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Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion

One U Thriving

Centers & Offices

Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion

Self-Study Guide & Toolkit

Through collective and individual action across campus units, together we will build a model where we examine and disrupt institutional inequities and plant new policies and processes that will support the successes of all.

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& Toolkit About IconEDI Strategy
Council

Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion serves across the entire university system and leads this work for the University. The division includes resource centers, offices, and associated student, faculty, and staff affinity groups. Additionally, the division partners with all colleges, departments and the broader community to help develop initiatives aimed at fostering more awareness, advocacy, and action.

The Division is focused on four strategic objectives: ensuring belonging for all, fostering an inclusive campus climate, amplifying community engagement, and securing health equity. The EDI Self-Study Guide supports efforts aligned with these pillars by offering the campus community a starting place for EDI-focused dialogue, self-reflection, and action planning.

What is EDI Self-Study, and What are Its Uses?

Guided by the perspective that equity is an intentional and ongoing practice, EDI has developed, in partnership with the Office of the Vice President for Research, an EDI self-study guide. The guide offers a framework and toolkit for examining and disrupting institutional inequities. The guide offers a starting point and is not intended to be prescriptive; rather, it is designed to leverage the strengths inherent in an academic community and honor the variation that exists across units in terms of their needs and where they are in this journey.

Units engage in activities that could benefit from elements included in the EDI Self-Study Guide & Toolkit in a variety of ways, including:

  • 7-Year Program Reviews and/or Accreditation
  • Faculty, Staff, and Student Recruitment and Retention
  • Enhancing Student Learning Outcomes
  • Improving Pipeline and Pathway Programs
  • Increasing Innovative Research through Diversity
  • Preparing More Competitive Extramural Grant Proposals
  • Curricular development

Guide & Toolkit Organization

The Guide is organized according to a general process that should be broadly applicable regardless of where a unit is in its engagement with equity and inclusion frameworks. For those looking for specific ideas related to institutional data availability and analysis, climate surveys, focus group methods, and more, resources and tools are also included in the guide.

Self-Study Process

As your team plans for the self-study, keep in mind the purpose of the self-study in the context of your unit within the larger campus community. The following steps – which may be overlapping and nonlinear – are intended to provide an outline for designing and implementing your self-study process. Steps and tools included in the toolkit can be customized to meet the needs of the unit or program.

Click through each step, by selecting a number in the graphic, to access a shortened description and recommended tools for each respective phase of the self-study process.

Step 1: Map Out the Process

Estimated Time to Completion: 1-2 months

Form a self-study team representative of the unit and organize a plan for your self-study process.

Tools

Self-study Map   Self-study Checklist

Step 2: Get Commitment & Communicate

Estimated time to completion: 1 week to 1 month & ongoing

This step is focused on ensuring you get buy-in across the unit through a clear and transparent communication process.

Tools

Communication Brainstorming Checklist   Self-study Checklist

Step 3: Conduct Self-Reflection

Estimated time to completion: 1 month

Before beginning any formal data collection take stock of what your self-study team may already know about the unit.

Tools

University Strategic Alignment Worksheet   Reflection Worksheet   Questions to Drive Self-Study   Self-Study Checklist

Step 4: Stop and Identify Opportunities for Immediate Impact

Estimated Time to Completion: ongoing

This step is intended to advance equity, diversity, and inclusion while engaging in the process of self-study. Once you have conducted step three, your team already has a wealth of information to learn from. Take stock of what you have learned and identify opportunities for immediate impact.

Tools

Opportunities for Impact Worksheet   Self-Study Checklist Mapping Campus Spaces

Step 5: Develop a Data Collection Plan

Estimated time to completion: 1 to 2 months

Identify important information gaps that need to be filled. Develop a protocol and timeline for data collection and analysis.

