An Ongoing Effort, A Steadfast Approach
As we transition into Year Two of DEI 2.0, we are energized by the many accomplishments of the prior year.
The campuswide plan that informs the work of the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion serves as an umbrella for the individual plans created by all of our schools, colleges, student life, athletics, health system, and administrative units—a total of 51 units. As such, this document reflects our shared aspirations as well as our understanding that, while talent may be present everywhere, opportunity is not.
As with the university’s overarching plan, the 51 individual unit plans are intended to:
- Affirm our shared values
- Build on past efforts
- Encourage individual and collective action
- Promote transparency and accountability at every level
- Acknowledge our shortcomings
The Work Continues: Building on a Solid Foundation
The projects and progress described in this report represent a continued effort and reflect the efforts of our campus community to build on the vast amount of work already done and the change already achieved. Above all, DEI 2.0 plans reflect the determination of university leaders and the campus community to move our vision forward and create an increasingly diverse, equitable, and inclusive academic environment.
DEI 2.0 continues to build on and improve successful and promising programs and practices developed by the U-M campus community as a part of the initial DEI strategic plan. For example, U-M recently increased financial support to the GoBlue Guarantee program to enhance affordability and access to more students from low-income and first-generation backgrounds. This past year, academic outreach and pipeline programs like Wolverine Pathways increased 4-year college admission for Michigan high school students from underserved, under-resourced communities. The strategies for improving racial/ethnic diversity in student enrollment are coming to fruition, increasing representation of students of color at U-M across all groups, with marked improvements for U-M’s most underrepresented groups. At the same time, the university is supporting retention and success - improving graduation rates for all groups and reducing group disparities in graduation. This is a sampling of many of the gains that have been actualized for our community as a result of our collective DEI efforts. This year’s report further illuminates progress on specific actions and outcomes undertaken during Year One of DEI 2.0.
As in the past, this report contains summaries and capsule progress from 51 campuswide units, each of which has developed its own DEI plan and its own set of objectives. In addition, units across campus—individually and in unison—are engaged in 21 university-wide initiatives known as Central Action Items (CAIs).
This report focuses on progress made toward both unit and campuswide goals. However, it is important to keep in mind that despite sometimes notable progress, the fact remains that the work itself—the work of making diversity, equity, and inclusion an integral part of every function within the university—is an ongoing continuous effort and will never be completed.
The University of Michigan has long understood that excellence is not possible without a truly and authentically diverse community and that we can make our greatest contribution to the creation of new knowledge by building an environment in which all our members are able to flourish.
The effort continues.
Overarching Goals of the DEI 2.0 Planning Process:
- Build on the achievements of DEI 1.0
- Deepen and broaden campuswide collaboration on DEI issues
- Create more focused and targeted initiatives
- Ensure stronger grassroots engagement
- Encourage a sense of ownership among all campus stakeholders in the university’s ongoing commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion
Insights regarding our approach to executing the plan
The goals and major campuswide actions and progress presented throughout this report have emerged from and reflect the common foci of the 51 unit plans. They are intended to support and enhance the plans by concentrating on areas where centrally coordinated and supported initiatives will be most effective. Those areas include:
- Providing necessary infrastructure for unit plans to succeed
- Consolidating common efforts identified across unit plans
- Undertaking initiatives that can be conducted only at a university-wide scale
Ultimately, the outcomes found in this progress report are a result of our determined efforts to advance our three-part goal of diversity, equity and inclusion. While distinct, the goals are both synergistic and overlapping, and thus strategies to support them also overlap. Likewise, many specific action steps outlined here, while listed under one strategy, may also serve other strategies. By way of example, a specific recruitment effort will likely improve climate and vice versa.
While each new campuswide action designates an accountable office, these are by no means the only entities that will be involved in the work. Each new campuswide undertaking welcomes contributions from all who feel called to participate and depends on strong collaboration across many offices and individuals.
At the heart of the university's mission to ensure progress lies an extensive reporting and evaluation process, performed meticulously each year. Self-reported data for each plan is carefully assessed to address each unit’s personalized approaches tailored specifically to their needs. As the data is gathered and analyzed, it illuminates the pathways leading to the success within the primary goal areas: People, Process, and Products. Together, these collective efforts and insights form the backbone of the university's journey toward sustained and holistic progress.
In addition to this progress report spotlighting new programs and initiatives, this report also encompasses a wide range of existing diversity-, equity- and inclusion-related efforts in which the university continues to invest.
As in the past, all strategies and actions presented in this report have been implemented in accordance with the law and university policy.