BEYOND THE KUMBAYA: A REFLECTIVE CASE STUDY OF ONE UNIVERSITY'S DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION JOURNEY

Diversity, equity, and inclusion are laudable objectives, but how do we move beyond a proclamation of value to the gritty work of critique, openness, and action? One practice in institutional improvement is to focus on what can be counted, but cultural changes are more difficult to see. Finding ways to observe and measure what is inherently difficult to quantify includes quantitative, and qualitative data, proxies, and narratives. As beacons of social change, universities have historically been on the leading edge of ensuring diversity, equity, and inclusion. In the paper, we use a reflective case study design to challenge myths that protect the status quo and describe data and proxies for baseline diversity, equity, and inclusion. Our case study focuses on how one university uses institutional research and introspection to craft policies and practices along its journey toward a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive campus climate. Keywords: institutional research; institutional data; climate; institutional policy; diversity; equity; inclusion; faculty
In 'An academic Gresham's Law,' historian Henry Wechsler argues that as higher education institutions diversified, 'the arrival of a new constituency on a college campus has rarely been an occasion [...]