All-student survey seeks to assess campus climate on DEI

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The University of Michigan will launch an all-student survey designed to gauge the climate regarding diversity, equity and inclusion on the Ann Arbor campus.

The survey will be open to students beginning this week and will be conducted by SoundRocket, an independent survey research firm based in Ann Arbor. Students will receive a separate email from SoundRocket with a link to the survey.

Part of the university’s five-year DEI strategic plan, the survey is intended to help schools, colleges and units create a baseline for measuring climate in their local environments. Earlier surveys were open to all faculty and staff on the Ann Arbor campus.

“We hope that faculty and staff will encourage students to participate in this important survey,” says Robert Sellers, chief diversity officer and vice provost for equity and inclusion.

The survey will help the university develop statistics for measuring the campus climate that can be repeated across time to measure progress toward established goals. It also will provide insight into key climate issues that warrant a deeper level of assessment.

Completely confidential and voluntary, the web-based survey will include questions that provide students the opportunity to share their perspectives, opinions and experiences associated with diversity, equity and inclusion on campus, as well as questions about demographic and background characteristics.

It will take about 15 minutes to complete. No one at the university will have access to any identifiable information from participants.

Sellers oversaw a similar sample survey that was administered to 3,500 students, 1,500 faculty members and 3,500 staff members this fall in order to collect university-level data.

The all-student census survey differs from the sampling effort because it is open to all undergraduate and graduate students at the university.

The all-student survey findings will remain open through Dec. 8. Findings will be available by spring 2018.

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Comments

  1. chris behr
    on November 14, 2017 at 1:29 pm

    No one has a right nor should anyone entertain the thought of harassing someone else – PERIOD. Just because someone’s beliefs are different than yours is no excuse for not being polite and courteous. That said, I am finding a disturbing trend among those calling for inclusion from others, to severely violate that inclusion by not giving it in return. Everyone has a right to believe others will treat them fairly; it is not reasonable to expect others to celebrate your lifestyle when it is in stark contrast to their own moral values and ideals. In this world there will be many you disagree with, but these lives are just as important as your own. Respect works both ways!

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