| Overall Rating | Silver |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 46.93 |
| Liaison | Kevin Salfen |
| Submission Date | Oct. 21, 2024 |
University of the Incarnate Word
PA-6: Assessing Diversity and Equity
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
0.75 / 1.00 |
Kevin
Salfen Co-Director, Office 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:
1. The DEI Office has set the following goals to conduct a broad, anonymous survey of UIW students, staff, and faculty at all U.S. locations to gather data on their experiences & perceptions of:
• safety and a sense of belonging at UIW.
• equitable and respectful treatment in the classroom and workplace.
• non-discrimination and harassment policies and procedures.
• curricular and co-curricular integration of DEI subject matter, pedagogy, and skills-building in various formational programs.
2. The campus climate survey will gather a wide range of confidential, self-reported demographic information (e.g., racial, ethnic, cultural, religious, gender, and sexual orientation identities), concerns, and recommendations that will increase awareness and institutional commitment to DEI.
3. The campus climate survey will include some open-ended questions to gather qualitative data from participants about their affirmations, critical concerns, and recommendations for improving UIW’s campus climate.
4. Concurrently, the DEI Office will conduct both random and selective focus groups with UIW students, faculty, and staff at various stages of implementing the campus climate survey. The focus groups will target specific concerns or priorities identified by the Advisory Committee.
Presently, the Associate Vice President for DEI is working closely with an interdisciplinary committee (faculty, administrators, and student leaders) from the various UIW campuses. After extensive research on surveys that assess a sense of belonging on campus, we selected an integrative framework that will serve to sort the survey’s questions into four distinct components that researchers have identified as fundamental components to a sense of belonging. These are the following:
o competencies for belonging (skills and abilities);
o opportunities to belong (enablers, removal/ reduction of barriers to belonging);
o motivations to belong (inner drive of the respondent to belong); and
o perceptions of belonging (cognitions of positive or negative experiences when connecting).
The next critical step is to contract an independent, principal researcher or entity. They will work with the advisory committee to finalize the research design and instruments of the study. Most importantly, an outside entity will receive all data collected, sort and test the data, and provide an initial assessment of the findings. This will ensure the confidentiality of the participants’ feedback – especially of employees. The committee will help with the focus groups and in analyzing the findings.
The goal is to interview and hire the principal investigator in Fall 2024. Finalize the survey instruments and hold information sessions to faculty and staff early the 2025 spring semester. Concurrently, we will seek IRB approval. We plan to begin launching the study in the Summer of 2025 with the professional schools and continue throughout the first half of the Fall semester.
Does the assessment process address campus climate by engaging stakeholders to assess the attitudes, perceptions and behaviors of employees and students, including the experiences of underrepresented groups?:
Does the assessment process address student outcomes related to diversity, equity and success?:
Does the assessment process address employee outcomes related to diversity and equity?:
A brief description of the most recent assessment findings and how the results are used in shaping policy, programs, and initiatives:
Preliminary findings of the survey and focus groups will be presented to the Advisory Committee and the Mission Committee of the UIW Board for initial analysis. Special concerns or priorities may influence the agenda of additional focus groups. The final version of the report will be presented to the whole university in the spring semester 2026. The plan is to then continue the assessment on yearly basis.
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:
A campus climate study is not just a simple survey. It is an institutional commitment to truth and transparency, comparable to accreditation processes. The research design and instruments (surveys, focus groups, etc.) will be presented to the entire university before launching the study. Everyone should know the goals of the study and the findings MUST be made public and available to all who participated.
Thus, the campus climate study will include the whole teaching and learning community – students, faculty, administrators, and staff. The governing board also needs to be aware and supportive of the study. The instruments (surveys) can be tailored to the respective audience, a survey instrument that students can easily take within 15 to 20 minutes.
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 (upload):
Website URL where the diversity and equity assessment report or summary is publicly posted:
Optional Fields
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Source: Dr. Arturo Chávez, Assoicate Vice President of Mission, DEI, University of the Incarnate Word
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.