¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ

Co-Chairs of the Committee

Vicka Bell-Robinson (Student Life)
Co-Chair

Anthony James (Institutional Diversity)
Co-Chair

Members

• Sonie Ross (Regionals)
• Jillian Campagna (Undergraduate Student, Art)
• Amitoj Kaur (Undergraduate Student, Political Science, ETB+D)
• Will Kulis (Undergraduate Student, Marketing, Entrepreneurship)
• Akash Radhakrishnan (Undergraduate Student, Quantitative Economics)
• Amy Shaiman (University Advancement)
• Fabienne Bohon (Finance and Business Services)
• Denise Baszile (Education, Health and Society)
• Leighton Peterson (Anthropology)
• Sara Acevedo Espinal (Ed Psych/Disability Studies)
• Jim Shively (Education, Health and Society)
• Todd Stuart (College of Creative Arts)
• Kara Strass (Myaamia Center)
• Stephanie Dawson (Student Disability Services)
• Nloh Masango-Dibo (Student Diversity & Inclusion)
• Cheryl Young (Global Initiatives)
• Jon Simon (University Communications and Marketing)
• Valerie Robinson (Graduate School)
• Natalee Price (Graduate Student, Psychology)
• Tristen Hall (Graduate Student, Student Affairs in Higher Education)
• Eboney Kimbrough (IT Services)
• Karen Wilson (Human Resources)
• Darryl Rice (Management)
• Spencer Izor (University Advancement)
• Mark Taylor (Finance and Business Services)
• Tarah Trueblood (American and World Cultures)
• Seth Seward (University Advancement)
• Kenya Ash (Equity and Equal Opportunity)

Since the Presidential DEI Task Force presented its 44 recommendations to the President and the President’s Executive Cabinet in September 2020, ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ has taken proactive and intentional steps to address these recommendations. Many of the completed and ongoing initiatives and efforts span various divisions, departments, and units. It truly has been a community effort. As a result of the comprehensive nature of some of the efforts that followed the recommendations, multiple aspects of different recommendations have in some instances been addressed by one project. In an effort to streamline achievements across areas and mitigate redundancies, we present a composite narrative across recommendations within each Pillar.

Overall, our completion rate across all 44 recommendations is 91.9%:

As a community invested in intellectual curiosity and civil discourse, ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ has taken purposeful steps through the DEI Task Force Recommendations to move dialogue and allyship forward through various initiatives. Some of these initiatives have entailed continued engagement of Intergroup Dialogue (IGD) efforts through The Center for American and World Cultures (Global Initiatives), enhancing educational training opportunities designed to expand institutional capacity, and other dynamic approaches to meet our institutional needs.

The Center for American and World Cultures (Global Initiatives) has hosted various IGD opportunities to expand dialogue and allyship on campus. Two of these efforts include “Voices of Discovery” (IDS 253, 3-credit course) and “Intro to Voices” programs, which were embedded into existing academic courses (including two Psychology graduate courses and several sections of Farmer School of Business undergraduate courses). A  was also created in collaboration with University Communications and Marketing to highlight the importance of IGD and the work taking place at Miami. Alongside additional investment and promotion of IGD, there has been intentional evaluation of this initiative through the Discovery Center () which demonstrates the gains made by ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs.

In addition to these IGD offerings, the Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE), the Graduate School, the Center for Student Diversity and Inclusion (CSDI), and the Office of Institutional Diversity and Inclusion (OIDI) hosted events connected to dialogue and allyship. For instance, CTE facilitated a 4-part series on IGD in Spring 2021 and a 5-part IGD series on anti-racist strategies for the classroom which included allyship. The Graduate School hosted a professional development series with sessions on “Strategies to Negotiate Dialogue Across Difference,” “Why Implicit Bias and Microaggressions Awareness Matters,” and “Writing Diversity Statements for Job Applications.” CSDI hosted a series of workshops through Safe Zone Training to expand the conversation on campus around LGBTQ+ inclusion and allyship. Lastly, OIDI organized webinars featuring identity-based panels during the various Heritage Months during 2021-2022, and will continue this initiative moving forward. These efforts focused on holding space and sharing knowledge and resources to have intentional conversations about identity and the lived experiences of those across diverse communities.

