities focused on increasing intercultural knowledge, personal awareness, and skills to engage with others. These 60-90 minute sessions provide engaging content and experiences for participants to personally connect with the topic and key learning outcomes. Workshop topics range from understanding cross-cultural interactions to creating inclusive classroom environments to understanding diversity, equity and inclusion through a Catholic and Marianist lens.

To support underrepresented students exploring careers as future faculty members, the School has multiple initiatives to inspire underrepresented and female students to consider pursuing their PhD to build the “faculty pipeline”. The Diversity Engineering Center supports female, minority, and international engineering students with programming that includes developing skills and familiarity with graduate school application and “survival”. We have approximately 160 students in the Minority Engineering Program. Of the 160, we specifically engage about 80 each year, our 1st and 2nd year students, in at least 1 workshop per semester dedicated to providing exposure to students currently pursuing their Masters and/or PhD. The workshops also support and encourage students in finding undergraduate research opportunities as well as how to find and apply for graduate school to foster engineering as a future career path. [https://udayton.edu/engineering/diversity/minority-engineering/index.php] The Minority Leaders Program for domestic minority students provides research opportunities. Last year 36 students participated in undergraduate research and three students in graduate research, through the Minority Leaders Scholarship Program. Five of those students (3 undergrad, 2 graduate) worked at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base last summer. Two students are currently being supported in the UD MS in Materials Engineering Program and two graduating seniors have applied to participate in the program. An additional two undergraduate students worked on Minority Leaders Programs on campus last summer (2017). The Summer Undergraduate Research Experience includes paid summer research opportunities for students plus professional development around graduate school. We had 15 students participate in the SURE program last summer (2017). [https://udayton.edu/engineering/research/sure/index.php] All of these programs are taking steps to build a more diverse future faculty from underrepresented groups by increasing the supply of faculty candidates, starting with inspiring undergraduates to explore and become familiar with graduate school options and research experiences.

School of Engineering programs: https://www.udayton.edu/engineering/diversity/ Bias Reporting: https://www.udayton.edu/provost/diversity/brit/brit_form.php Office of Diversity and Inclusion: https://udayton.edu/diversity/about/index.php Office of Diversity and Inclusion: https://udayton.edu/diversity/