University of San Diego
PA-7: Support for Underrepresented Groups

The University of San Diego is committed to upholding standards that promote respect and human dignity in an environment that fosters academic excellence and professionalism. It is the policy of the university to maintain an educational and work environment free from all forms of unlawful discrimination and harassment. To that end, the university prohibits and does not tolerate unlawful discrimination against or harassment of its employees, students or applicants for employment or admission on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, pregnancy, age, physical disability, mental disability, or other characteristic protected by federal or state law, unless a particular characteristic is a bona fide requirement of the position. All members of the university community are expected to uphold this policy. Engaging in unlawful discrimination or harassment will result in appropriate disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal from the university. https://www.sandiego.edu/conduct/documents/Discrimination-Harassment-updated-3-1-2021.pdf

The university encourages any person who feels that he or she has been unlawfully discriminated against or harassed, or observes or is otherwise aware of an incident of unlawful discrimination or harassment, to report the incident promptly. To assist in the investigation, the university may request that a complaint be made in writing with a detailed description of the facts giving rise to the complaint, the names of any individuals involved, including any witnesses, and copies of any documents that support or relate to the complaint. Although the university may request the submission of a written complaint, an oral complaint is sufficient to initiate the procedures set forth under this policy.

The university will investigate every reported complaint of unlawful discrimination or harassment. The investigation will be conducted in a thorough, prompt and professional manner. Every bias-motivated incident, act of intolerance or hate crime, is reviewed by members of Public Safety, the Dean of Students and Director of Title IX/EEO. A Critical Incident Response Team meeting is called to review the incident and determine appropriate next steps. Resources and support are offered to the victim/survivor/reporting party which include the counseling services, academic accommodations, housing accommodations, safety resources and any other measure deemed appropriate for the situation. If the perpetrator(s) is(are) identified, the person would follow the appropriate process for accountability through the Dean of Students, student conduct, Human Resources and/or local police department. The university also has response protocols for "Hate Crimes and Acts of Intolerance" through the Office of Public Safety. Please see https://www.sandiego.edu/safety/hate-crimes/

Faculty and Non-Academic Staff
In February 2016, four University task forces were formed:
• Faculty and staff recruitment and hiring practices
• Faculty and staff orientation and ongoing development
• The first year student experience
• The second year student experience

Each of these task forces are charged with assessing current data and processes, identifying best practices, and creating priority action steps for implementation.

The Horizon Project is the umbrella over the set of efforts directed at students, faculty, and staff. As part of the Horizon Project, USD will recruit, hire, and retain a more diverse administration, staff, and faculty by:

• Creating a new Recruitment Tool Kit for all administrative hires and ensure accountability and compliance with the Tool Kit guidelines
• Updating the Faculty Recruitment and Retention Tool Kit that includes an incentive-based hiring plan specific for BIPOC faculty.
• Providing training for all chairs/department heads/deans with regards to issues specific to BIPOC faculty and staff
• Requiring that all search committee members be trained with respect to implicit bias before beginning a search. Committee members are also trained on using deliberative decision making processes and diversifying recruitment sources, such as local organizations and churches, to diversify local hires.
• Creating new opportunities in the College/Schools for BIPOC faculty to increase their likelihood of success through best practices such as writing retreats, research symposia, mentorship programming, interdisciplinary networking opportunities, social gatherings and research support
• Providing support to Deans to conduct cluster hires
• Expanding the existing diversity postdoctoral program in the College to all academic units including all graduate programs
• Creating a new postdoctoral administrative internship program for USD


The 2020 Strategic Plan for Diversity and Inclusive Excellence outlines goals and programs for recruitment and retention of students, staff, and faculty from underrepresented groups. The plan focuses on recruitment of faculty and staff under a section titled "Faculty, Staff and Administrator Access, Recruitment and Development"

From that strategic plan:
"Every employee deserves to be treated with dignity, empathy, respect and civility when interacting with students and colleagues, as well as have opportunities for professional growth. We recognize the importance of collegial life in the development of our university as well as the fulfillment of individual potential. Student success relies on faculty, staff and administrators committed to inclusive excellence and who represent the diversity of our San Diego community.

Goal 1 Develop strategies to increase the diversity of the faculty, particularly in areas where there is underrepresentation according to gender, race and ethnicity, in order to advance academic excellence and student learning.

Goal 2 Develop strategies to increase the diversity of staff and administrators, eliminating access, recruitment and development barriers that deter professional advancement and personal fulfillment.

Goal 3 Provide equal opportunities for all employees to balance work and life commitments within a mission driven culture of care, and to build community by exploring commonalities and differences in a work context of mutuality"

Progress on each of the plan's goals is tracked via a dashboard. More information can be found here: https://www.sandiego.edu/irp/diversity/

In 2024, the vice provost of DEI participated in the final round of more than 65 interviews for new tenure-track faculty hires and asked applicants about their commitment to DEI, as well as provided search committee workshops to all faculty hiring committees. These workshops include the best practices for hiring and included topics such as: writing inclusive job descriptions; utilizing passive as well as active recruitment strategies; drafting effective questionnaire protocols; orienting search committee members; and using an evaluation rubric. Additionally, the vice provost for DEI provided bias workshops for the schools' ARRT Committees (promotion and tenure committees). These yearly workshops include topics such as: student evaluations; the differential service burden faced by female faculty and faculty of color; disparities in publications, grants and awards; and cognitive errors that can be found in the review of people with marginalized identities.

