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Inclusive Classroom: Build an inclusive learning environment that supports the needs of all students

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Goals and Action Steps

Goal: Design a student environment and programming that support the needs of all students 

  • Offer implicit bias and cultural competency training during orientation and intergroup dialogues throughout the school year
  • Conduct an internal audit of the student costs associated with participation in extracurricular activities and propose options to reduce costs
  • Amplify and broaden our mentoring program
  • Audit student programming to augment support for all students, including underrepresented minority students, 1st generation students, students with disabilities, and LGBTQ students
  • Work with the University of Chicago Diversity and Inclusion Design Studio on an “inclusion project” to better understand the support needed for international students
  • Augment our current student feedback system and additional mechanisms for students to report concerns or grievances

Goal: Improve faculty teaching and engagement with students

  • Provide ongoing diversity and inclusion training for faculty and lecturers on strategies for addressing implicit bias, cultural sensitivity, and microaggressions
  • Create a Harris-wide statement of interest for use on syllabi that speaks to diversity and inclusion
  • Provide support to faculty teaching in the Core with coordinating materials with an eye towards improving match to student backgrounds and interests, and minimizing bias
  • Develop a diversity and inclusion virtual resources library for faculty
  • Refine a recently piloted system of regular feedback from students by including appropriate questions as part of the course evaluations

Goal: Diversify course offerings with a focus on social policy issues

  • Create a faculty position to take lead on curriculum and faculty diversity issues
  • Broaden course offerings outside the Core curriculum in areas of policy interest including international issues, gender, race, and inequality
  • Increase cross-listing of courses and cross-campus teaching collaborations in areas of policy interest including international issues, gender, race, and inequality

Goal: Develop diversity in content outside of the classroom

  • Broaden Harris topics and event speaker diversity, and institutionalize D&I-specific events
  • Improve quality and quantity of co-curricular activities that relate to diversity and inclusion and complement classroom instruction
  • Create opportunities for students to engage in ongoing conversations related to issues of race and social justice from both domestic and international perspectives
  • Develop a diversity and inclusion virtual resource library for students

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Progress

What We’ve Done

  • Conducted People-First Language in Policy Writing Workshop
  • Conducted diversity training for all 1st year students 
  • Implemented Common Read initiative 
  • Conducted implicit bias training for faculty 
  • Added questions on the quarterly course evaluations to get students’ perspective on the classroom environment as it relates to diversity and inclusion
  • Hosted 6 co-curricular special lectures on topics related to policy and social justice.
  • Hosted and/or sponsored 5 events for Black History Month 
  • Provided educational resources related to social and racial justice on Harris website and social media
  • Launched Policy and Art Initiative including partnership with SMART Museum and other local artists
  • Hosted ongoing series of diversity dialogues and dinners

What’s Next

  • Developing diversity and inclusion resource library for faculty and students   
  • Providing students with opportunities to engage in ongoing discussions on race and social justice related topics in a supportive environment
  • Developing Harris-wide statement on diversity and inclusion for use in syllabi
  • Launching a diversity and inclusion speaker series
  • Holding fall diversity and inclusion training for faculty

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