| Overall Rating | Silver |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 60.54 |
| Liaison | Jane Stewart |
| Submission Date | March 1, 2024 |
Washington and Lee University
PA-7: Support for Underrepresented Groups
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.00 / 3.00 |
Tamara
Futrell Associate Dean of Students Office of Diversity and Inclusion |
"---"
indicates that no data was submitted for this field
Non-discrimination statement
Yes
The non-discrimination statement, including the website URL where the policy is publicly accessible:
https://www.wlu.edu/general-counsel/code-of-policies/discrimination-harassment-and-retaliation/non-discrimination-equal-employment-opportunity-statement
In compliance with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and all other applicable non-discrimination laws, Washington and Lee University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national or ethnic origin, sex, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, disability, veteran's status, or genetic information in its educational programs and activities, admissions, and with regard to employment.
In compliance with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and all other applicable non-discrimination laws, Washington and Lee University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national or ethnic origin, sex, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, disability, veteran's status, or genetic information in its educational programs and activities, admissions, and with regard to employment.
Bias response team
Yes
A brief description of the institution’s discrimination response protocol or team:
Depending on the parties involved, the processes and available resources differ. Please see the resources information for parties charged with preventing harassment and discrimination: https://my.wlu.edu/general-counsel/code-of-policies/discrimination-harassment-and-retaliation/university-policy-on-prohibited-discrimination-harassment-and-retaliation-other-than-sex/resources-contact-information
Recruitment programs
Yes
Does the institution have programs specifically designed to recruit academic staff from underrepresented groups?:
Yes
Does the institution have programs designed specifically to recruit non-academic staff from underrepresented groups?:
Yes
If yes to any of the above, provide:
Initiatives to recruit students from underrepresented groups include the following:
1) W&L is a partner institution with QuestBridge (http://www.questbridge.org/). Through this partnership, we recruit, enroll and fund high-achieving low-income students;
2. We host DIVE, our Diversity, Inclusion Visit Experience each fall for prospective students from underrepresented groups;
3. We host RISE, a spring fly in program for admitted students from underrepresented communities.
Initiatives to recruit employees from underrepresented groups include the following:
1.Each position posting includes a diversity statement that welcomes diverse applicants and diverse perspectives.
2.HR subsidizes recruitment advertising at outlets aimed at reaching underrepresented groups.
3. We are members of the PhD Project and the Consortium for Faculty Diversity which support our goal to generate increased diversity within applicant pools.
4. The university requires search committee members to complete anti-bias training. Additional recruitment trainings and resources that support inclusive recruitment practices are provided to committee chairs and hiring managers.
5. Recruitment Ambassadors program provides confidential points of contact for job candidates who wish to learn more about life at W&L and in our surrounding community from the perspective of a variety of personal identities.
1) W&L is a partner institution with QuestBridge (http://www.questbridge.org/). Through this partnership, we recruit, enroll and fund high-achieving low-income students;
2. We host DIVE, our Diversity, Inclusion Visit Experience each fall for prospective students from underrepresented groups;
3. We host RISE, a spring fly in program for admitted students from underrepresented communities.
Initiatives to recruit employees from underrepresented groups include the following:
1.Each position posting includes a diversity statement that welcomes diverse applicants and diverse perspectives.
2.HR subsidizes recruitment advertising at outlets aimed at reaching underrepresented groups.
3. We are members of the PhD Project and the Consortium for Faculty Diversity which support our goal to generate increased diversity within applicant pools.
4. The university requires search committee members to complete anti-bias training. Additional recruitment trainings and resources that support inclusive recruitment practices are provided to committee chairs and hiring managers.
5. Recruitment Ambassadors program provides confidential points of contact for job candidates who wish to learn more about life at W&L and in our surrounding community from the perspective of a variety of personal identities.
Mentoring, counseling and support programs
Yes
Does the institution have mentoring, counseling, peer support or other programs designed specifically to support academic staff from underrepresented groups on campus?:
Yes
Does the institution have mentoring, counseling, peer support or other programs to support non-academic staff from underrepresented groups on campus?:
Yes
A brief description of the institution’s programs designed specifically to support students, academic staff, and/or non-academic staff from underrepresented groups:
Programs to support students from underrepresented groups include the following:
1. The Advanced Immersion and Mentoring (AIM) Program
The mission of the AIM initiative is to instill within incoming first-year students an increased sense of confidence and belonging. As Washington and Lee furthers its ongoing commitment to a diverse and inclusive community, AIM provides meaningful support and fosters connections for talented students from traditionally underrepresented backgrounds.
