Diversity Initiative Program

University of Maryland

This presentation will include a summary of the goals, objectives, structure, and activities of the Diversity Initiative. Also, I will discuss communication strategies used to promote those programs such as the Diversity News Bureau.

In 1987, the Chancellor, John B. Slaughter, identified diversity as a top campus priority. The goal being to create a multicultural academic community. Since then, we have refined affirmative action policies and procedures. Diversity accountability and evaluation have improved through the Diversity Accountability and Implementation Plan (DAIP). This plan required each unit to develop a diversity plan for the recruitment and retention of women and African Americans, Asian Americans, Latinos, and Native Americans.

We increased the recruitment of racial minorities to 1/3 of the freshman class and graduated more black Ph.D.s than any other majority White institution. One hundred twenty six (126) countries are represented in our student population. Over 5,000 faculty were taught to transform their curriculum and create better classroom climate through effective teaching. Mandatory diversity core classes were created. Our sexual harassment prevention program conducted 400 workshops. In 1986, The Office of Human Relations Programs started Multicultural Day, which evolved into Diversity Week in 1991 and 1992. To determine program impact and campus diversity needs, we surveyed unit heads and co-sponsors of Diversity Week, 1992.

The results indicated that campus efforts were not meeting UMCP community needs in significant ways. The outcome of the survey was that we developed the 1993-94 Diversity Initiative. The goal being to implement a visible, coherent, campus-wide, and year-long Diversity Initiative:

1. by clarifying the scope of diversity
2. by communicating diversity achievements and progress
3. by providing technical assistance in program development
4. And, by assessing the Initiative's effectiveness and campus climate

Now in the second year of the Initiative, I can say with certainty, there have been many growth experiences. Developing an effective Diversity Year Initiative with a strong communications program has felt similar to the process of drilling for oil. Like oil, an effective Initiative is a precious commodity in limited supply. Both are complex endeavors requiring a comprehensive and well-researched plan. This plan must include goals that are specific, yet sufficiently flexible to incorporate the unexpected. Numerous individuals with varying degrees of different expertise play key roles. Yet, we know only one person is "responsible" if it is unsuccessful, but all share the responsibility to make the project successful.

Initiative Co-chairs and Committee members developed a plan and a process that works for us. First, we created a vision of what we wanted. To clarify this vision, we asked questions such as what do we want to communicate? The response was the importance of diversity as a campus goal. And more important, the value of a diverse community and curriculum in social, intellectual, academic and economic advancement. We also asked who do we want to communicate this vision to. We concluded that our primary audience is students, faculty, staff, and the editors of student and faculty newspapers. The secondary audience is off-campus media. We felt that audiences be addressed simultaneously. We then decided that this Plan would be effective ONLY if five major objectives were woven into the plan.

The first major objective MUST be institutionalization. In order for this Initiative to work, this effort must be permanently incorporated in to the institutional fabric of UMCP.

The second major objective is community building. During the past 10 years, the campus has faced widely publicized challenges. On the Diversity front, some of those challenges included controversial speakers, major protests, cultural and racial conflict, racial equity demands by the Maryland state Black Legislative Caucus and increased activist activity by gay, lesbian, and disabled students. Two years ago, 10,000 copies of our main student daily "disappeared" after repeated complaints of racial insensitivity.

Our public diversity challenges were exacerbated by our equally public budgetary ones. Departments and a college were dissolved. There were layoffs, and pay reductions for support staff. These actions were sparked by a 20% reduction in state funding and lower enrollments.

Thus, it was important that community building and development be emphasized. Community building and development includes a continuous commitment by the University to improve the quality of life for each member. It also includes creating a climate that supports and welcomes all differences.

In addition to institutionalization and community building we have the third major objective, which is inclusiveness. The Initiative is designed to be as inclusive and representative as possible. Therefore, the dimensions of diversity are defined broadly. They include race, class, ethnicity, gender, disability, age, sexual orientation, religion and national origin. Representation from student groups and each employment categories of faculty, administrators, and staff is essential.

The fourth objective is shared responsibility. Underlying this objective is the belief that each unit, student organization and campus member has the responsibility to make the campus welcoming. Creating a campus community that cherishes and respects diversity can not be the sole responsibility of the Diversity Initiative Committee, the Affirmative Action

Office or the Office of Minority Affairs. To that end, the UMCP President sent a letter to Vice Presidents and Deans requesting that a liaison be selected from each college or major unit to participate in the Diversity Initiative. We invited faculty and Support staff to participate. The Student Government Association and other student groups were asked to participate as well.