In alignment with these efforts, OIDI has developed additional initiatives and projects to further center dialogue and allyship. For example, the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Online Course launched in March 2022 through the President’s Office and OIDI to empower individuals to engage in best practices in fostering a more inclusive workplace and community. The course features ten modules, including ones on Allyship and Advocacy, Intercultural Communication in a Globalized World, and Cultural Intelligence. During summer 2022, a module specifically on IGD will be added to the module offerings. To complement these efforts, OIDI has developed an Anti-Racism workshop which includes a discussion of and strategies for allyship. The workshops are being launched Spring 2022, and are available to ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs, faculty, and staff. Additionally, Heritage and HistoryMonth programming and newly launched (Spring 2022) social media platforms for OIDI actively work to expand beyond IGD and to advance innovative approaches on engaging in cross-cultural dialogue. In an ever-digital world, DEI efforts must engage both in-person and virtual spaces to extend the scope of impact.

Resources–more fully discussed under Pillar 4–are central to capacity building and to the sustainability of diversity efforts.  During 2020-2021, Boldly Creative had a DEI theme, which facilitated the support of various projects focused on inclusion at Miami. Funded initiatives included the  in the Farmer School of Business (FSB), to support efforts to enhance knowledge on cultural intelligence and allyship. In 2021-2022, CTE sponsored the , a day-long pre-conference program on IGD that incorporated allyship. Graduate School staff were sponsored by OIDI to attend the 2021 IGD Institute to conceptualize pathways for embedding IGD components into the Graduate School. In alignment with these capacity-building efforts, OIDI will continue to explore ways to support IGD and allyship efforts in strategic and intentional ways.

With Miami ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs coming from varied backgrounds across the globe, it is essential to offer services and engagement that advance awareness, knowledge, and skills and which contribute to our community’s intercultural competence. As an educational institution, we believe everyone is capable of growth and change. Our responsibility is to provide opportunities for everyone – ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs, faculty, and staff – to continue their learning. Tasked with examining and ensuring that everyone in our community advances their cultural competency over time, the committee provided five recommendations.

Through revision of the Global Miami Plan, Miami was able to reshape the intercultural perspectives requirement and shift it to a more “intercultural consciousness” approach. More broadly, Global Miami Plan revisions resulted in a 12-credit component that includes three separate areas that are both distinct and complementary: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion; Intercultural Consciousness and Global Inquiry. Revisions to the  were approved by the University Senate in Spring 2021, and the website was updated accordingly. Another recommendation centered around identifying permanent faculty specializing in courses that are critical to DEI efforts on campus. The Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Online Course developed by the Office of Institutional Diversity and Inclusion (OIDI) in partnership with the President’s Office includes modules by faculty specializing in DEI topics. The course’s ten modules were developed by Miami faculty and staff across units (including CAS, FSB, EHS). Module topics, critical to DEI efforts on campus, included Bias, Microaggressions and Stereotypes; Racism and Anti-Racism; LGBTQ+ Identities and Culture; Ableism and Inclusion; Ageism and Age Bias; Healthcare Inequities and Inclusion; Strategies for Workplace Inclusiveness; Allyship and Advocacy; Intercultural Communication in a Globalized World; and Cultural Intelligence. The DEI Online Course was launched in March 2022.

Starting September 10, 2021, all faculty searches have required diversity statements from faculty candidates as a way to further reflect Miami’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. The university took an expansive approach in faculty searches in providing a revised faculty search training, offered through OIDI and the Office of Equity and Equal Opportunity (OEEO), to center diversity, equity, and inclusion. To complement these efforts, OIDI is developing a Faculty Recruitment Toolkit to further strengthen recruitment and retention efforts.

Another recommendation focused on determining the most effective and cost-efficient cross-cultural assessment tool that would align with the principles and attributes associated with our community’s values. The , initially supported in part by Boldly Creative funds, now provides both pre- and post-assessment for ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs in Farmer School of Business (FSB), including the . The Cultural Intelligent (CQ) Assessment tool is an effective tool, with pre- and post-assessment features.

The new DEI Online Course, made up of 10 modules, provides an accessible way for all university employees to engage in ongoing cultural consciousness learning experiences for professional development, as outlined in the Task Force Recommendations in Pillar 2. The new Anti-Racism Workshop developed in OIDI similarly provides faculty and staff with the professional development needed to be better allies and to be intentionally antiracist. The Center for Student Diversity and Inclusion (CSDI) has also launched a revised Safe Zone Training series geared toward ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs, faculty and staff. This training is designed to educate ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs, faculty, staff, and community members on LGBTQ+ identities and experiences. An 18-hour  provides additional opportunities for small cohorts of staff and faculty to engage in valuable professional development to increase individual aptitude and knowledge of DEI topics.

