DU continues to lag in both its recruitment and retention of minoritized faculty.ÌýThis action item, which will be ongoing throughout the 2020-2021 academic year, willÌýbuildÌýon current strengths and developÌýnew tools for university leaders to more aggressively diversify and retain our faculty. These opportunitiesÌýand toolsÌýinclude:Ìý
ContinuingÌýto build the university’s critical race and ethnic studies, gender and women studies, and urbanÌýstudiesÌýcurriculumsÌýwith commitments to Indigenous and Black community initiativesÌýby exploring the feasibility of cluster hiresÌýinÌýIndigenous and Black studiesÌýwith specializations in sexuality,ÌýurbanÌýand/or sustainabilityÌýstudies.Ìý
Developing a target of opportunity hiring initiative to aggressively hire faculty candidates, at any rank and in any discipline, who have an accomplished track record (calibrated to their career stage) of teaching, research,Ìýor service activities addressing the needs of African American, Latinx, Native American, and Asian Pacific Islander students or communities.
Investing substantively in growing on- or off-campus initiatives (such as becoming an institutional member of the National Center for Faculty Development) to provide professional development, training, and formalized mentorship opportunities for minoritized faculty to support their promotion, tenure, and pathwaysÌýto academic leadership.
Lisa Martinez, assistant provost for DEI research and curricular initiatives, is working with the ProvostÌýand her office to develop a Target of Opportunity Hiring Policy for the University, a cluster hiring proposal in Black and Indigenous studies, and for greater support for minoritized faculty to engage more robustly in opportunities provided by the .
The ºÚÁÏÃÅ today announced it’s one of 19 universities joining a three-year institutional change effort to develop inclusive faculty recruitment, hiring, and retention practices. The Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) co-leads the effort, known asÌý. The new cohort joinsÌýÌýÌýcohorts that are currently working together to advance such work, bringing the total number of institutions participating in the institutional change effort to 54. The National Science Foundation funds the effort as part of its INCLUDES initiative.