| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 68.78 |
| Liaison | Kelly Wellman |
| Submission Date | Dec. 20, 2023 |
Texas A&M University
PA-6: Assessing Diversity and Equity
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
0.88 / 1.00 |
Tim
Scott Vice Provost for Student Success Undergraduate Studies |
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indicates that no data was submitted for this field
Has the institution engaged in a structured assessment process during the previous three years to improve diversity, equity and inclusion on campus?:
Yes
A brief description of the assessment process and the framework, scorecard(s) and/or tool(s) used:
Please read the notes section first. What follows is the work that was in place during the past fiscal year.
The annual unit-level accountability reports, first submitted in 2010 and every year since, provide quantitative and qualitative measures of comparisons to peer institutions; institutional and unit-level campus climate findings; recruiting and retention efforts; and equity issues (salary, resources, training, etc.). The unit-level accountability reports are the primary source of data for assessing institutional progress on diversity-related goals. The accountability reports are reviewed by the President's Council on Climate and Diversity (PCCD), an advisory council that reports to the university president and staff from the Office for Diversity (OFD).
In 2022, the OFD refined the scoring rubric for assessing annual diversity plan accountability reports. The rubric was developed using the values and standards described in the university’s strategic plans:
• Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) Eligibility & Advancement
• 2021 Board of Regent Approved Actions
• Campus Climate Survey Results
• 2020-2025 Strategic Plan
The scoring rubric ranges from:
Needs Improvement (0-1 point)
Basic (2-4 points)
Advancing (5-7 points)
Exemplary (8-10 points)
Units are scored on how they select, align, or develop key performance indicators (KPIs), assessment results, and reflection.
The annual unit-level accountability reports, first submitted in 2010 and every year since, provide quantitative and qualitative measures of comparisons to peer institutions; institutional and unit-level campus climate findings; recruiting and retention efforts; and equity issues (salary, resources, training, etc.). The unit-level accountability reports are the primary source of data for assessing institutional progress on diversity-related goals. The accountability reports are reviewed by the President's Council on Climate and Diversity (PCCD), an advisory council that reports to the university president and staff from the Office for Diversity (OFD).
In 2022, the OFD refined the scoring rubric for assessing annual diversity plan accountability reports. The rubric was developed using the values and standards described in the university’s strategic plans:
• Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) Eligibility & Advancement
• 2021 Board of Regent Approved Actions
• Campus Climate Survey Results
• 2020-2025 Strategic Plan
The scoring rubric ranges from:
Needs Improvement (0-1 point)
Basic (2-4 points)
Advancing (5-7 points)
Exemplary (8-10 points)
Units are scored on how they select, align, or develop key performance indicators (KPIs), assessment results, and reflection.
Does the assessment process address campus climate by engaging stakeholders to assess the attitudes, perceptions and behaviors of employees and students, including the experiences of underrepresented groups?:
Yes
Does the assessment process address student outcomes related to diversity, equity and success?:
Yes
Does the assessment process address employee outcomes related to diversity and equity?:
Yes
A brief description of the most recent assessment findings and how the results are used in shaping policy, programs, and initiatives:
Please read the notes section first. What follows is the work that was in place during the past fiscal year.
First, Texas A&M's diversity, equity, and inclusion assessment process has contributed to Texas A&M receiving the Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award from Insight Into Diversity for three consecutive years. In 2019, 2021, 2021, and 2022, Texas A&M received the HEED Award with the prestigious distinction of Diversity Champion.
Second, on November 8, 2021, the 2021-2022 Diversity Plan Accountability reports were submitted to the Office for Diversity. So, the assessment findings discussed below are from the 2020-2021 reports.
Third, Texas A&M launched a 2021 faculty and staff campus climate survey. The survey, was sent to 15,463 people and 3,217 participants completed the survey resulting in an overall response of 22% (25% for faculty and 21% for staff). Four major recommendations for action items emerged from the qualitative and quantitative data analyses of the faculty and staff survey results:
(1) Provide training that improves the skills and cultural competency of our campus community (e.g., bystander intervention, conflict mediation, intercultural discourse, mentoring and cross-cultural mentoring, hiring practices, etc.)