The AIM initiative engages students, faculty and staff on the undergraduate campus in a three-tiered approach. One objective is the AIM Scholars Summer Program, being modeled after the former Advanced Research Cohort (ARC) Program for STEM fields with the goal of providing immersive academic opportunities across the liberal arts to empower a broad group of incoming first years (AIM Scholars) from varied backgrounds. (https://my.wlu.edu/provosts-office/for-students/aim-program)
2.Black and African Diaspora Alumni Mentoring Program
The African-American / Black Alumni Mentoring Program at Washington and Lee seeks to connect our current students with Washington and Lee alumni across the country. Mentors provide a wide array of support and guidance as well as strategies for obtaining internships, graduate school admissions and post-graduation career opportunities. This program does not replace the resources available through existing programs and services at the University, but rather creates additional ones to ensure student success.
https://my.wlu.edu/office-of-inclusion-and-engagement/diversity-resources/african-american-black-alumni-mentoring-program
Programs to support academic staff include the following:
1.All of W & L University's new non-tenure track and tenure-track faculty are invited to participate in a New Faculty Cohort for their first two years on the job – one that meets for an hour weekly at lunch time to discuss many of the possibilities and challenges on this campus. A strong number of these Wednesday sessions speak directly to the ways in which underrepresented faculty in particular may experience academic life.
2.W&L's underrepresented non-tenure track and tenure track faculty members are also welcomed to the W&L Professionals of Color Network and to Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) that are affinity based. These are collaborative organizational efforts between Human Resources and the Provost's Office which link underrepresented individuals who can support one another as they conduct their teaching and research here.
3. Faculty of color are participants in the Faculty of Color Connect (FOCC) network with other small liberal arts college underrepresented faculty as well. This collective meets on Friday afternoons to discuss topics, such as a.)Teaching through Pain: Inclusive Pedagogy, Academic Freedom, and Safety in the Classroom Today, b.) Being Faculty of Color - as Mentor and Mentee, c.) Problems of Practice - A Professional Development Session for Mentees, and d) Intentional Dialogue: Navigating Difficult Conversations as Faculty of Color
4. W&L is an institutional member of the National Center for Faculty Development and Diversity (NCFDD) as well and so all underrepresented faculty now have access to NCFDD's plethora of seminars and other resources at no charge.
5.New tenure track faculty are assigned an extra-departmental mentor through their W & L Dean or Associate Provost's matching system and non tenure-track faculty can be assigned a mentor through the Faculty of Color Connect program. These mentors all receive training and budgeted resources to support their mentoring for the colleague.
6.Engaging Equity Live is a program offered to all LACRELA member institutions and all faculty at W & L, including those who are underrepresented, can benefit from the ways in which diversity and inclusion on campus are discussed in these sessions.
7.W&L was awarded a grant from the Associated Colleges of the South to discuss Difficult Conversations in the Classroom in a sustained manner. Those who participated in that grant project are now ambassadors re: the topic on our campus and ongoing discussions of this topic benefit W & L's underrepresented faculty.
In addition to the above, Professionals of Color events are held twice annually to support social cohesion and to build connection with university leadership. Also, Human Resources and Academic Affairs support an Employee Resource Group program to foster and building community across a variety of employee identity groups. This program helps connect employees and build community, often across shared identities in a safe and comfortable environment. https://my.wlu.edu/human-resources/wandl-employee-resource-group-(erg)-program. these programs benefit non-academic as well as academic staff.
1. The Advanced Immersion and Mentoring (AIM) Program
The mission of the AIM initiative is to instill within incoming first-year students an increased sense of confidence and belonging. As Washington and Lee furthers its ongoing commitment to a diverse and inclusive community, AIM provides meaningful support and fosters connections for talented students from traditionally underrepresented backgrounds.