Another achievement within this Pillar addresses support for international ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs, and their inclusion across Miami. Residence Life now incorporates a diversity and inclusion engagement component focused on global and international ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs. OIDI also actively partners with Global Initiatives to identify ways to support international ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs in terms of diversity, equity and inclusion. Additionally, OIDI provides funding for .

Finally, OIDI launched new  and developed an accompanying website, in Fall 2021. This effort provides opportunities for the Miami community to continue our learning and engage in meaningful programming that recognizes, examines, and values historical legacies of a diverse array of identities as a way to enhance our cultural consciousness.

This pillar centers on the importance of advocacy, responsible allies, engaged citizens, and future leaders enacting positive change in local communities, the state, and the nation. ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ has made intentional efforts to both create new innovative approaches to addressing this pillar and to amplify existing great work on campus that addresses this pillar. This work has allowed us to further enhance our staffing, hiring and retention practices, intentional partnerships with local and national organizations, and streamlining Miami’s DEI efforts through the Office of Institutional Diversity and Inclusion (OIDI).

Miami has revisited staffing areas addressed by the recommendations by more clearly identifying the designated Title VI Coordinator. Additionally, the Student Code of Conduct explicitly includes Title VI language similar to the current Title IX language embedded in the Code of Conduct.

Diversity statements are now a required component in faculty searches, and search committees are trained on best practices for assessing these materials. In alignment with this effort, OIDI has secured new institutional memberships to ensure an expansion of posting platforms for faculty searches to reach more diverse applicant pools, including through Insight into Diversity and the National Registry of Diverse and Strategic Faculty. Ongoing work to incorporate diversity statements into staff searches and training further strengthens advocacy and partnership efforts.

All faculty and staff affinity groups receive funding from OIDI to support their community-building efforts, as a way to further enhance advocacy and partnerships. Newly launched Heritage Month programming through OIDI also intentionally cultivates community building and educational spaces, to enhance knowledge and understanding about various communities. These efforts complement OIDI’s previously noted efforts to extend the cultural competency and DEI knowledge of the Miami community through newly developed Anti-Racism workshops and a DEI Online Course. Each of these efforts supports retention as they contribute to ensuring diversity and inclusion are embedded across ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ.

In addition to all these efforts, there have been targeted approaches to meeting this pillar by various units across the institution. These efforts include the  through the Farmer School of Business (FSB). This program establishes a teach away/study away experience with the School of Business & Industry at Florida A&M University, a historically Black university located in Tallahassee, Florida. This ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ exchange program is designed to build crucial skills in cultural competence (CQ). Similarly, ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ Police Department (MUPD) has worked to expand its cultural competencies to meet community needs. The training MUPD has gone through has included Mental Health First Aid for First Responders (December 2020, January 2021), Safe Zone Training (January 2022), and DEI Course (Spring 2022). These educational spaces have offered MUPD an opportunity to learn the importance of pronouns, referring ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs to mental health services, and many other tangible skills critical for supporting our community. Alongside these efforts, the Department of Family Sciences and Social Work (FSW) has partnered with MUPD and the Oxford Police Department (OPD) to bridge community needs and concerns around local policing and nationwide racial injustice since Summer 2020. Their efforts have been anchored in direct action to change the culture and meet local needs. For example, they worked on bringing MUPD and OPD to a 2-day training on trauma responsiveness for direct service workers, including police officers. Their work in this area resulted in a community needs assessment, led by FSW, which concluded with a recommendation to hire a social worker for OPD. In February 2022, OPD posted the job description for a Social Service Liaison to “help first responders assist individuals in need of additional resources beyond the traditional crisis response of police officers” (article about collaboration). Additionally, the Division of Student Life led efforts to pass a mental health fee to support the expansion of mental health professionals to provide resources to advance prevention, ongoing support and treatment, and response efforts.