Each year, USD gives out DEI Impact Awards to staff and faculty in each USD school to recognize their support of DEI work. The award was founded in 2021 with respect to the ongoing process of honoring BIPOC experiences on campus. The goals of this award are to honor the following: nominees should have contributed to the promotion of an inclusive and diverse campus climate through their ongoing work, including advocacy for and mentorship of others; commitment to effecting structural change; the development of innovative programs and initiatives; and their substantial and/or continuous contributions to USD's diversity & inclusion goals, to which the University remains committed.

Students

Torero Gateway: Expanding Concurrent Enrollment Opportunities USD has offered local high school students the opportunity to take a class at USD while
they were in high school since as early as 2006. In 2021, with the help of a Strategic Initiative Funding Grant, the Office of Undergraduate Admissions was able to expand the program, allowing more students toparticipate, and also providing some funding for books, course materials, and transportation to campus. These additional resources helped reduce some of the key barriers that students from underserved communities have often faced.

In February of 2016, as USD was engaged in the strategic planning process that led to Envisioning 2024, the Office of Undergraduate Admissions launched a project called the Torero Promise. This innovative commitment to our local Catholic high schools provided a guaranteed pathway for students from the five diocese high schools. That first year, we enrolled 24 students from these schools in the first-year class. Since then, the program has expanded to include not only a guaranteed promise of admission, but also includes a financial commitment to meet 100% of the demonstrated financial need a family may have. The program also now includes 10 high schools: the original five, three in San Bernardino and Riverside counties, St. Jeanne De Lestonnac in Temecula, and the Cristo Rey School in San Diego. From that relatively small cohort of students in 2016, we now have more than 475 students apply for admission and we enroll close to 100 students from these schools in the first-year class. In all, since we established the Torero Promise, we have enrolled nearly 500 students under the program.

USD continues to actively recruit veterans and students from military-affiliated families. Additionally, USD works to recruit transfer students from community colleges and northern California via articulation agreements.

The University of San Diego provides counseling, affinity groups and peer support programs for underrepresented groups.

The Rainbow Educators (REs) are a group of students, staff, faculty, and alumni/ae who create and present workshops at the University of San Diego. The Rainbow Educators Program works to build awareness, educate, and engage the USD community around identities such as sexual orientation, gender, race, ethnicity, and class, while promoting the inclusion and visibility of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ+) communities. Rainbow Educators are committed to holding themselves and others accountable for working against all forms of oppression (https://www.sandiego.edu/united-front/leadership/rainbow-educators/).

The Safe Space Allies Network enhances the ability of students, staff, administrators, and faculty to proactively and personally demonstrate the University's core values of community, inclusion, and respect for all--regardless of sexual orientation or other identities. Grounded in Catholic Social Thought, the University's mission affirms that all human life is sacred and that the dignity of the human person is the foundation of a moral vision for society. By displaying a Safe Space Ally emblem in their working and/or living areas, members of the university community provide visible markers of validation, support, and respect for members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, and Asexual/Aromantic (LGBTQIA+) communities. The sign serves as an indicator of people with whom LGBTQIA+ and questioning people can speak openly and seek the support they need to succeed at the University of San Diego. (https://www.sandiego.edu/united-front/programs/safe-space-allies/)

The United Front Multicultural Commons (UFMC) extends a warm welcome to all students, faculty, staff and community members. They invite all to experience diverse cultures and traditions, explore identities, engage in dialogue, challenge barriers, build leadership skills and empower each other to create an intellectually vibrant, socially just and inclusive community. The UFMC serves as a home to USD's multicultural student organizations (Full list can be found here: https://www.sandiego.edu/united-front/organizations/). In addition to providing leadership development and support, the UFMC shares space with many of these multicultural student organizations. Additionally, the University's Scholarships and Fellowships page allows students to search for specific scholarships based on their background. This site aggregates internal and external scholarship opportunities to support students from underrepresented groups in finding funding opportunities. The University offers Diversity “Circle of Excellence” Scholarships for students who have the potential to advance diversity and inclusion in the University community.

McNair Scholars are exposed to research training and scholarly experiences throughout the year and have opportunities to present their research at national academic conferences. In addition, scholars who meet requirements are eligible to participate in the McNair Summer Research Program. As Summer Research Interns, they conduct a 10-week research project, attend a graduate school boot camp, produce a scholarly essay on their findings, and present their work at a minimum of two academic conferences.
The TRiO McNair Scholars Program prepares undergraduates for graduate study at the doctoral level. Two-thirds of the McNair Scholars at USD must be both first-generation and income eligible students. The remaining participants may be from groups that are underrepresented in graduate education.

School of Leadership and Education Sciences (SOLES) Diversity Scholarship - The purpose of this scholarship program is to encourage multi-cultural understanding and increase diversity among professions supported by the degrees offered through the School of Leadership and Education Sciences (SOLES). Awards made are intended to recruit and retain students from underrepresented ethnic and social groups. This program awards scholarships to graduate students who are pursuing teaching credentials, masters and doctoral degrees.

For further information on other credits, please refer to: Rainbow Educators: http://www.sandiego.edu/unitedfront/leadership/rainbow-educators/ Safe Space Allies: http://www.sandiego.edu/unitedfront/programs/safe-space-allies/ Student Associations: https://sandiego.collegiatelink.net/organizations Diversity “Circle of Excellence” Scholarships: http://catalogs.sandiego.edu/undergraduate/financial-aid/scholarships-grants/ First- Generation College Student Experience Program: http://www.sandiego.edu/united-front/first-gen/