St. Lawrence Launches Strategic Action Plan for Diversity and Inclusion
St. Lawrence University President William L. Fox ’75 and Associate Dean for Diversity and Inclusion Kimberly Flint-Hamilton have shared a strategic plan that will guide and assess the University’s diversity and inclusion efforts over the next five years and shape the direction of this critical work at St. Lawrence for decades to come.
The University’s 24-person Diversity Committee, which includes faculty, staff, and students, developed the Strategic Action Plan for Diversity & Inclusion following conversations with students, faculty, staff, and alumni, data gathered through a 2018 Campus Climate Survey, and information gleaned from recent focus groups. They shared the plan with the campus community on Wednesday, Feb. 3.
“The St. Lawrence community has long strived to become an institution that is diverse, equitable, and inclusive; a community in which all members can flourish,” Fox and Flint-Hamilton wrote in their announcement to campus. “As with most academic institutions, however, St. Lawrence is not yet the institution we hope to become, and we still have much work to do. In order for true inclusion to be realized, the path forward needs to be mapped with intentionality.”
St. Lawrence’s Strategic Action Plan for Diversity & Inclusion is organized around five themes. The following themes will guide all efforts to create an empowering and supportive University environment that welcomes, values, considers, and respects every person and idea.
- Cultivate an inclusive community across the University
- Expand the diversity of our community with bold recruitment efforts
- Foster a campus culture of inclusion by improving retention
- Infuse diversity and inclusion throughout the curricular and co-curricular programs
- Connect community members across different social identities
For each theme, three levels of actions and interventions are proposed:
- Short-term: Actions that can likely be undertaken within the next 1 to 1.5 years
- Intermediate-term: Actions that can likely be undertaken within the next 2-3 years
- Long-term: Actions that can be undertaken within the next 4-5 years
Read the Strategic Action Plan for Diversity & Inclusion
The University will assess the plan’s overall success using a Campus Climate Survey to be conducted during the 2022-2023 academic year, with short-term assessments for each theme also included.
“As we implement actions and interventions, receive community feedback, and assess results, the actions proposed now may change, with modifications to timelines or even new actions proposed,” Fox and Flint-Hamilton wrote. “Our ultimate goal is to press forward, one step at a time, and build upon our successes while addressing the challenges we encounter. We are committed to remaining open and optimistic as community members share their experiences and present ideas for solutions.”
Upcoming open forums regarding the Strategic Action Plan will be held for campus community members and alumni in the coming weeks.
