At JCU, diversity, equity and inclusion are an intrinsic part of our mission, and all members of the campus community bear a responsibility for ensuring the success of this work.
In addition to the work of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Division, other offices hold significant leadership roles in campus DEI efforts and initiatives. These include (but are not limited to) the following:
- Human Resources - professional development, employee diversity metrics, employee accessibility support, discrimination and bias complaints involving staff
- Dean of Students Office - student conduct, student community standards, discrimination and bias complaints involving students
- Global Education - study abroad programs and international student support
- Residence Life - training, programming and support for resident students and student employees
- The Center for Teaching and Learning - faculty professional development
- Office of the Provost and Academic Vice President - faculty hiring, EEOC, discrimination and bias complaints involving faculty
- Staff Council - sponsors Employee Resource Groups
Committees across the institution engaged in DEI work include (but are not limited to) the following:
- University Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee
- Faculty Council Gender & Diversity Committee
- Staff Council Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee
- Student Union Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
Bias: Intentional or unintentional actions against someone because of their actual or perceived age, gender, sex, religion, race, ethnic or national origin, sexual orientation, disability, appearance, or other targeted aspects of one’s identity. Bias-related behaviors may include, but are not limited to, offensive graffiti, the display of degrading or offensive images, derogatory or offensive verbal or written comments, offensive jokes, outing someone’s sexual orientation, or other inappropriate references to aspects of a person’s identity. For more about bias, please see this page. [4]
Campus Climate: Describes the collective effect of the institutional history, structural realities, attitudes, behaviors, and standards of students, faculty, and staff. A healthy campus climate is one that leads to all individual community members experiencing the environment in an equitable and respectful way. [5]
Cultural Competency: The skill set necessary to allow an individual to engage in effective interpersonal, interethnic, and intercultural group interactions in the modern university, region, and world. Cultural competency is characterized by an understanding of the experiences of various ethnic and cultural groups and by the ability to anticipate and respond with sensitivity to the needs and cultural differences of a widely diverse community [7].
Discrimination: Generally defined as unfair actions toward a social group and its members that is based upon prejudice about that group. [3] For more about how discrimination concerns are understood and handled at JCU, please consult the following policy and process documents:
- Human Resources Non-Discrimination and Non-Harassment Policy
- Title IX Notice of Nondiscrimination
- Policy on Disability-Related Grievances
- Student Conduct and Community Standards Manual
Diversity: Individual differences (e.g. personality, learning styles, and life experiences) and group/social differences (e.g., race/ethnicity, class, gender, sexual orientation, country of origin, physical or cognitive abilities, as well as cultural, political, religious, or other affiliations) that can be engaged in the service of learning. [1]
Equity: Creating opportunities for equal access and success for historically underrepresented populations, such as racial and ethnic minority and low income students, in three main areas:
- Representational equity: the proportional participation at all levels of an institution;
- Resource equity: the distribution of educational resources in order to close equity gaps; and
- Equity-mindedness: the demonstration of an awareness of and willingness to address equity issues among institutional leaders and staff. [2]
Inclusion: The active, intentional, and ongoing engagement with diversity — in people, in the curriculum, in the co-curriculum, and in communities (intellectual, social, cultural, geographical). This engagement with diversity has the potential to increase one’s awareness, content knowledge, cognitive sophistication, and empathic understanding of the complex ways individuals interact within systems and institutions. [1]
Minoritized: Describes a social group that is devalued in society. This devaluing encompasses how the group is represented, what degree of access to resources it is granted, and how the unequal access is rationalized. The term minoritized (rather than minority) is used to indicate that the group’s lower position is a function of active socially constructed dynamics, rather than its numbers in society. [3]
Oppression: Group prejudice and discrimination backed by institutional power. The term oppression indicates that one group is the position to enforce their prejudice and discrimination against another group throughout the society; the prejudice and discrimination have moved from the individual to the societal level and have long-term and far-reaching impacts. [3]
Prejudice: Learned prejudgment based on stereotypes about a social group that someone belongs to. [3]
Privilege: The collection of unearned advantages enjoyed by members of certain social identity groups as a result of a system that treats the experiences, values and attitudes of that particular group as normative. Privilege is often invisible to those who have it. [8]
Solidarity: The recognition of, and ethical response to, the fundamental interdependence and equality of all human beings. Genuine solidarity with others, rooted in an “anthropology of hope,” leads to practical structural action aimed at enabling all people to participate in and benefit from the common good. Action for solidarity is always enacted with others, not for them, learning from and working alongside others with mutuality and respect. [6]
Thriving: A measure of human flourishing, demonstrated by full intellectual, social, and emotional engagement, which at JCU is assessed by:
- (For students) levels of participation in five specific areas: engaged learning, academic determination, positive perspective, diverse citizenship, and social connectedness. [9]
- (For faculty and staff) the existence of equitable organizational structures, within a campus climate of dignity and respect, that produce a measurable positive impact on job satisfaction, job performance, and commitment to the organization [10].
