Diversity Enhancement for Faculty

Annual Report of Accomplishments Regarding Diversity Enhancement

Describe your accomplishments and contributions to diversity enhancement in your department, college and university programs this past year, and your goals or plans to contribute to diversity enhancement during the next year.

Diversity refers to under-represented groups in our society or in aspects of our society. This includes diversity with respect to race, gender, ethnicity, religion, and nationality.

Diversity enhancement activities include but are not limited to efforts to integrate and promote diversity-enriching experiences into teaching, research, and outreach activities that result in:

increased awareness and appreciation of diversity
recruitment, training, and retention of individuals from under-represented groups,
strengthening relationships with minority serving institutions, and
outreach targeted to diverse groups on campus, in Iowa or the US.

Beginning spring semester 2003, faculty members and department chairs have the opportunity to describe their efforts and goals to enhance diversity in their annual evaluations as stated in the box below. The College of Agriculture is committed to providing opportunities for US citizens of underrepresented groups while also strengthening multicultural understanding among all students, staff, and faculty.

The Diversity Enhancement Faculty Award was recently established to recognize outstanding performance of faculty in enhancing diversity. The Diversity Committee of the College has prepared examples of enhancing diversity through research, teaching, and outreach to stimulate involvement and commitment to diversity.

Faculty members provide service through formulation of policies and carrying out activities to promote diversity at the department, college, and/or university levels. Faculty members advance scholarship by sharing observations and findings related to diversity enhancing activities through publications and presentations that include peer review.

The Faculty Diversity Committee offers several examples of enhancing diversity through teaching, research and outreach activities:

A. What are some examples of advancing diversity through teaching?

1. Build diversity into the curriculum

Highlight historical background that has impact on topic/subject (i.e. George Washington Carver- science, agriculture, extension model; disease prevention for certain ethnic groups, medical studies related to female population).
Include works of minority and women scientists in reading assignments.
Analyze impact of race, ethnicity, gender on the topic of study, such as consumer issues and demand patterns.
Partner with 1890 or 1994 institution faculty as resource persons or to deliver lecture by distance or on campus.

2. Meet special needs and requirements of minority students

Encourage minority students to take advantage of study abroad and international experience programs.
Work with the department/college/university to identify particular needs among minority students that would improve retention/graduation rates.
Encourage and work towards the establishment of minority scholarships.

3. Develop awareness and sensitivity within the classroom and department organizations

Structure interaction among students in classroom, labs, group assignments.
Invite experts in the field who belong to underrepresented groups as guest presenters.
Encourage/facilitate an integrated learning community in your department or area of study.
Facilitate leadership training for students, including minority students.

4. Increase understanding among administration, faculty and staff

Report on successful projects or assignments in which students gained understanding of issues impacting culture/ethnicity/race/gender.
Conduct or facilitate discussions pertaining to diversity and cultural sensitivity for faculty and staff in the department.
Participate in Hispanic Heritage Month (September), Native American Heritage Month (November), African American History Month (February), and Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month (May). Attend lectures, celebrations that feature or advance diversity, such as ISCORE.
Work with your department Diversity Committee member to identify and meet specific diversity needs for your department.

5. Recruit and retain minority students/faculty to diversify department/college

Work with recruitment committee of the college, department and/or interdepartmental programs to target schools with high minority enrollment.
Conduct student and faculty visits and presentations at high schools (target Iowa schools with minority students or “adopt a school”).
Provide hands-on programs to Science Bound students on ISU campus visits or in Des Moines schools to promote science and agriculture.
Mentor a high school or undergraduate summer intern.
Take advantage of the Faculty Research Exchange Visit – either go to a minority serving institution or invite faculty to ISU to work together on teaching, research, and/or extension endeavors.
Participate in MANRRS (Minority in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Related Sciences) and encourage student participation (in retention efforts the organization provides a friendly and supportive environment for students).

6. Advance scholarship in diversity through teaching by sharing understanding and findings with professional peers (see D. below).

Develop and communicate understanding, new knowledge, and insights resulting from teaching activities (including classroom experiences, advising, career counseling, mentoring, administration).
Share successes of advancing diversity through teaching with peers, undergraduate or graduate students, associates, the public for their critical review.
Communicate scholarship in diversity through teaching materials and methods, curricula, presentations, exhibits, distribution of materials, grants and contracts, etc.
Provide evidence that scholarly work regarding diversity was validated by peers, communicated to peers or broader audience, recognized, cited, and/or adopted by others.

B. What are some examples of advancing diversity through research?

1. Build diversity into the research topic/project

Review literature of minority and women scientists in the field and incorporate these references into reviews, research papers.
Assess the extent to which similar research is being conducted by minority serving institutions.
Seek opportunities of working with a minority serving institution on the research of common interest.
Weigh the impact of your research on underrepresented groups and women.
Include underrepresented groups in surveys, test panels, advisory committees, external evaluations, etc.
Appraise the language used to communicate research findings from the point of view of underrepresented minorities and women; develop cultural sensitivity.

