Southwestern University

Progress on DIBE Initiatives

In February 2023 members of Southwestern’s Black Student Union (BSU) provided the University with a list of proposals and initiatives aimed at advancing diversity, inclusion, belonging, and equity (DIBE) on campus. The section below is a progress report on items from the BSU list as well as other initiatives being implemented or planned by the University. Please check back regularly for updates.

Student-Requested Initiatives and Actions Taken by Southwestern

Initiative Actions Taken

Fund additional surveillance cameras in/around first-year residence halls.

  • Complete. Approximately 40 surveillance cameras operate on campus. New cameras are installed around campus, including a minimum of one camera on every first-year residential floor. 

Complete Student Life’s “bias response protocol and team.”

  • Complete. Dean of Students Shelley Story led of a workgroup to create a report detailing “bias response protocols and a team.” The report was completed on May 4. A reporting webpage has been completed as the first step.

Create an anonymous survey including questions, “How can the University better support you?” and “Do you feel safe where you are living?” Act on the thematic recommendations registered in the surveys.

  • Complete. DIBE questions were included in the advising survey in order to have a high response rate.
  • Assessment results have been documented.

Announce to the community the range of sanctions possible for violations of our bias policies.

  • Complete. The Student Handbook was revised in summer 2023. It outlines all possible sanctions for violations of University policy, and prohibits “Engaging in misconduct as described in this Code and that is determined to be motivated by bias or prejudice; this will result in more severe sanctions.”

Offer rewards for information identifying persons responsible for bias incidents.

  • Complete. Although not a student request, the University will offer rewards for students who come forward with information identifying persons responsible for bias incidents. For more information about the rewards, contact Dean of Students Shelley Story or Coordinator of First-year Housing Autumn Lange.

Repeatedly announce Southwestern’s core values and beliefs on flyers and posters in all residence halls.

  • Complete. Although not a student request, on Feb. 22, 2023, flyers were posted in Residence Halls and messaging was added to campus digital signage that included Southwestern’s core values. 

Create a telephone tip line for anonymous reporting of bias violations.

  • Complete. An existing whistleblower hotline was more broadly marketed to ensure the SU community knows it can be used to report bias incidents. Tip Line: 1.866.943.5787

Create an expanded and more centralized operating space for the JEDI Center.

  • In progress. Senior Staff has secured space on the third floor of the McCombs Campus Center to expand the JEDI Center once the Bookstore moves to the first floor. Space planning in progress. 

Create a reporting structure for acts of intolerance, including a clear set of guidelines for student understanding.

Hire a Vice President for Student Success and Belonging.

Invite faculty and staff to hold classroom discussions regarding race and ethnicity. 
  • Southwestern University’s core values include fostering diverse perspectives, respecting the worth and dignity of persons and promoting activism in the pursuit of justice. Southwestern requires all students to complete one course that provides them an opportunity to understand how difference is used in the maintenance of structures of power (e.g. institutions, discourses, etc.) and inequality, as well as the activism in which people engage to promote social justice.
  • Students taking an FYS or AES class will be required to attend the module “The Return of the JEDI–Learning how to build inclusive environments” during Welcome Week. The module discusses how Southwestern is home to people of countless cultures and identities. Join the Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) Center for fun games and critical conversations about building a safe and welcoming campus.
Continue staging panels, student support groups, campus gatherings, and speakers regarding marginalized populations such as queer and gender non-conforming students, BIPOC students and religious minorities.

  • The Counseling and Health Center currently hosts weekly support groups, facilitated by psychotherapists and health educators, for Students of Color and students who identify as Trans or Gender Non-Conforming.

  • The Health Education Team collaborates with the Race and Ethnicity Studies program to facilitate student, staff and faculty panels of racial disparities on campus.

  • The Center for Integrative Learning developed Diversity Study Abroad 101 session in collaboration with the JEDI Center
  • The Center for Integrative Learning Developed “Study Abroad is for everyone” campaign (myth busters)
  • Dream Week is the honor of the life and achievements of civil-rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. Southwestern University celebrates annually with educational and cultural events sponsored by the Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI), the Race and Ethnicity Studies Program, and the Division of Student Life.
  • Organized Hispanic and Latine Heritage Month Celebration
  • Organized Race and Ethnicity Studies and Latin American Border Studies Symposia

Expand current micro-fundraising efforts for POC student organizations.

  • In 2024–25, 20 gifts, totalling $1,903.40 were raised for the JEDI Center.
  • Funded the Hispanic Student Success Coordinator poition ($200K)
Provide training and education for faculty, staff, and students in diversity, equity, and inclusion.