Tools

Quantitative Data Guide   Faculty Equity & Diversity Hiring Guide   Self-Study Checklist

Step 6: Review Plan with Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion and Office of the Vice President for Research

Estimated Time to Completion: 1 month

This self-study guide is aligned with the One U Thriving initiative and seeks to ensure all units align with the University strategic vision. At this step, share your self-study plan (protocol) with EDI to discuss key points and identify opportunities for partnership, institutional support, and strategic alignment as you move forward.

Tools

Self-Study Checklist

Step 7: Collect Data & Analyze

Estimated time to completion: 3 months

It’s now time for data collection and analysis! Collect institutional data from the Office for Budget and Institutional Analysis, implement unit level data collection measures such as surveys, focus groups, interviews, document analysis, etc., as per your data collection protocol and timeline.

Analyze the data to draw out key findings including strengths, challenges, and opportunities for developing equity-minded practices. Identify areas for actionable change based on the findings to frame the unit action plan (see Action Planning Guide).

Tools

Reflection Worksheet   Curriculum & Teaching Inventory   Stakeholder Engagement (Qualitative Methods)   Quantitative Data Guide   Questions to Drive Self-Study   Self-Study Checklist

Step 8: Prepare and Share Report

Estimated time to completion: 2-3 months

This is the final step – and it is easy to make it a misstep. To avoid missteps, be sure to prepare the report knowing that it will be shared with stakeholders and that the findings will be used to guide the development of an Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Action Plan.

Tools

Self-Study Template   Self-Study Checklist

This guide is a “living document” in that we expect future updates to include additional tools and resources—but also feedback from our University of Utah community. We invite you to share your thoughts and feedback to help us continue to improve the guide and tools to advance equity across campus.

Self-Study Action Planning

After engaging in the self-study process, it’s time to start formulating your action plan. Based on your self-study findings, select your action focus below to display various campus units we recommend for collaboration on your next steps for creating change.

To explore funding opportunities to support work in these domains, see Office of the Vice President for Research.

Students   Staff   Research   Administration   Pedagogy   Faculty  

Action Planning Focus: Students

Office of the Vice President for Research

The Office of the Vice President for Research provides resources and support for University of Utah’s researchers to foster an environment of creativity, discovery, and advanced knowledge.

Areas for Creating Change: Grants for student programming

Visit website

Action Planning Focus: Students

Student Affairs

Student Affairs encourages students to participate in the creation of their own campus culture, collaboratively working alongside professional staff, student leaders, and academic partners to ensure all members of our community not only feel welcomed but are fully incorporated into university life.

Areas for Creating Change: Student Services

Visit website

Action Planning Focus: Students

Campus Affinity Centers

There are various places and spaces across campus that provide support for students.

Areas for Creating Change: Student group engagement and programming

Action Planning Focus: Students

Graduate School Diversity Office

The Graduate School Diversity Office partners with graduate academic departments to create a campus climate that accommodates all members of the graduate community.

Areas for Creating Change: Resources, recruitment, and retention initiatives

Visit website

Action Planning Focus: Students

Office of Postdoctoral Affairs

The Graduate School Office of Postdoctoral Affairs is to enhance, support, and promote postdoctoral training at the university.

Areas for Creating Change: Resource office for postdoctoral issues, community development for all University of Utah postdocs, resource for principal investigators and faculty

Visit website

Action Planning Focus: Staff

Human Resources

Find and reach out to your Human Resources contact.

Areas for Creating Change: Staff recruitment, hiring, retention, and promotion

Main Campus HR
UUH Academics HR
UUH Hospitals & Clinics HR

Action Planning Focus: Research

Unit Experts

Collaborate with experts within your unit and across the university.

Areas for Creating Change: Interdisciplinary research

Research Deans
Research Advisory Committees

Action Planning Focus: Research

Office of the Vice President for Research

The Office of the Vice President for Research provides resources and support for University of Utah’s researchers to foster an environment of creativity, discovery, and advanced knowledge.