2. Meet special needs and requirements of minority students

Purposefully help to prepare minorities and women in your field of research.
Establish a suggestion box or listening hour to interact from minority students regarding their progress and needs.

3. Develop awareness and sensitivity within the laboratory/research environment

Recruit minority students to be a part of your research team.

Increase understanding among administration, faculty and staff

Explore the possibilities of conducting faculty development workshops for faculty in minority serving institutions or vice versa.
Facilitate or conduct culture sensitivity training in the department or student organization.
Nominate a colleague for the Diversity Enhancement Award (new fall 2002)!

5. Recruit and retain minority students/faculty/staff to diversify the department/college

Mentor a summer research minority intern.
Participate in career fairs at minority serving institutions.
Attend ARD (Agriculture Research Directors of 1890 institutions) Symposia.
Participate in MANRRS locally and nationally.
Participate in AIHEC (American Indian Higher Education Consortia) activities.

6. Advance scholarship in diversity through research by sharing understanding and findings with professional peers for review (see D. below).

Develop and communicate understanding, new knowledge, and insights resulting from including diversity in research activities.
Share successes of advancing diversity through research with peers, or appropriate audiences such as undergraduate or graduate students, associates, users, and/or the public for review and criticism.
Communicate scholarship in diversity through research in refereed journals, books and chapters, grants and contracts, publications, reports, presentations, exhibits, distribution of materials, etc.
Provide evidence that scholarly work regarding diversity was validated by peers, communicated to a broader audience, recognized, cited, and/or adopted by others.

C. What are some examples of advancing diversity through extension/outreach?

1. Build diversity into the extension/outreach program

Use a community model to reach youth, families, producers, entrepreneurs, and other targeted groups.

2. Meet special needs and requirements of immigrant and underrepresented groups in the state

Provide leadership training for underrepresented groups and recent immigrants
Work with small producers to pool land, lease equipment, share labor to leverage access to better technology and marketing.
Address issues related to diet, public health, community nutrition, and education of particular significance to underrepresented populations.
Translate extension publications into Spanish/relevant languages (the 2003 Horticulture Calendar is a good example).

3. Develop awareness and sensitivity within community environments

Interview minority populations and/or recent immigrants to identify coping strategies

4. Increase understanding among administration, faculty and staff

Increase capability of extension staff to work with underrepresented groups in the state.
Provide language training to increase bilingual extension staff or paraprofessionals.

5. Recruit and retain minority students/faculty/staff to diversify the department/college

Seek diversity in community clubs or school based 4-H and other extension youth activities.
Encourage underrepresented youth to participate in on-campus events.
Provide diversity training to volunteer youth leaders.

6. Advance scholarship in diversity through extension/outreach/service by sharing understandings and findings with professional peers for review (see D. below).

Develop and communicate understanding, new knowledge, materials, uses, insights, etc. resulting from outreach activities (includes advising, leadership in professional societies, service to public agencies, assisting communities, consulting, administration).
Share successes of advancing diversity through extension/outreach with peers, or appropriate audiences such as organizations, task forces, associates, users, and/or the public for review and criticism.
Communicate scholarship in diversity through outreach in refereed journals, books and chapters, grants and contracts, publications, reports, presentations, exhibits, distribution of materials, broadcasts, etc.
Provide evidence that scholarly work regarding diversity was validated by peers, communicated to peers or broader audience, recognized, cited, and/or adopted by others.

D. Service and Scholarship Through Diversity

Contribution to Institutional Service: faculty members are expected to play a vital role in the functioning of the university at all levels by participating in faculty governance, formulation of policies, and carrying out administrative responsibilities. Serving on department and college diversity committees is but one way to advance diversity. Many examples provided above for enhancing diversity in teaching, research, and outreach fall within the category of service. See Faculty Handbook for further definition related to promotion and tenure http://www.provost.iastate.edu/handbook/2002.

Faculty members engage in Scholarship in Diversity when a diversity enhancing achievement follows parameters that have been used to describe the nature of scholarship as documented in the current Faculty Handbook, section Evaluation and Review, subsection Standards for Promotion and Tenure; Scholarship described at http://www.provost.iastate.edu/handbook/2002.

Please provide feedback or questions to:

College of Agriculture, Faculty Diversity Committee
Contact: Sorrel Brown, Chair, sorrel@iastate.edu
Contact: Mary M. de Baca, Coordinator, Diversity Programs, mmdb@iastate.edu
Information on Diversity Programs: http://www.ag.iastate.edu/diversity/divershome.html