| Overall Rating | Silver |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 64.57 |
| Liaison | Sherri Mason |
| Submission Date | June 14, 2023 |
Penn State Erie, The Behrend College
PA-6: Assessing Diversity and Equity
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.00 / 1.00 |
Andy
Herrera Director Educational Equity and Diversity |
Has the institution engaged in a structured assessment process during the previous three years to improve diversity, equity and inclusion on campus?:
A brief description of the assessment process and the framework, scorecard(s) and/or tool(s) used:
In February 2020, Penn State University launched the Community Survey as part of ongoing efforts to promote community, inclusion and diversity on campus, and to support Penn State’s strategic priorities in these areas. Input from students and employees was gathered revolving around six priority topic areas including:
1. Belonging and inclusion;
2. Institutional commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion;
3. Engaging across difference;
4. Cultural competence and knowledge;
5. Experiences with stereotyping, microaggressions, and harassment; and
6. Off-campus contexts.
Based on these priority areas, the working group chose the Higher Education Data Sharing Consortium’s (HEDS) Diversity and Equity Campus Climate Survey. This survey was further adapted and customized to better address the specific context and needs of Penn State. The online survey was administered independently by HEDS and sent to all Penn State students and employees in Spring 2020. Over 20,000 responses were collected, yielding an overall University response rate of 17%.
Does the assessment process address campus climate by engaging stakeholders to assess the attitudes, perceptions and behaviors of employees and students, including the experiences of underrepresented groups?:
Does the assessment process address student outcomes related to diversity, equity and success?:
Does the assessment process address employee outcomes related to diversity and equity?:
A brief description of the most recent assessment findings and how the results are used in shaping policy, programs, and initiatives:
Seventy-nine percent of respondents reported being satisfied with the overall climate on their campus; 8% were dissatisfied. Double that proportion (17%) of Black respondents expressed dissatisfaction, as did 22% of non-binary, gender nonconforming, and genderqueer respondents. Incorporating respondent roles into analysis reveals that 30% of Black executives and administrators, as well as 31% of Black faculty and postdocs were dissatisfied with overall campus climate. Across all racial/ethnic groups more than one in ten faculty (12%) expressed similar negative sentiments.
Sixty-nine percent of respondents expressed satisfaction with the experience or environment regarding diversity on their campuses; another 12% were dissatisfied, including almost half (45%) of Penn State’s Black employees, and a third (32%) of Penn State’s Black students. Overall, White respondents viewed their diversity experience more positively than any other racial/ethnic group, and dissatisfaction varied by race/ethnicity from 9% of White respondents to 36% among Black respondents. Intersecting respondents’ roles and their race/ethnicity reveals the substantial dissatisfaction expressed by several other groups including 56% of Black and 33% of Latinx faculty. Almost a third (31%) of non-binary, gender nonconforming, and genderqueer respondents were likewise dissatisfied.
Seventy percent of respondents reported being satisfied with the extent to which they personally experience a sense of belonging or community on their campus, while 13% were dissatisfied. Across roles, undergraduate students and executives/administrators were most satisfied (73% and 77%, respectively); faculty/postdocs (15%), postdocs (15%) and graduate students (15%) expressed the greatest dissatisfaction. Thirty percent of Black, as well as 19% of people identifying with two or more races, 18% of Middle Eastern, 17% of Latinx, and 15% of indigenous respondents were dissatisfied. Likewise, 27% of non-binary, gender nonconforming, and genderqueer respondents reported dissatisfaction. Among employees, 37% of Black respondents expressed dissatisfaction.
Fifty-eight percent of respondents reported being satisfied with the extent to which they felt all community members experience a sense of belonging or community on their campus; 16% reported being dissatisfied, including 35% of Black respondents. Further, 48% of Penn State’s Black employees reported dissatisfaction, as did over half (53%) of Black, women employees. Overall, 35% of non-binary, gender nonconforming, and genderqueer respondents were dissatisfied as well.
Additional trends across these four measures of climate, belonging, and inclusion can be revealed using the Community Survey dashboards. For example, dissatisfaction rate among non-binary, gender nonconforming, and genderqueer respondents was at least twice that among all respondents each of these items. Further, between 19% and 45% of Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian, Pansexual, Queer, and Questioning respondents expressed dissatisfaction at their campus experience regarding diversity, personal experience of belonging, and feeling that all community members experience belonging on campus. Across each of these four items, Queer respondents, in particular, expressed the highest levels of dissatisfaction.
Are the results of the most recent structured diversity and equity assessment shared with the campus community?:
A brief description of how the assessment results are shared with the campus community:
An email was sent to the campus community informing them about the creation and posting of a Community Survey Dashboard which provided data and information about the community survey's results.
Are the results (or a summary of the results) of the most recent structured diversity and equity assessment publicly posted?:
The diversity and equity assessment report or summary (upload):
Website URL where the diversity and equity assessment report or summary is publicly posted:
Website URL where information about the institution’s diversity and equity assessment efforts is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Penn State University's Office of Planning, Assessment, and Institutional Research (opair.psu.edu)
Penn State University's Office of Planning, Assessment, and Institutional Research (opair.psu.edu)
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.