The fifth major objective is Evaluation and Assessment. Assessment allows ongoing feedback about impact, climate, and campus community needs. It is a basis for goal setting, priority review, and budget justification. The needs of the campus community, especially unit heads, program sponsors, student newspaper editors and public information officers, have been assessed. Our techniques include informal interviews, questionnaires, program evaluations, and formal surveys. When possible, suggestions are incorporated or referred to other campus structures. This Initiative is also part of the UMCP Continuous Quality Improvement Project.

As stated earlier, the major goal of the Initiative is to increase the visibility, coherence, and support of diversity efforts. To achieve that goal, we first identified five major objectives that I have just mentioned that function as a conceptual framework.

I will now discuss the organizational structures and functions that support these objectives. They include:

• The Office of Human Relations Programs, the Advisory Board, the Steering Committee, and 8 subcommittees.
• The Human Relations Office - is the administrative house for the Initiative, 2 office staffers (Gloria Bouis and Vicky Foxworth) and myself act as the Co-chairs of the Steering Committee. We are also liaisons to the Subcommittees.
• A 10 member advisory Board provides direction and advocacy to the Initiative. Diversity direction and consultation were provided to the coordinators of student, staff, and faculty orientation. The Board also reviews institutional impact by providing oversight on evaluation and campus climate surveys. I chair the Board, which includes an Executive Assistant to the President, the Vice President for Administrative Affairs, 2 deans (and an exdean), 2 Directors (the Counseling Center and Center for Teaching Excellence), 2 faculty members (one who is the ex-chair of Chemistry and Bio-Chemistry), 1 support staff, and Student Government representative.
• A 51 member Steering Committee coordinates the diversity Initiative and includes a representative in each major unit and college. The Steering Committee also includes other appointed administrators, faculty, support staff, student leaders, and technical experts. * The eight subcommittees, which include:
  • The Program Committee, which is chaired by Dan Morrison. He is the Student Affairs representative and Coordinator of Training, Development and Research in Resident Life. The Committee sponsors a Spring and Fall Diversity Focus. Each Focus is 3 weeks and includes 17-34 programs and activities.
  • The Matching Grants Committee is chaired by Jane Fines, the Engineering College representative and Director of Programs. The Committee provides $7,000 in matching grants to 19 campus units, student organizations, staff organizations, and faculty.
  • The Rewards and Incentive Committee is chaired by Dr. Linda Lenoir. She is the Academic Affairs representative and Assistant Director of Career Development. The Committee has developed the First Annual Diversity Award to faculty, administrators, support staff and students for contributions in one or more areas of diversity i.e. age, disability, religion, race, sexual orientation, etc. Forty-five (45) nominations have been received. Also, the supervisors of Steering Committee members receive a letter detailing outstanding committee contributions.
  • The Faculty Relations Committee is chaired by Dr. Gabriele Strauch. She is the representative from the College of Arts and Humanities and an Associate faculty in the German and Slavic Language department. The Committee sent a survey to faculty on increasing faculty involvement in diversity efforts. Our President and Provost are currently reviewing these recommendations. They also sponsor diversity research forums and faculty development programs.
  • Public Relations and Marketing Committee is co-chaired by Gary Stephenson, the representative from the Office of Institutional Advancement and Student Affairs. The other co-chair, Andy Mrusko, is the representative from Student Affairs and is the Director of Marketing of the Student Union. This committee designed the logo, advertises Diversity Focus Days and the Matching Grants activities, writes articles for campus faculty and student newspapers, encourages faculty and student editors to feature diversity issues, and coordinates the Diversity News Bureau which is responsible for the media placement. Technical advice on how to make programs more newsworthy is provided. They also disseminate items such as Diversity Initiative buttons, bookmarks, cups, and fortune cookies. They are currently researching the development of a Diversity Electronic Clearinghouse and Network. -The Evaluation committee is chaired by Dr. Nehama Babin, a representative from Academic Affairs and the Senior Research Analyst in Institutional Studies. Evaluation occurs through program evaluations of Diversity Focus and Matching Grants programs. Survey of students and/or deans, directors and department chairs occur annually. In April, 1995 a campus and classroom Climate survey of freshman and juniors will be conducted. Faculty will be surveyed next year, and staff the following year.
  • The United Cultures (UC) is chaired by Jason Palmer, who is also Chair of the Human Relations Committee of the Student Government Association. I have been the advisor of this 2 year old group since its beginning. UC includes student leaders and others who wish to work on diversity and climate issues outside their organization or group. We developed an anti-prejudice poster campaign. UC anti-prejudice t-shirts were disseminated to students during the New Student Welcome. We also co-sponsored lectures and a crosscultural communication workshop with 15 student groups and the Student Government Association (SGA). UC members petitioned the SGA to support the Benjamin Banneker Scholarship for African American students. We are currently mediating a conflict between Hillel, the Jewish Student Union, the Black Student Union and the UMCP NMCP. The SGA voted to make United Cultures a permanent organization of SGA with a starting budget of $8,000. A Student Advisory Board is being formed that will train students to address, mediate, and refer diversity complaints and concerns.

