Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Strategic Action Plan

Inclusive Excellence promotes diversity, equity, and inclusion principles as core institutional values by engaging the campus community in critical self-examination, collaborative learning, and integrative practices that acknowledge and affirm diverse identities, perspectives, and experiences. This work is furthered through strategic action planning and policy development that aims to transform institutional culture, leading to equity-centered approaches to teaching and student engagement.

Westminster College strives to become an inclusive excellence institution, and with the development of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Strategic Action Plan, there is movement towards this goal. Through ongoing planning, assessment, and engagement in learning about diversity and inclusion topics by all members of the campus community, we will further the College’s vision of providing a supportive and transformative educational experience.

To transform the institutional culture for diversity and promote equity-centered approaches to teaching, support services, and student engagement.

Utilize disaggregated demographic data to identify differences in outcomes and to provide a baseline from which to improve student advising, services, and support.

• Establish disaggregating data as institutional practice across divisions.
• Equip data managers with equity-minded sensemaking tools.
• Utilize data to assess and address retention and student success outcomes.

Provide opportunities for staff and administrators to engage in learning that enables them to deconstruct and redevelop daily practices to become more equitable and inclusive.

• Provide training opportunities for all staff and faculty that transforms their practice inside and outside of the classroom and fosters a more inclusive environment.
• Implement an intergroup dialogue program that raises the critical consciousness of all students, staff, and faculty.
• Develop policies requiring participation in diversity and inclusion training.

Create and revise policies, procedures and practices that improve the campus climate and create an equitable pipeline for all members of the College to thrive.

• Standardize search committee training and protocols to diversify candidate pools and ensure the evaluation of candidate commitments to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
• Develop methods for evaluating employee contributions to diversity and inclusion as service, in scholarship, and in professional practice for promotion.
• Ensure allocation of resources for expanding posting locations for open staff and faculty positions.
• Develop an anti-bias college policy and bias incident reporting system.

Improve the culture of student engagement to ensure cultural validation and holistic support for all students.

• Regularly assess and improve student engagement practices across the institution to ensure they are equitable and culturally validating.
• Evaluate and implement culturally relevant practices in student organization advising.
• Evaluate the missions and the membership and recruitment policies of student organizations.
• Utilize the residential curriculum to develop students’ cultural competency, promote identity exploration and engagement across difference.

Promote inclusive curriculum design and pedagogical practices that enrich the educational experience across academic disciplines.

• Continue to engage research on inclusive teaching strategies.
• Seek to formalize current diversity, equity, and inclusion faculty working groups on education, curriculum, and co-curricular programming.