Another major contributor to enhancing Miami’s impact in the local community is an agreement between ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ and Cincinnati Public Schools (CPS) through the Cincinnati Public Scholars Program, which has been in existence for the past 4 years. The Rinella Learning Center has been responsible for the Cincinnati Public Scholars program for the last two years. Since Fall 2020, Rinella Learning Center staff have served as the scholars’ academic advisors, coaches, and mentors throughout their remaining academic careers at ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ. During their first two years at Miami, scholars are expected to meet with their coach/mentor weekly, and after these two years, they meet as frequently as the scholars need. The program has seen great success, with a 95% retention rate over the last two years. In addition, the College of Education, Health and Society (EHS) has two major programs which have had a lasting impact on the local community. First, EHS in collaboration with CCA supports the Urban Cohort and its network of partners in Cincinnati's Over the Rhine and Lower Price Hill Neighborhoods. Urban Cohort is a place- and community-based approach to preparing professionals to work alongside communities for greater justice. The Urban Teaching Cohort () began in 2009 to deeply contextualize and complicate the narrative and work of teaching in urban schools. Over the course of three years, sophomore through senior years, Miami ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs were accepted into the program, participated in courses, and community- and school-based experiences collaboratively led by Miami faculty, community members, and k-12 teachers. Secondly, EHS' MU TEACh is an extensive partnership with CPS/Aiken High School. MU TEACh is a rigorous 4-year college readiness program designed specifically for high school ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs from minority and low-income populations who are interested in becoming teachers. The ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs are supported through intensive multifaceted mentorship, regular university campus visits, rigorous coursework, ACT prep, targeted field trips, place-based learning, family/community engagement, exposure to notable urban education scholars, and in accordance with key social justice principles that emphasize culturally relevant approaches to teaching and other key ideas that work toward equity and achievement in diverse educational environments. Students who successfully complete the high school portion of the program with an overall high school GPA of 3.0 and a minimum ACT score of 17, are guided and supported through the ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ admissions and scholarship processes, with the intention of admitting a viable cohort to ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ’s Teacher Education and Urban Cohort programs. Furthermore, Cincinnati TEACh is EHS' latest initiative and is designed to scale up the MU TEACh to several schools across the CPS district to attend to the growing teacher shortage issues in the state of Ohio. EHS recently collaborated with CPS on a grant application to support this initiative.

Lastly, one of the recommendations outlined in this pillar was an adoption of a zero-tolerance anti-discrimination policy and strictly enforcing the existing University policy on discrimination. Miami hired external legal counsel to discuss the recommendation, had hours of committee conversations about it, and discussed with internal legal counsel. The conclusion was that this recommendation cannot be advanced in the manner that was recommended because zero-tolerance policies (also known as “speech codes”) consistently fail and are held to be unconstitutional. However, in alignment with the spirit of this recommendation, we continue to develop a holistic approach to structural and systemic change and cultural transformation to enhance the climate at Miami. As Miami continues to strengthen its commitments to diversity, equity, and inclusion, OIDI will continue to explore ways to expand its efforts to meet the needs of the institution and will develop a strategic plan to advance a cohesive DEI vision for ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ.

The fourth pillar focused on Structural and Resource Support for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) efforts in our community. The Task Force recognized the efforts and resources that each division has devoted to DEI efforts and noted the need to have a concerted effort to better coordinate all such efforts effectively. To this end, the Task Force recommended 15 actionable items to be implemented, all of which have now been completed. These recommendations aimed to eliminate gaps and duplication in efforts and to move the community forward in learning from each other and utilizing resources effectively.

To restructure the Office of Institutional Diversity and Inclusion (OIDI) and add personnel, the university conducted a national search for a Vice President of OIDI, and the new VP joined Miami in July 2021. In February 2022, following a national search, two Directors of Programming and Strategic Initiatives joined OIDI. Additional support in the form of a communications coordinator is currently being discussed. To add more support for the Office of General Counsel, an additional experienced attorney was hired to handle civil rights and Title IX complaints.

In Fall 2021, OIDI launched a new Council, the . The goals of the Council and monthly meetings are to identify, discuss and support unit-based and cross-unit efforts; develop new collaborative ways forward to foster inclusive excellence; share and coordinate programming; identify and proactively support the work and ongoing professional development of DEI leaders; provide a space for those directly engaged in DEI work to constructively discuss challenges and opportunities, and ensure broad-based input and discussions about university-wide DEI planning and strategies.

