University of California, Merced
PA-6: Assessing Diversity and Equity

UC Merced has deployed several institutional level surveys to capture the experiences of faculty, staff, and students to understand the experiences and needs of our employees. The instruments and strategies used varied in scope and insights – however, collectively, they provide critical information on how to best target efforts that support the institutionalization of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).
The following capture the range of surveying and assessment methodologies conducted in the past few years. Collectively, they’ve augmented UC Merced’s capacity to respond to DEI insights and target initiatives to attain our inclusive excellence goals. In 2020, the People’s First workgroup gathered feedback across our constituency groups to understand the pandemic’s impact on their work and lives. In 2020, the Valuing Black Lives Initiative presented over 63 recommendations to address racial inequities on campus, insights gathered via 5 subcommittee groups. The results yielded a 2.5 million commitment to the Valuing Black Lives Initiative for the next 5 years to improve campus climate and experiences for our Black community. In Spring 2021, the Campus Experience Survey Workgroup was charged to create a strategic plan to for all institutional surveys across all constituency groups to ensure UC Merced has consistent and regular surveying of our campus community. In 2021, the Office of Systemwide Human Resources and the Council of University of California Staff Assemblies released the 2021 Staff Engagement survey which captures measures ranging from communication to retention to brand. The insights captured reveal variations in perceptions across race and ethnicities that will informed UC Merced’s Staff Assembly’s priorities in 2021 and beyond.
Last, UC Merced has applied to and received three diversity, equity, and inclusion awards: 2021 HEED Award, 2021 Seal of Excelencia, and 2021 Colleges of Distinction Equity and Justice Badge. The process of submitting to these awards enabled the Office of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion to conduct a high-level ecosystem analysis of EDI assets and related initiatives, events and programming. Consequently, this insight is the foundation of the newly adopted 2021 university strategic plan which situations Goal #3: Cultivate a Culture of Dignity and Respect to diversify the professoriate and leadership roles, move measures of campus climate and experience towards inclusive excellence goals, and review EDI efforts through the lens of institutional infrastructure and capacity.
In Fall 2021, in order to implement the new university strategic plan, pre-planning project management efforts are underway to map out the Equity and Justice strategic planning process. The core of this process will be triangulating constituency group data gathered from Institutional Research and Decision Support, campus climate and experience instruments, and implementation data from campus wide EDI initiatives. Data is being systemically gathered and analyzed by our first Equity and Justice Research Analyst who joined the Office of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in Spring 2021. The priority in 2021 will be on reports centering faculty and staff experiences, particularly of those from historically excluded communities in higher ed.

The growth of the Office of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion have increased UC Merced’s capacity to strategically reflect on, review, and make decisive, pro-equity commitments. The Valuing Black Lives Initiative have yielded a 2.5-million-dollar commitment over the course of the next five years – the first year will be focused on our staffing and infrastructure, the following three will be centered on improving the experiences of Black faculty, students, and staff, and the final will be on elevating progress and accomplishments at the national level. In 2021, Chancellor Muñoz announced a 1-million-dollar commitment to Staff Assembly’s efforts to support staff retention and success, an effort that will be informed by the 2021 Staff Engagement Survey. Last, given the scope and scale of need to diversity our faculty and staff and promote the highest level of excellence for our undergraduate and graduate students, the Office of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion will involve into the Division of Equity, Justice, and Inclusive Excellence. This elevates the expectation that all facets of the university must support our inclusive excellence vision.

Depending on the assessment methodology, results can be shared via a campus wide townhall, publicly posted reports, briefings to Senior Administrators, and/or public-facing dashboards. Efforts driven by the Campus Experience Workgroup, the Office of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, and Institutional Research and Development all help drive increased awareness of the status of DEI and the corresponding efforts underway to proactively address concerns.

• Valuing Black Lives: https://diversity.ucmerced.edu/valuing-black-lives-initiative
• Campus Experience Survey Workgroup: https://diversity.ucmerced.edu/initiatives/cesw
• 2021 University Strategic Plan: https://strategicplan.ucmerced.edu/
• Institutional Research and Decision Support Dashboards: https://cie.ucmerced.edu/analytics-hub
• 2021 Staff Engagement Survey: https://staffassembly.ucmerced.edu/sites/staffassembly.ucmerced.edu/files/page/documents/merced_2021_engagement_survey_results.pdf