| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 66.29 |
| Liaison | Kevin Kirsche |
| Submission Date | Dec. 22, 2017 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
University of Georgia
PA-5: Assessing Diversity and Equity
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
0.50 / 1.00 |
Kevin
Kirsche Director of Sustainability Office of Sustainability |
Has the institution engaged in a structured assessment process during the previous three years to improve diversity, equity and inclusion on campus?:
A brief description of the assessment process and the framework, scorecard(s) and/or tool(s) used:
http://diversity.uga.edu/index.php/programs/article/campus-climate
Campus Climate Survey — Count Me In
The results of a survey that invited faculty, staff and students at the University of Georgia to share their experiences and perspectives on a range of issues will now be used as one of several inputs to inform ongoing efforts to enhance the campus environment.
The Count Me In survey was conducted Oct. 20 to Nov. 20, 2015 by Rankin and Associates Consulting and was open to all faculty, staff and students to ensure that every member of the campus community had a chance to provide feedback. Several reminders were sent to encourage participation, and a 23 percent response rate was recorded. Rankin and Associates recommended caution in generalizing the findings for groups with a response rate below 30 percent.
“The Count Me In survey reflects the university’s commitment to listening to the voices of our faculty, staff and students as we work together to ensure that the University of Georgia is a place where each and every individual can achieve their full potential,” said Associate Provost for Institutional Diversity Michelle Garfield Cook, who chaired the 11-member committee that worked with Rankin and Associates to develop the survey.
Does the assessment process address campus climate by engaging stakeholders to assess the attitudes, perceptions and behaviors of faculty, staff, administrators and students, including the experiences of underrepresented groups?:
Does the assessment process address student outcomes related to diversity, equity and success (e.g. graduation/success and retention rates for underrepresented groups)?:
Does the assessment process address employee outcomes related to diversity and equity (e.g. pay and retention rates for underrepresented groups)?:
A brief description of the most recent assessment findings and how the results are used in shaping policy, programs and initiatives:
Several key themes emerged from the study:
Comfort with the climate at UGA.
Of the 23 percent who responded overall, 81 percent reported being comfortable or very comfortable with the climate at UGA, in line with findings from these types of surveys at similar institutions. The findings also indicated that students felt comfortable in the classroom environment and perceived faculty as role models.
Faculty/staff work-life issues.
Virtually all of the faculty respondents agreed that research was valued by UGA. Faculty respondents also reported a clear understanding of the criteria for promotion and tenure. Similarly, the vast majority of staff respondents reported that their supervisors provided them with adequate resources to pursue professional development.
On the other hand, of the faculty and staff who responded to the survey, a majority noted that they had seriously considered leaving UGA in the past year, due primarily to low salaries. In addition, some faculty and staff indicated a need for improvement in areas such as hiring practices, reclassification decisions and work-life balance.
Closing the salary gap between the university and its peer institutions, which grew in the wake of the Great Recession, has been a key institutional priority. For the past three years, the university has been able to offer merit-based raises to faculty and staff. The recently expanded Office of Faculty Affairs has partnered with Human Resources to deliver training on best practices for recruiting and hiring, to strengthen existing supervisor training programs, and to craft materials to help search committees maximize the diversity of hiring pools. The office also offers workshops on faculty mentoring that include information on improving the retention of faculty in underrepresented groups.
In addition, the university launched a Women’s Leadership Initiative in March 2015 to promote gender equity. As a result of the initiative, UGA has updated its hiring practices, introduced leadership development programming and made new resources available to faculty and staff.
Differing experiences reported by groups.
Of the 23 percent who responded, 16 percent reported experiencing exclusionary, intimidating, offensive and/or hostile conduct, compared with 20 to 25 percent of respondents at similar institutions. The report noted that minorities and individuals who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender were more likely than others to report incidents of this nature.
The executive summary of the survey’s results and the complete results are available at the below website.
Are the results of the most recent structured diversity and equity assessment shared with the campus community?:
A brief description of how the assessment results are shared with the campus community:
Results summary, executive summary, and complete report are available online: http://diversity.uga.edu/index.php/programs/article/campus-climate
The local college newspaper, The Red & Black, published an article covering the results. However, this newspaper is not directly tied to UGA in that it gets no funding from UGA. The majority of its reporters and staff are UGA students and the journalism serves UGA and its community.
Are the results (or a summary of the results) of the most recent structured diversity and equity assessment publicly posted?:
The diversity and equity assessment report or summary:
The website URL where the report or summary is publicly posted:
The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Source:
diversity.uga.edu
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.