After a series of very unfortunate racial incidents on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus last year, UW-Madison officials have been working over the summer to create a community where every person feels welcome, valued, and able to succeed. This week, they released a campus climate progress report that outlines a plan for increased diversity and inclusivity training for teaching assistants, a new community-building program, hiring more mental health staff, opening a campus black culture center, and more.
In March, UW Chancellor Rebecca Blank announced several initiatives aimed at ensuring UW-Madison provides a welcoming environment that enables all students, faculty and staff to thrive. These efforts build on work begun through the campus Diversity Framework and its implementation plan, R.E.E.L. Change.
UW officials stressed that the events of the past year alone demonstrated the urgent need for the next generation of leaders to be equipped with the skills to build stronger, more interconnected communities within our state, nation and world.
Are there benchmarks to measure success?
“Yes, we will be measuring the success of these programs in various ways appropriate to each program. These are not simply ‘feel good’ efforts — our campus expects and deserves much more than that,” says Blank. “For example, for Our Wisconsin, we will be surveying participants about the program’s impact on their knowledge and behavior both immediately after the program and at a later date. For the mental health services, we’ll be tracking use of those services and client feedback.
“The number of reported incidents is another benchmark but not the only one,” Blank adds. “And as with efforts to combat sexual assault, there is a possibility that the number of incidents reported may increase as more students become aware of resources and their ability to report.
Blank said that this year the implementation cost is projected to be $150,000 to $200,000 to serve up to 1,000 students. A Chancellor’s Community Advisory Committee will begin meeting in September with Blank and community leaders that she says will include Mayra Medrano, president of the Latino Chamber of Commerce of Dane County and Alder Shiva Bidar, along with other names that will be announced.
Educational experiences and resources for students will include:
◆ A new community-building program, Our Wisconsin, will bring together up to 1,000 new students from several residence halls this fall to engage in constructive dialogue about social identities, difference, and techniques to resolve conflict in a civil manner. We will evaluate the results of this pilot program, implement improvements, and expand the program next year.
◆ Pre-arrival materials
All incoming freshmen received a weekly email over the summer with a reading or video about issues related to inclusion and community; new student orientation (SOAR) offered an expanded curriculum around inclusion and diversity.
◆ Black Cultural Center
The university is creating a Black Cultural Center in the Red Gym, a location that allows for natural connections and synergy with the Multicultural Student Center. A committee of student leaders, staff and faculty will spend time this fall planning the use of the space and programming for the coming year.
◆ Teaching assistants
Inclusivity and diversity are major themes in TA training this year, including panel discussions and scenarios that address those issues directly. The College of Letters & Science is also developing a community of practice for faculty and staff who train and supervise TAs and the first theme will be helping TAs understand these issues.
◆ International students
In addition to ongoing efforts to welcome and orient international students, we will pilot a new opportunity for students to discuss cultural understanding, share experiences, ask questions in a supportive environment, and learn about inclusivity and other campus values.
◆ Increase capacity of high-demand Ethnic Studies courses
The College of Letters & Science is increasing capacity in high demand Ethnic Studies courses to meet the needs of the student body. Faculty from multiple ethnic studies departments are working across disciplines to co-create a new course to be launched next year.
◆ Review Ethnic Studies requirements
The College of Letters & Science is reviewing all courses in the Ethnic Studies curriculum to ensure they fit the mission of the Ethnic Studies requirement.
Proposals to improve campus climate
The campus responded to Chancellor Blank’s call for ideas in March with 107 proposals submitted by students, faculty and staff. A committee of campus and community representatives has spent the summer reviewing and have chosen several initiatives to set in motion or the school year.
◆ House Fellow skill building
House Fellows frequently serve as frontline responders who help students acclimate to campus life, resolve conflicts and foster connections with one another. A proposal submitted by the Department of Counseling Psychology helped spur a new partnership between that department and the University Housing, in which training will be provided to House Fellows to build their capacity to navigate difficult conversations between students and expand their conflict resolution skills.
◆ Mental health support
University Health Services is expanding its services by hiring three new staff members to focus on campus outreach, particularly to under-served student groups, and another who specializes in the needs of students of color. This is the first step in a multi-year process to expand UHS mental health staffing.
◆ Expand Learning Communities for Institutional Change and Excellence (LCICE)
New staff will be added to this program, which convenes learning communities across campus that promote education and dialogue about cultural identities. This will be a resource for units, schools and departments across campus to expand their programming. It will also allow LCICE to partner with Undergraduate Advising to expand intercultural learning among key staff who support students of color.
◆ Create faculty liaisons to develop instructional materials
Many proposals suggested ways to weave diversity and inclusion topics into coursework, where much of student learning occurs. The Division of Diversity, Equity and Educational Achievement will identify faculty liaisons across disciplines and support them in developing content and strategies to incorporate these topics into the work, instruction and scholarship of their disciplines.
◆ Women in Science and Engineering Leadership Institute bias literacy workshops
WISELI is preparing to offer 3-hour workshops to campus departments about unconscious bias, covering race/ethnicity, gender, LGBT and disability issues. Pilots will occur this fall and be made available to a broader set of departments in the spring and in 2017-18. Faculty and staff who complete the general 3-hour workshop will be eligible to participate in future 1-hour special topics workshops on more specific issues, such as “reducing bias in classroom teaching” and “new implicit bias literature.”