Areas for Creating Change: Research education & grant support

Visit website

Action Planning Focus: Administration

Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion

Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) serves as a catalyst for transformation towards diversity, equity and inclusion as an embodiment of the university’s core values with the ultimate vision of establishing a culture of belonging throughout the university and to become a model campus for equity, diversity, and inclusive excellence.

Visit website

Action Planning Focus: Administration

University Leadership

The various departments and colleges withing the university are overseen and administered by the following organizations.

University Leadership
Academic Affairs
Health Sciences

Action Planning Focus: Pedagogy

Center for Teaching & Learning Excellence

The Center for Teaching & Learning Excellence provides a variety of services to all University of Utah instructors with an emphasis on best pedagogical practices and strategies for teaching in higher education.

Visit website

Action Planning Focus: Faculty

Office for Faculty

The Office for Faculty assists with issues related to all categories of faculty and postdoctoral fellows.

Areas for Creating Change: Faculty recruitment, hiring, retention, promotion, and engagement

Visit website

Action Planning Focus: Faculty

Graduate School Diversity Office

The Graduate School Diversity Office partners with graduate academic departments to create a campus climate that accommodates all members of the graduate community.

Areas for Creating Change: Resources, recruitment, and retention initiatives

Visit website

Action Planning Focus: Faculty

Office of Postdoctoral Affairs

The Graduate School Office of Postdoctoral Affairs is to enhance, support, and promote postdoctoral training at the university.

Areas for Creating Change: Resource office for postdoctoral issues, community development for all University of Utah postdocs, resource for principal investigators and faculty

Visit website

Download the Self-Study Guide

This self-study guide has been developed as a partnership between Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion and the Office of the Vice President for Research with the goal of institutional transformation toward equity-mindedness.

This collaborative approach helps ensure the utility and value of the framework for all disciplines and campus units as they move forward with their self-studies to help:

  • Identify and expand strategies to support the growth of diversity in faculty, staff, and students.
  • Increase outreach to historically minoritized communities
  • Embed equity in curriculum and teaching practices
  • Build a climate of equity and inclusion where diversity can thrive
  • Highlight strengths and showcase unit leadership on EDI related issues

Additional Tools

  • The following definitions provide a framework for understanding equity language and to aid units in maintaining equity-mindedness throughout EDI self-study.

    Equity: Equity aims to identify and actively eliminate systemic barriers to access and opportunities that prevent the full participation of people, specifically those from historically marginalized groups in higher education. Equity ensures fair treatment, access, opportunity, and advancement for all students, faculty, and staff to develop to their full academic, social, and career potential.

    Diversity: Diversity refers to the variety of personal experiences, values, and worldviews that arise from the whole of who we are. These experiences are valued, and include but are not limited to race, ethnicity, gender and gender expression, age, religion, mental or neurological function, language, disability, sexuality, and socioeconomic status. It is this collective that makes us a stronger whole.

    Inclusion: Inclusion is the act of creating a community where everyone is welcomed, respected, supported, and valued. Inclusion actively embraces differences and engages historically marginalized individuals so that diversity can thrive.

    Belonging: A sense of belonging is understood as a person knowing that their authentic self is affirmed and supported.

    Climate: An institutional culture that is equitable and inclusive of the diverse individuals represented throughout our community

    Engagement: The community connections where trust is built and the structural effects of injustice are uprooted

    Health Equity: The elimination of health inequities and ensuring all patients and clients achieve equitable health outcomes

    Student Success: Student success is defined as learning focused on academic and personal growth with the intention toward degree completion (even if over time and with moments of absence) but not degree completion as the solitary end goal (University of Utah, Equity Gap Project Team, 2021).

    One U Thriving: “One U Thriving is the platform by which Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) communicates the vision of the University for equity, diversity, and inclusion (and belonging) and where we will ensure students, faculty, trainees, and staff feel a sense of belonging and have a voice to help bring about racial healing and transformation, respond to racist and bias incidents and help to shape our journey as we achieve the goal of an anti-racist, diverse, inclusive, accessible, and equitable campus” (One U Thriving, n.d.)