The AIM initiative engages students, faculty and staff on the undergraduate campus in a three-tiered approach. One objective is the AIM Scholars Summer Program, being modeled after the former Advanced Research Cohort (ARC) Program for STEM fields with the goal of providing immersive academic opportunities across the liberal arts to empower a broad group of incoming first years (AIM Scholars) from varied backgrounds. (https://my.wlu.edu/provosts-office/for-students/aim-program)
2.Black and African Diaspora Alumni Mentoring Program
The African-American / Black Alumni Mentoring Program at Washington and Lee seeks to connect our current students with Washington and Lee alumni across the country. Mentors provide a wide array of support and guidance as well as strategies for obtaining internships, graduate school admissions and post-graduation career opportunities. This program does not replace the resources available through existing programs and services at the University, but rather creates additional ones to ensure student success.
https://my.wlu.edu/office-of-inclusion-and-engagement/diversity-resources/african-american-black-alumni-mentoring-program
Programs to support academic staff include the following:
1.All of W & L University's new non-tenure track and tenure-track faculty are invited to participate in a New Faculty Cohort for their first two years on the job – one that meets for an hour weekly at lunch time to discuss many of the possibilities and challenges on this campus. A strong number of these Wednesday sessions speak directly to the ways in which underrepresented faculty in particular may experience academic life.
2.W&L's underrepresented non-tenure track and tenure track faculty members are also welcomed to the W&L Professionals of Color Network and to Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) that are affinity based. These are collaborative organizational efforts between Human Resources and the Provost's Office which link underrepresented individuals who can support one another as they conduct their teaching and research here.
3. Faculty of color are participants in the Faculty of Color Connect (FOCC) network with other small liberal arts college underrepresented faculty as well. This collective meets on Friday afternoons to discuss topics, such as a.)Teaching through Pain: Inclusive Pedagogy, Academic Freedom, and Safety in the Classroom Today, b.) Being Faculty of Color - as Mentor and Mentee, c.) Problems of Practice - A Professional Development Session for Mentees, and d) Intentional Dialogue: Navigating Difficult Conversations as Faculty of Color
4. W&L is an institutional member of the National Center for Faculty Development and Diversity (NCFDD) as well and so all underrepresented faculty now have access to NCFDD's plethora of seminars and other resources at no charge.
5.New tenure track faculty are assigned an extra-departmental mentor through their W & L Dean or Associate Provost's matching system and non tenure-track faculty can be assigned a mentor through the Faculty of Color Connect program. These mentors all receive training and budgeted resources to support their mentoring for the colleague.
6.Engaging Equity Live is a program offered to all LACRELA member institutions and all faculty at W & L, including those who are underrepresented, can benefit from the ways in which diversity and inclusion on campus are discussed in these sessions.
7.W&L was awarded a grant from the Associated Colleges of the South to discuss Difficult Conversations in the Classroom in a sustained manner. Those who participated in that grant project are now ambassadors re: the topic on our campus and ongoing discussions of this topic benefit W & L's underrepresented faculty.
In addition to the above, Professionals of Color events are held twice annually to support social cohesion and to build connection with university leadership. Also, Human Resources and Academic Affairs support an Employee Resource Group program to foster and building community across a variety of employee identity groups. This program helps connect employees and build community, often across shared identities in a safe and comfortable environment. https://my.wlu.edu/human-resources/wandl-employee-resource-group-(erg)-program. these programs benefit non-academic as well as academic staff.
Support for future academic staff
No
A brief description of the institution’s programs to support and prepare students from underrepresented groups for careers as faculty members:
---
Optional Fields
Yes
Does the institution offer housing options to accommodate the special needs of transgender and transitioning students?:
Yes
Website URL where information about the institution’s support for underrepresented groups is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
---
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
information on gender- neutral bathrooms here: https://www.wlu.edu/lgbtq-resource-center/resources/all-genders-restroom-initiative
Contributing information for this section was provided by the Vice President for Admissions and Financial Aid, the Executive Director of Human resources and the Assistant Director of Inclusion and Engagement.
Contributing information for this section was provided by the Vice President for Admissions and Financial Aid, the Executive Director of Human resources and the Assistant Director of Inclusion and Engagement.
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.