Strategic Action Plan Theme 1: Cultivate

  1. Office & Department Directory
  2. Diversity and Inclusion
  3. Strategic Action Plan Theme 1: Cultivate

CULTIVATE an inclusive, dynamic and evolving community in which all faculty, staff, administration, and students, from all positionalities and from a wide variety of identities and backgrounds, can work together collaboratively across all areas of the University.

Cultivating inclusion requires intentional efforts across the entire university, therefore, intentional engagement on issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion must take place in all divisions and diverse perspectives must be represented in policy/planning. Opportunities to develop cultural awareness skills must be provided through programming and training. “To integrate diversity [and inclusion] meaningfully into our curricular and extracurricular community life, we acknowledge the need to challenge previous habits and assumptions understanding the structures of power and injustice in which they exist.”[1]

  • Short term:
    • All division leaders on campus will be tasked to draft a diversity, equity and inclusion plan with support from the University Diversity Committee, and plans will be posted on the Diversity & Inclusion web site
      • Summer 2022 update: Divisional DEI plans have been posted on divisional websites in Spring 2022 and linked to D&I website. VPs will be asked to share their own updates in the Fall 2022 semester.
    • Membership of the University Diversity Committee (DC) will reflect representatives from additional departments and diverse groups
      • Summer 2022 update: Discussions under way to re-frame DC as a tripartite committee.
    • Online diversity and inclusion training[1] for all incoming students, student leaders, and athletes will be provided
      • Summer 2022 update: Everfi online training provided to all groups listed above
    • Resource materials to raise awareness of critical D&I issues will be posted on the D&I website and made available to community
      • Summer 2022 update: Resource materials, including videos, digital, and scholarly materials, have been posted on D&I website and will be updated on a regular basis
    • Updates of D&I initiatives and activities for Board of Trustees and Alumni Executive Council will be made three times per year
      • Summer 2022 update: The newly-formed Diversity and Inclusion task force of Alumni Executive Council has been meeting with Associate Dean of Diversity & Inclusion throughout 2021-2022 academic year and will continue in 2022-2023
    • During the final year of the Campaign for Every Laurentian, University Advancement will be tasked with raising additional funds from individual donors as well as foundations to support long-term, robust research as described by the Black Laurentian Initiative (endowment funds will be a particular area of focus)
      • Summer 2022 update: Conversations with Advancement are in progress
    • Continue and update new employee orientation D&I module
      • Summer 2022 update: D&I module for new employee orientation continues to take place on a regular basis with periodic updates

    • [1] Online D&I training for 2020 and 2021 provided by EVERFI.

  • Intermediate:
    • Plans undertaken by divisions will be evaluated with attention to the ways in which the divisional culture has evolved
    • Changes/updates will be made to the plan as it evolves
    • The formation of employee resource groups[3] for faculty and staff will be explored
      • Summer 2022 update: Initial conversations regarding ERGs took place in Summer 2021 and additional conversations are planned for 2022-2023
    • Training modules on D&I topics will be made available to all faculty and staff
      • Summer 2022 updates: Raising Cultural Awareness 101 fac/staff certificate course offered twice during 2021-2022 including one remote offering via zoom
      • Plans are under way to build upon RCA 101 (as RCA 201 perhaps) for those who wish to expand their awareness
    • Onboarding experience for new fac/staff will include preliminary training on D&I to be updated annually
      • Summer 2022 update: DEI modules of new employee orientation and new faculty orientation have continued and are updated regularly
    • The current Diversity Milestones project that explores the history of SLU’s commitment to D&I will expand
  • Long term:
    • Inclusion efforts will be assessed as the community evolves and items listed on the initial plans begin to have an impact, with new initiatives considered
    • We will continue to incorporate additional perspectives on the University Diversity Committee as needed, as well as in other contexts as culture changes. 
    • Administrative support for D&I programming in the form of director of programming and administrative assistant
    • Development of a Center for Inclusion, Equity, and Social Justice
  • Assessment
    • Annual review of plans submitted by divisional leaders to ascertain what has been accomplished and what still needs to be done
    • Review University Diversity Committee membership annually and determine what groups still need representation
    • Evaluate electronic D&I resources annually, modify and expand as needed
    • Work with Advancement Office to evaluate funding possibilities for D&I work

Return to the Strategic Action Plan for Diversity and Inclusion

[1] From University Diversity Statement.

[2] Online D&I training for 2020 provided by EVERFI.

[3] An employee resource group (ERG) is a forum for employees who share a common identity to meet, build community, share ideas, and serve as a resource to provide diverse perspectives to the organization. See https://medium.com/@sarah.cordivano/employee-resource-groups-part-1-b684aa249420