University of California, Santa Cruz
PA-7: Support for Underrepresented Groups

The university is committed to a policy against legally impermissible, arbitrary, or unreasonable discriminatory practices. All groups operating under the authority of the UC Board of Regents, including administration, faculty, student governments, university-owned residence halls, and programs sponsored by the university or any campus, are governed by this policy of nondiscrimination. The intent of the university's policy on nondiscrimination is to reflect fully the spirit of the law. In carrying out this Policy, the university also shall be sensitive to the existence of past and continuing societal discrimination. (See also Appendix C [Nondiscrimination Policy Statement for the University of California Publications Regarding Student Related Matters]; Section 140.00; Section 150.00; and Section 160.00.)

https://deanofstudents.ucsc.edu/student-conduct/student-handbook/pdf/20.0-policy-on-nondiscrimination.pdf

UCSC's Hate/Bias Response Team reviews all hate/bias incident reports and the appropriate member(s) will contact the respondent/complainant, if this is desired, to provide support and offer referral to services. If enough information is provided in the report, the appropriate team member(s) will address hate/bias incidents as they are related to students, faculty and/or staff.

The University of California, Santa Cruz expressly prohibits students from engaging in conduct constituting unlawful discrimination, harassment or bias. In keeping with the UCSC Principles of Community, we expect students and their guests to refrain from any acts or behaviors that are directed at other members of the campus community, and that result in unlawful discrimination, harassment or bias for an individual or group, and/or that substantially disrupt university operations or interfere with the rights of others. The campus does not seek to limit freedom of speech but rather strives to ensure that all members of the campus community are able to participate in university programs and activities to the fullest extent possible.

Students: The Office of Undergraduate Admissions uses a data-driven approach to engage in a variety of outreach and recruitment to attract and enroll students from historically underrepresented groups. Strategies at the high school level include targeted high school visits and presentations at secondary schools with high underrepresented enrollments, partnership with community-based organizations focused on college access, participation in UC systemwide community-based forums, attendance at targeted college fairs, like Black College Expos, and collaboration with UCSC underrepresented student organizations, and targeted yield events for newly admitted students. For transfer students, strategies include outreach to targeted organizations at California Community Colleges, including Umoja, Puente and MESA, and UCSC's Educational Partnership Center at the University of California, to increase access to higher education for underrepresented students across the Monterey Bay, Pajaro Valley, and Silicon Valley. The EPC helps students in our region reach and succeed in college.

Faculty/Staff: Hiring & Recruitment
Many divisions and departments have various approaches to recruitment that are unique to the work and research that they do. There have been many efforts to reach out to diverse populations to increase the diversity within faculty and staff. Academic Senate, specifically Committee on Affirmative Action and Diversity (CAAD), has worked on those efforts.

We require all search committee members to complete inclusive hiring training. We are starting a new Faculty Equity Advocates program that will be running a new version of the training, and assisting with inclusive recruitment practices. All candidates are required to submit a statement of contributions to DEI, and we strongly encourage all search committees to do a first-round screening of applicants based only on the statement of contributions to diversity, equity, and inclusion and the research statement. Funding is provided for strategic advertising to build pool diversity, and committee members are instructed to perform a large amount of outreach to obtain a diverse pool. The pool diversity is monitored at each stage of the search process, with an expectation of having similar demographics to the graduating PhDs in the field; if a pool has many fewer women than expected, the search can be suspended until additional outreach has been done to diversity the pool (this has happened on our campus). The selection process is based on the advertised criteria, which include contributions to diversity in research, teaching, and service, per university policy. All tenure/tenure-track faculty hiring must go through an open search unless a waiver is approved, and the three types of waivers are all designed to help improve diversity: Presidential Post-doc hiring (hiring of alumni from the UC systemwide post-doc program that awards post-docs to scholars contributing to diversity), Target of Excellence hires (one of the key criteria is contributions to diversity, in addition to outstanding achievement in the field), and Partner Hires (which have been found to be disproportionately important for female faculty).

The Office for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion also has a "Co-Funding Program" that funds Activities/Projects/Events/Recruitment Efforts that work toward increasing the compositional diversity of faculty, staff and/or graduate students across campus.

UCSC has hired a mental health professional who specializes in the impact and experiences of racial stereotypes and microaggressions affecting the African, Black, and Caribbean (ABC) UCSC community. This is a counseling service provided to all ABC faculty, staff, and students.

UCSC houses many student-initiated and institution-sponsored organizations, focused on supporting and promoting dialogue and awareness around the needs of a diverse population of underrepresented students. This includes the African American Resource Center and Cultural Center, Chicanx Latinx Resource Center, Disability Resource Center, American Indian Resource Center, Asian American Pacific Islander Resource Center, the Cultural Arts and Diversity Resource Center, Rainbow Theater, Lionel Cantu Queer Center, and the Women's Center (just to name a few). There are also special-themed Greek organizations to represent different groups. To provide details on one particular program that is unique to UCSC, Rainbow Theater was established in 1994 with a mission to create unity, higher visibility and understanding of various cultures within our communities. The goal is to foster the spirit of unity by breaking down cultural walls, providing an outlet for creative talents of various communities by giving voice, promoting dialogue as well as celebrating diversity and fostering communities. Many services focus on students but the majority of services are available for students, staff, and faculty.

Faculty & Staff: Once here, development is assisted by our Faculty Mentorship Program, as well as our Diversity and Inclusion Certificate Program. Ongoing salary and promotion review criteria explicitly includes contributions to diversity in research, teaching, and service. The University of California Systemwide Committee on the Status of Women addressed the need for additional professional development for women and the need for additional lactation facilities. Systemwide Advisory Committee on the Status of Women (SACSW): http://sacsw.universityofcalifornia.edu/

Campus Inclusive Climate Council provides ongoing education for members of the campus community to help them enact practices that further inclusive excellence. They also assist students who consider themselves to have limited power and support them effectively using the power of voice.

Equity & Inclusion in Hiring (EIH) workgroup created a comprehensive, actionable plan for instituting an equitable, inclusive hiring process that ensures UC Santa Cruz recruits a diverse workforce.

Attracting, hiring, and retaining employees that reflect the rich diversity of the State of California, is essential to our success. Promoting a climate of inclusion and belonging is paramount. Together, we intend to establish the organizational infrastructure necessary to empower everyone involved in the hiring process to succeed in equitable recruitment. We recognize the urgent need for solutions; now is the time to act, to go beyond imagining.

President's Postdoctoral Fellowship Program
The University of California President's Postdoctoral Fellowship Program was established in 1984 to encourage outstanding women and minority Ph.D. recipients to pursue academic careers at the University of California. The current program offers postdoctoral research fellowships, faculty mentoring, and eligibility for a hiring incentive to outstanding scholars in all fields whose research, teaching, and service will contribute to diversity and equal opportunity at the University of California.

Contributions to Diversity and Equal Opportunity
These contributions may include public service addressing the needs of our increasingly diverse society, efforts to advance equitable access to higher education, or research focusing on underserved populations or understanding inequalities related to race, gender, disability or LGBT issues. The program is seeking applicants with the potential to bring to their academic careers the critical perspective that comes from their non-traditional educational background or understanding of the experiences of groups historically underrepresented in higher education.

Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) Grants: The grant has provided support for a graduate student in Anthropology.

Graduating and Advancing New American Scholars: Promoting Postbaccalaureate Opportunities for Hispanic Americans (GANAS PPOHA)
The grant — GANAS PPOHA — from the U.S. Department of Education helps the campus increase the readiness of Latinx, low-income and students of color from UC Santa Cruz and CSU Monterey Bay to apply and succeed in graduate programs.