I now come to the third major component of our Diversity Initiative, which is public and media relations. All the committees work to maintain a constant flow of diversity programs and activities. Information about campus programs are generated in the following ways:

1. The information is solicited in Steering Committee meetings, through the electronic Diversity list serve, and through e-mail.
2. Program proposals for Matching Diversity Grants are solicited (by mail). The grants must be inter-disciplinary, open to the campus, and seek to build community in innovative, collaborative ways. (50) Proposals were received. The Sub-Committee funded 19. Some of the proposals came from physical plant, the campus police, computer science department, the school of business, residence halls, the German department, the dance department, the fire protection department, the library, the geography department, the Center for International Development and Conflict resolution, the Student Government Association, the International Student Council, and the Black Student Union. 3. Program proposals are solicited from students through presentations to the United Cultures and other student groups.
3. The College of Journalism is requiring students to write articles on diversity programs for academic credit. The articles may be selected for placement in the major campus student newspapers.

Once programs are submitted to the Public Relations Committee, a decision is made to identify what programs will be promoted, the communication techniques to be used, and the intended audience. All communications bear the Diversity initiative logo. Our communication strategy uses several public relations techniques.

For the campus community audience, the strategy includes several approaches.

1. One approach is developing and disseminating diversity related items. The items are:

A. Posters (4) disseminated annually to unit heads, program sponsors, and student organizations; and are posted around campus.

• The Diversity Initiative Teaser Poster (5,000). These posters are used by the Graduate Admission Offices for recruitment purposes.
• Matching Grants Poster (2,500)
• Fall Focus Calendar Poster (3,000)
• Spring Focus Calendar Poster (3,000)

B. Bookmarks (2,000), with racial demographics of undergraduate and graduate students are disseminated to students at major events such as the New Student Welcome, Orientation, and Diversity Focus Days. They are used by the Graduate School for recruitment purposes.

C. Buttons (1,000)

D. Fortune Cookies, with a Diversity Initiative message, will be handed out at student and staff dining facilities. And

E. Coffee Mugs, with the logo and theme are given as a thank you to program sponsors, Initiative supporters, and Board/Committee members.

2. The second approach for our campus audience is working with campus print and non-print media. Our successes include:

• 24 articles written and places in the Outlook, the UMCP Faculty/Staff Weekly Publication. An article is always accompanied by our logo.
• The highlighting by color of diversity programs in the Outlook Calendar. The calendar page also includes a notation that the Diversity Initiative has identified the highlighted programs as part of the Diversity Initiative.
• 2 articles placed in the campus alumni publication which is distributed 4 times a year.
• 2 commentaries written and placed in the Diamondback, our student daily publication.
• 8 ads for diversity programs placed student publications. For the campus and non-campus audiences, our approach is the Diversity News Bureau. It was developed in October, 1995 to increase campus and non-campus media coverage. It is perceived to be the first campus diversity news bureau.

To date, the Bureau has:

• sent 11 external press releases which have generated 9 articles, mostly on the diversity of the freshman class, on the Speakers' Bureau, and political correctness. The placements include the Chronicle of Higher Education, The Washington Post, the Washington Times, the Educational Daily, and several local newspapers.
• sent 10 internal press releases to editors of campus publications. The releases generated 9 articles in the Diamondback. Five articles were part of a week-long series on the ways that diversity affects students.
• conducted 3 on-air radio interviews with Washington, D.C. stations * received coverage from local cable stations for 4 Diversity Initiative events

In summary, this is a work in progress. It is dynamic and evolving. I look forward to hearing your feedback on how to continue our evolution at a steady pace.