For Students


  • Complete. JEDI Center hosts monthly DIBE training for students.
  • Mandatory diversity, inclusion, belonging, and equity, (DIBE) 60-minute workshop module for all incoming students during Welcome Week.  
  • Student-athletes receive diversity training from their SAAC groups. 

For Faculty & Staff

  • JEDI Center professional staff offers volunteer DIBE training for new-employees 
  • Dr. Alicia Moore has been conducting department climate training with departments that have entering faculty of color as part of the race, ethnicity, and social justice thematic hire initiative.
  • Student Life employees (including University Police), resident assistants, orientation leaders, and student employees (including Resident Assistants, Orientation Leaders, and MOSAIC Ambassadors) receive training in bias response.
  • Human Resources has created a committee to review faulty and staff training efforts.
  • Title IX Coordinator Katie Rallojay is reviewing the content for the annual online training related to diversity and inclusion.
  • Athletic coaches and administrators receive annual diversity training from their conventions, conferences, regional rules gatherings. 
  • Provided Training and Education for faculty, staff, and students in diversity, equity, and inclusion.
  • Webinar with Dr. Nancy Chick on Backward Design for classes in Social Justice and Race and Ethnicity Studies.
  • Development of Materials and Resources for faculty to lead discussions regarding DEI issues.
  • Supported LACRELA “Engaging Equity Live” Webinars conversations with Faculty and Staff.
  • Included training/education in the Faculty Leader Health and Safety Workshop on May 14, 2024, regarding supporting diverse students abroad. Dr. Malissa Ismaila, Director of Student Inclusion & Diversity, and Dr. Rachel McNalley, Assistant Director of Counseling and Health Center, were participants.
  • Center for Teaching, Learning, and Scholarship Support through New Faculty Foundation

All

 

  • Civil Discourse and Inclusive Dialogue: Fostering a Thoughtful and Respectful Campus Culture began in Fall 2024
New Southwestern University staff hires will receive diversity information during their employee orientation.
  • Title IX Coordinator Katie Rallojay is reviewing the content for staff and faculty onboarding related to diversity and inclusion.
Hire an additional Counseling and Health Center graduate assistant to support DEI initiatives. 
  • Complete. A Southwestern alumna was hired to serve as a full-time counselor starting August 2023.
Create the “Pirates Credo” the expression of expected students’ behaviors during their undergraduate career.
Update the Undergraduate Student Code of Conduct to include procedures for handling proven bias violations.
  • Complete. The Dean of Students completed an update of the Student Code of Conduct. 

Make DEI a focus for students from the time they deposit to the moment they step on campus. 

  • New students were asked to complete an online DIBE course prior to Sprog. 84% compliance was achieved. 
  • Welcome week will include panels specifically aiding in the conversation of diversity and inclusion - with emphasis on antiracism and social justice. It will also include a student panel on how to treat faculty with respect and how to flourish and value the opportunity to live in a culturally, ethnically, and racially diverse community.
  • Welcome week will also include an involvement fair with sign-ups for clubs, intramurals, off-campus outdoor recreational trips, information about all sororities and fraternities, the JEDI Center, and the Student Government Association.
  • The Center for Integrative Learning collaborated with the Center for Career & Professional Development to recruit students to participate in the Houston Methodist DEI Summer Scholarship Program.

Encourage faculty retention through cluster hires, particularly for faculty of color.

  • Thematic Hires in Race, Ethnicity, and Social Justice focused in LatinX and Black Studies—seven new faculty entered in 2023-24 and six new faculty entered in 2022–23.

Organize a “President’s Corner” for all students.

  • President’s Corenrs are held each semester with President Trombley, Senior Staff, and Students. 

Healing Spaces workshop facilitated by Health and Counseling Staff in the JEDI Center

  • The Counseling and Health Education Team facilitated a “Healing Spaces” workshop for BIPOC students to help address the racial trauma, experienced first-hand or vicariously, and processing racial trauma with tangible action steps (breath work, tension release, and movement therapy).

Provide visual and written admissions materials and videos in Spanish.

  • In progress for the 2023–24 recruitment season. 

Creation of a new Diversity Website. 

  • Complete. The diversity website showcases our commitment to diversity, features initiatives, resources, and inspiring stories, and equips our community for inclusivity.

Expand the DIBE Coalition

  •  Complete. Creation of a DIBE Coalition comprising three committees for faculty, staff, and students on DEI issues. Committees meet once a semester to discuss goals, objectives, and tasks for the university.