Sources:
[1] “Making Excellence Inclusive.” American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U). Quoted in the NERCHE Self-Assessment Rubric for the Institutionalization of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Higher Education.
[2] Bensimon, E. M. (2006). Learning equity-mindedness: Equality in educational outcomes. The Academic Workplace, 1(17), 2-21. Quoted in the NERCHE Self-Assessment Rubric for the Institutionalization of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Higher Education.
[3] DiAngelo, Robin. (2016). What does it mean to be White?: Developing White racial literacy. New York: Peter Lang Academic Publishers.
[4] “Stand up to Bias.” John Carroll University.
[5] Adapted from definitions by Dr. Sue Rankin, University of California and Hurtado, S., Milem, J. F., Clayton-Pedersen, A., & Allen, W. (1998). Enhancing campus climates for racial/ethnic diversity: Educational policy and practice. Review of Higher Education, 21(3), 279–302.
[6] adapted from Beyer, G. (2014). The meaning of solidarity in Catholic Social Teaching. Political Theology, 15(1), 7-25.
[7] adapted from Enyeart Smith, T. M., Wessel, M. T., & Polacek, G. J. (2017). Perceptions of Cultural Competency and Acceptance among College Students: Implications for Diversity Awareness in Higher Education. ABNF Journal, 28(2), 25-33.
[8] adapted from Geiger, K.A. and Jordan, C., (2014) “The role of societal privilege in the definitions and practices of inclusion”, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, 33(3), 261-274. https:// doi.org/10.1108/EDI-12-2013-0115
[9] Schreiner, L. A. (2010). The thriving quotient: A new vision for student success. Wiley InterScience. doi: 10.1002/abc.20016
[10] Colquitt, J.A., LePine, J.A., and Wesson, M.J. (2017). Organizational behavior: Improving performance and commitment in the workplace. 5th Ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 96-118.
page revised October 8, 2019
Events Archive, 2019-20:
- under construction
Events Archive, 2018-19:
- Staff Implicit Bias Training Workshops in partnership with the Diversity Center of Northeast Ohio
- Events and Interfaith Calendar (Fall 2018): explore the breadth of diversity, equity, inclusion and social justice programs that have been offered across campus.
Events Archive, 2017-18:
- Community Forum and Focus Groups on the emerging Strategic Plan for Inclusive Excellence
Events Archive, 2016-17:
- “The Catholic Church and the Black Lives Matter Movement: The Racial Divide Revisited,” a talk by Bishop Edward Braxton of Belleville, Illinois. Part of the Cleveland area Stokes 2017 programming initiative: see more at Stokes50CLE.com.
Events Archive, 2015-16:
- In It Together with Los Angeles-based social justice theatre troupe “Will & Company”
- Community Conversation on Race sponsored by the Provost’s Council, Feb. 3, 2016
Events Archive, 2014-2015:
- “Freedom and Forgiveness” with Ricky Jackson and Mark Godsey, Feb. 23, 2015
- HBDI professional development workshops with the Diversity Center of Northeast Ohio
Archive of Diversity Reports and Activities:
- 2010 Campus Climate Report
- 2010 Diversity Town Hall
- 2009 Institutional Task Force on Diversity