There has been an encouraging increase in awareness in the past years of the challenges we all face regarding racial equity, structural racism and exclusion. Late last year, SVA established its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) office, for which I am the director, and a DEI Task Force, comprising members of the College’s administration, academic leadership and staff. Together, we are charged with fostering a campus climate in which differences and diversity are celebrated and respected, and all are welcomed and heard. In the months since, working together with SVA students, faculty and staff, we have made significant progress, and there is much planned for the 2021 – 2022 academic year.
Currently, we are developing a strategic plan for DEI at SVA, one that aligns with the College’s mission, core values and current strategic plan. This process consists of four phases, with each phase serving as a key component toward building the foundation for SVA’s DEI identity.
Phase 1, Reconvene the DEI Task Force, has largely been completed. The DEI Task Force is made up of six working groups, each focused on a different aspect of our campus community. Together, we have developed a shared vision and set of goals. Each working group is now refining and making progress on its own action items for the 2021 – 2022 academic year, and I look forward to sharing news on these initiatives in the next few weeks.
Phase 2, Data Collection and Diversity Roundtables, is also well under way. To date, the DEI Task Force has hosted separate roundtable discussions with SVA students, academic chairs and staff; this fall we hope to host similar talks with faculty and alumni. We are also building a “DEI inventory,” which will collect demographic data, identify current DEI practices and policies, and provide an opportunity for suggestions toward addressing inequities for historically marginalized groups.
As a result of our roundtable discussions, we have determined that education regarding micro-aggressions and implicit biases will be among our first initiatives of the 2021 – 2022 academic year. In the coming weeks, we will provide an asynchronous learning module for our leadership on micro-aggressions, subtle acts of exclusion and bias.
Phase 3, Communicating Progress to the Campus, is ongoing. Our DEI blog, Realize DEI, and podcast, Diversity in 3D, celebrate our shared cultural heritages and shares DEI-related news. In late January 2022, we are planning a DEI orientation program—an opportunity to update the campus on the status of efforts, and for community members to engage in discussion with DEI leadership on our strategic plan moving forward.
Phase 4, DEI Action Plan Analysis Phase, will be the release of our comprehensive strategic plan. We are looking forward to sharing a draft of the plan in January 2022, as well as welcoming your questions and suggestions, whether through our future forums, via email or in one-on-one conversations.
We look forward to a productive and transformative year at SVA and welcome all students, faculty and staff to contribute to our efforts. Our door is always open. For more information, visit sva.edu/dei or email diversity@sva.edu.