(2) Resolve conflicting beliefs about how important diversity is to advancing Texas A&M’s mission and Core Values.
(3) Improve administrative transparency specifically around responses to discrimination, hate, and racist behaviors.
(4) Hire and retain faculty and staff that reflect the race/ethnic diversity of Texas A&M’s student body and the State of Texas.
The university-level Diversity Operations Committee (DOC) and the diversity committees in the colleges, departments, student organizations, and administrative units across the university are the leaders who will coordinate how Texas A&M uses the findings from the 2021 Your Voice Matters surveys. Currently, the results and recommendation are being used primarily to inform the Quality Enhancement Plan and the 2022 University Diversity Plan.
First, Texas A&M's diversity, equity, and inclusion assessment process has contributed to Texas A&M receiving the Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award from Insight Into Diversity for three consecutive years. In 2019, 2021, 2021, and 2022, Texas A&M received the HEED Award with the prestigious distinction of Diversity Champion.
Second, on November 8, 2021, the 2021-2022 Diversity Plan Accountability reports were submitted to the Office for Diversity. So, the assessment findings discussed below are from the 2020-2021 reports.
Third, Texas A&M launched a 2021 faculty and staff campus climate survey. The survey, was sent to 15,463 people and 3,217 participants completed the survey resulting in an overall response of 22% (25% for faculty and 21% for staff). Four major recommendations for action items emerged from the qualitative and quantitative data analyses of the faculty and staff survey results:
(1) Provide training that improves the skills and cultural competency of our campus community (e.g., bystander intervention, conflict mediation, intercultural discourse, mentoring and cross-cultural mentoring, hiring practices, etc.)
(2) Resolve conflicting beliefs about how important diversity is to advancing Texas A&M’s mission and Core Values.
(3) Improve administrative transparency specifically around responses to discrimination, hate, and racist behaviors.
(4) Hire and retain faculty and staff that reflect the race/ethnic diversity of Texas A&M’s student body and the State of Texas.
The university-level Diversity Operations Committee (DOC) and the diversity committees in the colleges, departments, student organizations, and administrative units across the university are the leaders who will coordinate how Texas A&M uses the findings from the 2021 Your Voice Matters surveys. Currently, the results and recommendation are being used primarily to inform the Quality Enhancement Plan and the 2022 University Diversity Plan.
Are the results of the most recent structured diversity and equity assessment shared with the campus community?:
Yes
A brief description of how the assessment results are shared with the campus community:
The Office for Diversity contributes to the reports for the Board of Regents every quarter. Summaries of the 2020 Diversity Plan Accountability reports were shared with the campus community on the Office for Diversity website. Results from the 2021 campus climate were posted on the Office for Diversity website prior to Senate Bill 17 when their website was removed in August 2023.
Are the results (or a summary of the results) of the most recent structured diversity and equity assessment publicly posted?:
No
The diversity and equity assessment report or summary (upload):
Website URL where the diversity and equity assessment report or summary is publicly posted:
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Optional Fields
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Due to legislation passed on June 17, 2023 by the State of Texas, Senate Bill 17, the Office of Diversity was officially disbanded on 8/1/2023 at Texas A&M University. The university is currently working to be compliant with the new state law that goes into effect on 1/1/2024 while also shifting the work formerly done by the Office of Diversity to ensure all Aggies are supported, connected, and have the resources they need to thrive while on campus. As this STARS report covers the 22-23 Fiscal Year that ended on 8/31/23, we decided to include their historical work that is still relevant as they were helping lead campus for 11 of the 12 months covered in this report and all information reported here was active. While active, the Office of Diversity served to ensure accountability and catalog all efforts, while the programs and policies largely occurred at the unit levels and still operate today. However, all websites that historically housed the university's diversity efforts are no longer online and their content is undergoing review to determine if reposting is possible while being in alignment with the new state law. For this report, we have updated this credit to reflect known changes made due to SB-17. We expect to update all information in our next STARS report once changes are implemented and better data is available to update all STARS credits impacted by Senate Bill 17.
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.