OIDI, alongside OEEO and the DEI Academic Leadership Council, is in the process of launching a new initiative to prepare and include ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs to serve on faculty search committees, the Student Equity Ambassadors Program. These ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs will also be consulting with the DEI Academic Leadership Council on specific departmental needs. OIDI and OEEO will be providing in-depth training for this group, as a way to leverage existing resources to provide ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs with leadership opportunities in line with DEI commitments and to strengthen existing structures.

The Land Acknowledgement statement will be read at all public events to reaffirm the Myaamia people’s deep connection to their homelands and our commitment to each other. A website that gives more information on the land acknowledgment and its use at events was created in collaboration with the Myaamia Center. All campus members are further encouraged to display the shortened format in their email signature.

In September 2020, ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ  after its first Black graduate, Nellie Craig Walker. There was a  to commemorate this event. The video highlighted the hard work and legacy of Nellie Craig Walker. The video included comments from community members and Nellie Craig Walker’s granddaughter.

An additional effort centered on attracting and retaining minoritized and underrepresented ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs and revising the language about fundraising for such efforts. The university has developed policies to support fundraising focused on attracting and retaining minoritized and underrepresented ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs. Policy language is being finalized and is expected to become effective by July 1, 2022. During Spring 2022, the Nellie Craig Walker Scholarship was launched, in alignment with these efforts.

In Fall 2021, OIDI launched a  as a resource for more inclusive scheduling. This resource complements the Academic Affairs calendar. Information on holy days and observances help the community to recognize, acknowledge, and support different religious and diverse celebrations.

During Fall 2021 OIDI also launched new  programming, which provides opportunities for the Miami community to continue our learning and engage in meaningful experiences that recognizes, examines, and values historical legacies of a diverse array of identities. History and Heritage Month programming encourages the ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ community to enhance our awareness, knowledge, and skills to enrich and renew our intercultural competence.

Following national best practices and in alignment with our commitments to diversity, equity, and inclusion, Miami has chosen to make test scores optional for ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs applying to the university through Spring 2023 to ensure equitable opportunity for admission, scholarships, and honors programs. The Admissions Office created an FAQ website to answer questions from ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs and parents about this new policy of making tests optional. Additionally, most of Miami’s graduate school programs do not require standardized tests, such GRE or GMAT. Each college has specific requirements for prospective ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs.

¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ continues to make strides in recognizing and supporting minority-owned businesses. In 2021, Miami received the . Miami was one of nine universities in the country to be honored for taking proactive steps to support and engage with minority-owned businesses through supplier diversity offices, unique programs, and leading initiatives. The university spent about $6 million with diverse suppliers in fiscal year 2020. In the same year, Miami awarded our furniture and furniture repairs to a minority-owned business in Cincinnati.

In leveraging alumni and local business connections to advance DEI efforts, OIDI worked with Miami Online and Alumni Relations to launch the DEI Online Course, free to alumni. In addition, a new Women of Color Leadership Support Network is currently receiving applications and will launch in 2022-2023. OIDI has invited alum Dr. Carolyn Jefferson-Jenkins to be a guest speaker for the program. In November 2021, ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ hosted its inaugural Freedom Film Festival. During the film festival, ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ alum and Boadway Distinguished Scholar-in-Residence Wil Haygood was featured, along with the release of his new book, Colorization: One Hundred Years of Black Films in a White World, (Random House, October 2021). During 2021-2022, the VP of OIDI has also met with the Foundation Board’s DEI Task Force to discuss DEI priorities and plans.

Miami has implemented multiple programs to build relationships with local schools.  exists to assist ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs with specific academic, professional, personal, and financial needs throughout their collegiate journey. Upward Bound helps high school ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs prepare for college. Through Upward Bound, high school ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs can take certain courses on campus. There is also a six-week immersive program designed to give high ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs an opportunity to experience college life and help smooth the transition from high school to college. Once ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs are accepted and enrolled, TRIO provides other services to the ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ. The TRIO program helps ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs build on their own strengths so they can become active participants in the community. TRIO provides individualized services such as weekly check-ins with an academic coach and creating an action plan for each semester. The ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs who participate in this program have the opportunity to attend different workshops focused on academic skills and strategies, and financial literacy counseling. Students also receive tutoring services from Peer Tutors and peer mentors.

