Executive Summary Affirmative Action

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Executive Summary Affirmative Action
Diversity Plan

• Workforce as of 8/31/06
• Activities from 8/31/05 to 8/30/06

Prepared by Cami Zawacki, Ph.D. HR AA
Strategies 616.540.8244 zawackic_at_hraastrategies.co
m
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Workforce Statistics

Diversity Initiatives
We are trapped in our history and our history is
trapped in us! James Baldwin
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GVSU WORKFORCEChange By Race Gender
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TOTAL WORKFORCE Race Ethnicity Breakdowns
Fall, 2001 to Fall, 2006
Five Yr Trend
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Workforce Force Comparisons Gender
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Workforce Comparisons Race and Ethnicity
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FACULTYGender Race/Ethnicity
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Doctorates Awarded2004
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Minority Students Enrollment Degrees Awarded
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Diversity in Higher Education

• Diversity improves teaching and learning, in and
  out of the classroom FOR ALL STUDENTS
• Students are exposed to multiple perspectives on
  a range of issues
• Students existing perspectives are challenged
• Students critical thinking and problem solving
  skills are strengthened
• From Coleman, Arthur, Diversity in Higher
  Education A Continuing Agenda Citizens
  Commission on Civil Rights

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Educational Responsibility

• Public education has successfully shifted the
  blame for the failure of schools to meet the
  needs of minority students onto the shoulders of
  the clients they purport to serve. They have
  pulled off the perfect crime, for they (public
  schools) can never be held accountable, since the
  reason for failure in school is said to be the
  fault of poor homes, cultural handicaps,
  linguistic deficiencies, and deprived
  neighborhoods. The fact that schools are geared
  primarily to serve monolingual, White,
  middle-class and Anglo clients is never
  questioned.
• Tomas A. Arciniega , 1977

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Employee GroupsBy Gender Race
August 30, 2006
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Applicants Hires Minorities
Nonminorities8/31/05 8/30/06
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Applicants Hires Females Males8/31/05
8/30/06
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Hires and Separations Race and Gender
2001 - 2006
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Hires and Separations Employee Groups 8/31/05
8/30/06
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Promotions Rates and Employment Rates08/31/05 to
08/30/06
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Benchmarks

• 4 year public colleges universities - employees
• United States
• Michigan
• Student demographics
• United States
• Michigan
• Local (GR MSA) National (US) labor force stats
• Applicant, hire, separation, promotion rates
• ALSO
• Utilization analysis with availability s
  (local, state, national)
• GVSU diversity study

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Utilization Analysis and Employment Activities

• Patterns based on utilization activities
• Employment rates v. availability percents
• Hire separation rates
• Applicant flow rates
• Patterns based on multiple years
• Academic Affairs Division Diversity Planning
  (Deans)
• HR provides FYI data for search committees

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Another Benchmark2005 - GVSU Diversity Study

• Climate of Acceptance People of color, GLBT,
  and disabled are less likely to feel accepted
• Prevalence of Disparaging Remarks Most occur in
  informal conversations, mostly spoken by
  students, mostly about politics or religion
  although race, sexual orientation, gender, and
  English-speaking skill are also disparaged
• Negative Treatment People of color, GLBT, and
  disabled disproportionately experience this
• Commitment to Diversity People of color and GLBT
  are less likely to believe GVSU is committed to
  diversity

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Diversity Study Follow-up

• CONVERSATIONS held with representatives from the
  groups who indicated they were less likely to
  feel accepted at GVSU
• Predominant themes from these conversations were
  ACCESS and ACCOUNTABILITY
• Next steps
• DIVERSITY DIRECTORY for 1st year students
• BIAS INCIDENT PROTOCOL now in place

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GVSU Strategic Planning
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Strengths based on GVSU Workforce Changes

• In 5 years, GVSU has grown 28 larger
• First time in five years!!
• Minority separation rate BELOW their hire rate in
  all groups
• Percent of minority employees increased (12 to
  14)
• Percent of female employees increased (54 to
  55)
• Female faculty hire rate exceeds their
  application rate
• Minority hire rate nearly equals minority
  application rate, in all employee groups
• Promotion rate of females and minorities is
  proportionate to their current employment rate

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Challenges based on GVSU Workforce Changes

• Challenges
• Minorities continue to be employed at
  significantly lower rates than Mich US 4-year
  public universities (14 v 29 25)
• Deliberate ways of leadership to address and
  measuring climate issues and disparities so
  minority separation rate does not again exceed
  their hire rate

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Race-conscious or Race-neutral?

• If we are race blind or race neutral, then
• Few conversations about race occur while there
  may not be agreement on the best way to achieve
  greater diversity, coming to agreement that
  diversity in higher education is both of
  educational and economic importance is
  imperative
• Limited in cultural competencies if white
  privilege continues to be a taboo subject, then
  distorted realities cloud leaders judgment
• White blindness creates a false sense of security
  a shift from us and them thinking to we
  thinking is needed

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Valuing Diversity

• Reasons for being race-conscious?
• Demographic
• Majority of new entrants to the labor force will
  be people of color, women and immigrants
• Is this a threat?
• Moral/Ethical
• the right thing to do
• Controversial? affirmative action at the
  expense of others?
• Business human interests
• Compelling to everyone
• CQI a quality initiative
• Tangible gains for everyone

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Valuing Diversity Pitfalls

• Dont dummy down valuing diversity does not
  mean compromising quality or standards
• Use your workforce demographics to have honest
  and genuine discussions about troubling patterns
• Dont just react save time, energy and by
  being proactive rather than reactive

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Discussing Racism

• Discussions and debates about racism create
  anxiety and conflict which are handled
  differently by different cultural groups. For
  example, whites tend to fear open discussion of
  racial problems because they believe that such
  discussion will stir up hard feelings and old
  hatreds. Whites tend to believe that heated
  arguments about racism lead to divisiveness, loss
  of control, bitter conflict, and even violence.
  Blacks, on the other hand, believe that
  discussion and debate about racism help to push
  racial problems to the surface and perhaps,
  force society to deal with them.
• Gerald Pine and Asa Hilliard (1990)

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GVSU Annual Report on Affirmative Action
Diversity
Questions? Comments?
Racism will not perpetuate if those with power
choose to reconstruct the power systems to a
broader base