Provide support and mentoring for diverse groups. 

  • Support and Mentoring for New Thematic Hires
  • Support via Wellacademic and FOC Connect
  • Provided Faculty of Color with Opportunities to Connect (Dinners, happy hours, mixers)
  • Amalia Merino, Hispanic Student Success Coordinator, and Jennifer Frias, Academic Success Coordinator, continue to offer programs and services to first-generation and Hispanic students through Captain’s Academy and LatinXcel that are designed to help students make connections with resources on campus and to feel a sense of belonging on campus.
  • Creation of a DEI Task Force led by Dr. Alicia Moore

Support DIBE academic and research initiatives.

  • Revised Social Justice tag designation process, with a new task force, rubric, and assessment mechanisms.
  • Reimagined SCOPE and FSP as summer research with students creating a more equitable and inclusive High Impact Experiences opportunity for all students and faculty.
  • Support for Faculty Development via Mellon, with over $500,000 in faculty development for programming and projects under the umbrella of publicly-engaged humanities for social justice.
  • Development of Certificate Programs with an emphasis on DEI work.
  • Expanded study-abroad opportunities with Colegio de Mexico.
   

Measures Previously Implemented

Initiative Actions Taken

Establish hiring policies and procedures throughout the University that prioritize DIBE and retention objectives as part of candidates’ qualifications in addition to expertise and credentials.

  • Job descriptions have been revised, and job advertisements have been strategically placed to increase diversity across leadership positions and in faculty/staff hires.
  •  Academic Affairs c

    reated a new search process where c

    comprehensive data collection at all stages of the process, and there are workshops and support for faculty involved. They also developed essential documents, including a search process document, DEI checklist, and exit document.

Find ways for FOC (Faculty of Color) to connect.

  • FOC (Faculty of Color) connect at the Associated Colleges of the South (ACS) and at SU—mentoring program for faculty of color (led by Associate Professor of Education Alicia Moore and Professor of Chemistry Maha Zewail-Foote) funded by ACS Mellon grant.

Build Diversity, Inclusion, Belonging, and Equity (DIBE) efforts into the structure and processes of Human Resources. 

  • Hired Southwestern’s first full-time Title IX coordinator, Katie Rallojay, in May 2022 who provides ongoing training and educational opportunities for faculty and staff related to sex discrimination.

  • For staff hires, HR now provides diversity training for staff search committees.

  • For faculty hires, diversity training is required for all search committee members. This has been successfully implemented for all ongoing search committees. 

Build DIBE efforts into the structure and processes of Academic Affairs.

 

  • Built DIBE Efforts into the Structure and Processes of Academic Affairs
  • Creation of DEI Documents in collaboration with DIBE and Dr. Alicia Moore (checklist for search committees, recruiting tips, resources for candidates).
  • Collection of Demographic Data regarding all candidates (entire pool, campus pool, and hires).
  • Development of Criteria for DEI work to be included in merit raises.
  • Establishment of Hiring Policies prioritizing DIBE and retention objectives as part of candidates’ qualifications in addition to expertise and credentials.
  • Revised Tenure and Promotion Guidelines to include public-facing scholarship, particularly work created for and by members of marginalized communities.

Build DIBE efforts into the structure and processes of Student Life.

 

  • New position was created, coordinator of student inclusion and diversity. 

Pursue Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) designation.

 

  • HSI designation given. 
  • Creation of campus-wide HSI Task Force led by Adrian Ramirez and Laura Senio Blair

  • ACS Mellon Fellow in the Humanities—Professor of Spanish Laura Senio Blair will begin a two-year appointment as Assistant Dean of Faculty Development and Strategic Initiatives with a focus on implementing HSI programming approved for 2023–24.

  • Five students attended the Hispanic Association of Colleges and University’s 36th Annual Conference: Adelante Leadership Institute on October 8-10, 2022.
  • Six students will also be attending the Hispanic Association of Colleges and University in October 2023, to demonstrate the continuous efforts to help build relationships, provide professional development, and encourage networking among the students.
  • Joined Excelencia in Education’s Presidents for Latino Student Success (P4LSS) program.
  • Through a grant from the Davis Family Foundation, translation receivers were purchased for campus events, providing a resource for Spanish-speaking attendees.

     

Join associations that promote diversity and inclusion. 

  • Joined:
    • Liberal Arts College Racial Equity Leadership Alliance
    • Hispanic Association of Colleges & Universities
    • President’s Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration
    • Excelencia in Education
    • Universities Studying Slavery Consortium
   

Supporting Documents