Diversity Strategic Plan
Our strategic plan for diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility, in alignment with the university’s process, is built around long-term visionary goals for each of the university’s six vital strategies. The vital strategies are represented within three planning domains: people, process, and products.
Recruitment (people)
Goal: Discovering new sources of talent from broadly diverse talent pools.
Our strategy for recruiting diverse talent focuses on creating an inclusive and equitable environment that attracts individuals from various backgrounds and perspectives.
In order to actively engage with underrepresented groups, we will establish partnerships with diverse recognized student organizations, professional associations, and community groups. Our recruitment efforts will prioritize outreach and advertising in diverse platforms, including targeted social media campaigns, online job boards, and publications that cater to broadly diverse audiences.
Hiring and selection (people)
Goal: Selecting the best possible candidates to join the library and help us live our DEIA values.
We intentionally seek diverse perspectives for selection committees, interview panels, and search committees to further support diversity. To ensure all selection committees are well-versed in unconscious bias and equitable assessment techniques, we will continue incorporating bias interruption training in our hiring process.
Career advancement and retention (people)
Goal: Developing and preparing our colleagues to succeed in their current roles and to take the next step in their careers.
We will foster a welcoming and inclusive workplace culture by providing ongoing professional development opportunities. This includes implementing employee resource groups in the 2023-2024 academic year, as well as mentorship programs that promote the growth and success of diverse talent. We are also committed to retaining and developing broadly diverse staff and librarians by enhancing career pathways and improving our culture and climate in order to foster diversity.
Diversity, equity, and inclusion skill building (process and products)
Goal: Equipping our colleagues with skills and confidence to expertly navigate our workplace and engage each other with compassion, integrity, courage, trust, and empathy.
Our strategy for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) skill-building focuses on fostering a culture of awareness, education, and action. We are committed to building capacity for developing resources that facilitate continuous learning and growth in DEIA competencies, empowering library employees to contribute to an inclusive and equitable library climate and culture.
We will continue to evaluate current DEIA practices and identify areas for improvement. These findings will inform our development of tailored training programs and workshops to enhance employees' understanding of DEIA concepts, unconscious bias, anti-racism, and intercultural competence.
Collaborative partnerships with other campus units and third-party subject matter experts will be established to create a supportive and inclusive environment. Regular feedback mechanisms — such as surveys, open forums, and focus groups — will be implemented to gauge the effectiveness of the initiatives and identify emerging needs.
Climate enhancing activities (process and products)
Goal: Fostering environments and spaces in the library that facilitate a sense of belonging so all colleagues feel valued, safe, connected, and informed
We will focus on individual-level experiences and challenges related to workplace climate to ensure all employees feel included, respected, and safe (psychologically and physically) in our organization. This includes the ways library colleagues communicate their climate experiences and concerns to the library community and beyond. We strive to use community-informed practices to create, enhance, and maintain mechanisms, platforms, and spaces that value the voices of colleagues.
Pathways for conflict resolution (process and products)
Goal: Identifying library-specific and campus-wide resources for reporting concerns and encouraging students, faculty, and staff to report concerns for resolution.
We will develop effective pathways to conflict resolution by creating a culture of open communication and respect. We will work to foster an environment where individuals feel comfortable expressing their concerns and build tools and mechanisms for reporting concerns while building awareness of existing campus-wide tools for reporting.
Regular feedback mechanisms, such as the anonymous intranet feedback tool, will be implemented to encourage staff to share their experiences and identify potential conflicts early on.
Lastly, creating a supportive and inclusive environment that values diversity and promotes collaboration can significantly reduce the occurrence of conflicts. By implementing these strategies, we can effectively develop pathways to conflict resolution, enhancing employee well-being and productivity.
Strategic plan update
The 2021-22 academic year marked the conclusion of the library's 5-year strategic plan, known as DEI 1.0. It also marked the beginning of a year-long evaluation process to assess the content and actions from DEI 1.0.
Findings from the evaluation period will help guide a year-long planning phase for the library's next DEI strategic plan, which will happen in alignment with the university's process (DEI 2.0). The second 5-year initiative will launch in October of 2023.
Read about the progress we made in our DEI 1.0 Story.