Equity and Inclusion Committee Introduction

Chair of Equity & Inclusion Committee Sandie Bisciglia Michele Hancock Chair of Equity & Inclusion Committee Sandie Bisciglia Co-chair of Equity & Inclusion Committee Christopher Barker Karly Kattenbarker Pastor Kara Baylor Emily Leskinen Lara Christoun Aidana Lira Ben DeSmidt Bill Miller Thomas Dickens Miriam Montes Rachel Feinstein Dennis Munk Mandi Ginn-Franz Jean Preston Dana Garrigan Canyon Smith (student) Dani Geary David Steege Kimberlie Goldsberry Wayne Thompson Ellen Hauser Aaron Trautwein Frank Hicks Sarah Vanags Carrie Hogan Becki Hornung Where is Hancock? – Attending a training seminar to become licensed to administer the IDI (Intercultural Development Inventory) assessment. As a member of the committee I would like to share information about the Equity and Inclusion Committee. Membership is based on colleagues expressing an interest and commitment to equity and inclusion. The committee meets monthly and is committed to learning and taking action to promote equity and inclusion campus-wide. We will be focus on collecting qualitative and quantitative data to identify equity gaps and work to close those gaps; develop an institutional equity scorecard. We will communicate and share information via dept., division staff meetings, Senate, Bridge, equity and inclusion website and Facebook. Hold open forums to gather input from staff and faculty about the nature of our work.

Equity and Inclusion Committee Charge Facilitate organizational learning to expand traditional norms of educational excellence and equity Clearly articulate and coordinate goals, strategies, and values vertically and horizontally across institutional levels Build coalitions across campus for support Mobilize change agents Acknowledge and redress any campus history of inequity/inequality Our work is guided by the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) Framework of Inclusive Excellence. Please explain Inclusive Excellence which is a focus on intellectual and social development that takes into account the cultural differences learners bring to the educational experience; and the purposeful development and utilization of organizational resources in support of creating equitable outcomes for all students. Please explain how diversity, equity and equality are defined through the AAC&U Framework: diversity – an emphasis on access to an institution and representation within the student body. equality – focus on students’ inputs – we provide everyone with the same equity – focus on students’ outputs – we achieve parity in educational outcomes and experiences.

Equity and Inclusion Committee Structure Communities of Practice Focus Areas Equity and Access Campus Climate Diversity in the Curriculum Learning and Development Overarching Goal Committee is divided into four AAC&U focus areas as communities of practice. CoPs are executed to develop committee members’ capacity to build and exchange knowledge with the group and share that knowledge campus-wide. Also, an Evidence team with fewer members will be responsible to: disaggregate data collected and approach the problem of inequity as a solvable problem of professional practice. Develop and direct a coordinated set of activities designed to institutionalize policies and practices that promote equitable outcomes for all students.

Strategies for 2016-2017 Collect data – Brief Online Faculty/Staff Survey Mid-November Purpose: Obtain a broad range of views on diversity, equity and inclusion to identify areas where outcomes are successful and areas where short and long term improvements are needed. Please Note: Watch for a brief faculty-staff questionnaire on diversity, equity and inclusion issues. Completion time will vary, but will take most people about ten to twelve minutes. The faculty-staff survey complements a similar student survey conducted during the Spring 2015 semester. The survey will ask about experiences, views and preferences regarding diversity, equity and inclusion concerns and opportunities. The survey will come via an e-mail prompt from the Carthage administration with a link to the online questionnaire. If you miss (missed) the initial invitation we will send reminders with a link to the questionnaire. This is an internal survey developed by a colleague to support Carthage’s continued journey of going beyond diversity student enrollment to create equitable outcomes for historically underrepresented, first generation, low-income, and all other student groups. Your views are welcome and needed!

Strategies for 2016-2017 Share information at division, department, and staff meetings via committee spokespersons. Collaborate with other campus committees and departments. Hold open forum sessions with faculty/staff to gather input and feedback on the development of a campus-wide equity scorecard. Institutionalize a Carthage Equity Scorecard. Implement a faculty/staff Equity and Inclusion Certificate Program during Spring, 2017. Update Equity and Inclusion Website. Website is a work-in-progress and expected update and revisions by end of November with continuous additions throughout the academic year. Please check out of the Equity and Inclusion Website for additional information and resources about AAC&U and upcoming programmatic events.