*Updated September 2024
The diversity, equity & inclusion strategic plan for Career & Professional Development ensures our services meet the unique needs of all stakeholder groups. In alignment with the unifying philosophy recently outlined by the Office for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, we will aim to have a holistic approach in these efforts inclusive of learning differences, sex, gender identity, gender expression, language, race, ethnicity, national origin, citizenship, disability, religion, spirituality, sexual orientation, and socioeconomic status as well as their intersectionalities as we develop this plan.
Through six months of stakeholder listening sessions, surveys, best practices research and data analysis we were able to identify themes for areas of emphasis in the coming three years that centered the voices of our diverse community. These listening sessions and themes have informed the goals outlined below.
Bold Goals to Achieve by 2025
Goal 1: Representation of Staff & Volunteers Develop tactical strategies to diversify the career staff and career volunteers with the goal to have a staff and volunteer composition that more closely matches the campus demographics by 2025.
Goal 2: Career Staff Training Create a staff training process that builds knowledge and confidence to fully integrate diversity, equity and inclusion principles and topics into all conversations, programs/events, initiatives, as well as career education resources and presentations.
Goal 3: Employer Training Program Create a comprehensive employer training program regarding diversity, equity & inclusion in recruiting in a campus environment including public recognition for those that meet a set training program and show organizational commitments.
Goal 4: Increase Financial Support for Experiential Learning In partnership with Advancement and national organizations, develop a strategy for increasing funds available for internships, research, campus employment, and similar high impact experiences.
Goal 5: Campus Integration with Diverse Communities Ensure a clearly defined liaison model for connecting with diverse campus communities and leverage liaison relationships to co-create tailored programs when appropriate.
Goal 6: Tailored Marketing & Communication Develop a marketing strategy for communicating to diverse audiences and ensure current marketing and communication efforts are infused with inclusive messages.
The goals outlined above will be addressed in phases over the next three years. On the following page, we have outlined explicit action items for year one and deadlines for completion. Staff will integrate the below goals into their annual performance plans as goals for the coming year to ensure accountability and progress toward goals. For questions about any of these goals, please contact career@du.edu.
| Goal 1: Increase Representation of Staff & Volunteers | |
| Action Item: | Deadline: |
| Host quarterly staff meeting discussion to increase the visibility of our team’s work to the national community. | Completed 9/21 & Ongoing |
| Ensure all staff attend key campus diversity trainings; create 4 Winds digital screens celebrating the names of staff that have attended. | Completed 6/22 & Ongoing |
| Create a DEI speakers bureau that includes professional development training for student & alumni volunteers. | Ongoing |
| Completed 6/24 | |
| Have a quarterly staff meeting discussion to increase the visibility of our team’s work to the national community. | Completed 9/21 & Ongoing |
| Ensure all staff attend key campus diversity trainings; create 4 Winds digital screens celebrating the names of staff that have attended. | Completed 6/22 & Ongoing |
| Completed 6/22 | |
| Assess volunteer engagement with CPD and identify opportunities for incorporating inclusive practices. | Winter 2023 |
| Investigate with HRIC the diversity of our applicant pools and if there is a place in the hiring process where we are losing our diverse candidates. | Spring 2023 |
| Winter/Spring 2023 |
| Goal 2: Career Staff Training | |
| Action Item: | Deadline: |
| Lead small group discussions, with at least 1 topic per quarter, Fall – Spring, consisting of both virtual and in-person options. | Completed 9 Sessions Total as of June 2024 |
| Organize one training per quarter, Fall – Spring, bringing in an external expert. | Completed 3 Trainings Total as of June 2024 |
| Goal 3: Employer Training Program | |
| Action Item: | Deadline: |
| Promote resource for employers to navigate diversity recruitment and hiring through an inclusive approach and continue to provide resources via website and newsletter. | Completed |
| Survey and engage employers to determine topics of interest for training and DEI engagement. | Completed |
| Develop and launch employer orientations for employers to learn about how to recruit a diverse student population and navigate the recruitment process on-campus. | Completed |
| Create and implement a reverse career fair and networking event for identity-based student organizations and employers. Created website resource for employer preparation. Develop content and format for employer training and engagement. Document employer engagement (DEI survey response (y/n), training attendance, event attendance) in PCO. | Completed Ongoing Ongoing |
| Goal 4: Increase Financial Support for Experiential Learning | |
| Action Item: | Deadline: |
| Finish defining “Experiential Learning” in DU terms. | Completed FY 24 |
| Work to determine funding that can be allocated to experiential learning. | Completed FY 24 |
| Review additional resources for uConnect listings and Experiential Learning Definitions. | Completed FY 24 |
| Pilot outreach to students who have not yet reported internships, highlighting benefits of internship participation, pathways to finding internships, and existing funding sources. | Completed FY 24 |
| Research financial aid context regarding internship course tuition and stipends. | Completed FY 24 |
| Support Advancement priorities around this work. | Completed FY 24 |
| Consider logistics to support additional funded internships. | Completed FY 24 |
| Goal 5: Campus Integration with Diverse Communities | |
| Action Item: | Deadline: |
| Audit/inventory list of diverse student groups and departments on campus. | Completed |
| Define scope of liaison relationship: clarify this goal’s connection to current liaison models in CPD. | TBD |
| Goal 6: Tailored Marketing & Communication | |
| Action Item: | Deadline: |
| Centralize resource lists and policies for DEI communications and share with the CPD team. | Completed, Year 1 |
| Aggregate campus communication channels to reach diverse students. | Completed, Year 1 |
| Audit existing standard messages (i.e. PCO, handouts, overhead slides, email templates, flyer templates, videos) to identify areas for (continuous) improvement. | Completed, Year 2 |
| Define policies, best practices, and standards. | Completed Year 3 |
| Share defined policies, best practices, and standards with CPD team. Create onboarding and training materials for communications coordinator role with DEI lens | Completed Year 3 Completed Year 3 |