Students who attend schools with the rural or free/reduced lunch marker have been included in all diversity-focused outreach initiatives for prospective and admitted ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs, including an invitation to the spring Day of Champions and CEC (College of Engineering and Computing) high school outreach initiatives.  is an event developed by Miami’s Admission’s Office, for high school ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs from diverse backgrounds. Invited ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs get a glimpse of Miami’s campus life through an admission information session, a ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ/faculty/staff panel, and a tour of campus. This is a partnership program with Athletics, and ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs get to cheer on the Miami RedHawks during the men's basketball game.

Admissions is also in the beginning stages of a partnership with , a Cappex resource geared towards connecting underrepresented ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs and those who support them, including Community-Based Organizations with colleges and universities.  They have a network of over 1,500 Community Based Organizations (CBO). The goal is to work with them to not only connect with ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs but to assess the CBOs in which Miami will be in a strategic partnership.

Miami is involved in the community and building relationships through some key partnerships.  is an award-winning program that brings 9^th and 10^th graders to campus and helps the ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ transition to high school better. The  is another award-winning program that brings community members together to advocate for ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs and work together to improve public education, enhance opportunities for Miami ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs to serve the wider educational community and to cultivate new possibilities. Through the College of Education, Health, and Society, the  is a partnership program where Miami ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs collaborate with high-need schools and community-based organizations to prepare teachers who are grounded in the life of the community.

This pillar emphasizes the importance of identifying best practices to ensure inclusion is always at the forefront and creating accountability measures to continue growth in DEI initiatives. Through the OIDI’s “Behind the Scenes” Town Hall virtual sessions, the Miami community engages in a space to dialogue about how DEI is embedded in the decision-making processes and practices of each division, as a way to model transparency and accountability. Below is a list of sessions hosted over 2021-2022:

Miami continues to support capacity-building initiatives through DEI efforts across units. For example, to support the coordination of campus-wide initiatives and implementation of best practices, OIDI has been intentionally restructuring and developing, including through a new VP and two new Directors, and a partnership with the Graduate School to include two Graduate Assistants and provide them with professional development opportunities in DEI. OIDI is also collaborating with UCM to create a Communications Plan for OIDI to address another Task Force recommendation– the hiring of a communications coordinator to support DEI efforts, particularly marketing and communication projects, sustainably.

DEI infrastructure to ensure sustainability and coordination of DEI efforts has also been addressed through the creation of groups like the (starting Fall 2021), Divisional Diversity Leadership Council (starting Spring 2022), and DEI Student Advisory Council (starting Spring 2022). During the 2021-2022 academic year, OIDI, OEEO, General Counsel, and the Dean of Students Office explored ways to enhance and improve transparency and accountability in bias reporting. One step forward has been to add examples of bias for clarity and transparency. We continue to collaboratively discuss and examine best practices in this area. Anonymous reports can be submitted through .

To share updates on DEI Task Force Recommendation implementation and more broadly on progress and initiatives tied to systemic change, OIDI produces the DEI Weekly Three and distributes it to ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵs, faculty, and staff via email. The OIDI webpage, , provides updates on upcoming programming (i.e. Heritage Months) and resources. A Religious Observations and Inclusive Scheduling Calendar was created and integrated into Google Calendar during Fall 2021, with a vision to build out awareness-raising educational materials tied to this calendar. OIDI has further addressed feedback from the community by developing and promoting DEI trainings, including developing Anti-Racism workshops, a DEI Online Course, supporting the DEI Certificate, launching a decolonizing the curriculum series, promoting Safe Zone Trainings (offered by the CSDI), and other opportunities for continued education on campus for all campus stakeholders.

Revisions to the  were approved by the University Senate in Spring 2021, and the website was updated accordingly to provide clarity around what Miami has to offer in terms of DEI in the curriculum through the Global Miami Plan. To complement the efforts discussed across Pillars, OIDI is in the process of developing a robust Diversity Dashboard, in consultation and collaboration with the Office of Institutional Research and Effectiveness, to track the success and growth opportunities for the various initiatives being executed throughout Miami. This tool will also enhance accountability and transparency in reports of diversity across ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ, faculty, and staff populations and graduation and ¾Ã¾ÃÈÈÊÓƵ success rates across groups. The OIDI Task Force Recommendations webpage, listing updates, and this report further address transparency and accountability. Additionally, to continue to model accountability and transparency in leadership, during the 2021-2022 Miami’s senior leadership has participated in muti-hour Anti-Racism workshops, and the President’s Executive Cabinet has also participated in Safe Zone Training.