10/24/00 meeting 

*****        JPO welcomed folks to the Ramsey Center, thanked Mark Faust and Janette Hill for volunteering to be co-chairs of the MCTF, and introduced Dr. Kecia Thomas who attended our meeting to talk with us about the formative assessment report. 
*****        Dr. Thomas provided a summary of the report (the full report is now on our MCTF web site thanks to Tal Guy) by saying that issues around communication and professional development seemed to provide the most usable feedback.  Among the communication issues: 1)  there needs to be more communication about how the mission of and COE's values are related to diversity; 2)  we need more communication on role clarification of the MCTF; and, 3)  more credit needs to be shown and given for both college successes around diversity, and individual contributions to this initiative.  Related to professional development, the issues included:  1)  a possible orientation for new faculty and administrators in the COE related to our diversity mission/initiative; 2) planned workshops and seminars on topics such as managing conflict in the classroom, mentoring across demographic membership, how to write grants to support diversity work, infusing diversity into the curriculum, recruitment and retention of culturally diversity faculty, staff and students. 

*****        Following Dr. Thomas' presentation, the MCTF spent the remainder of the meeting largely talking about how to USE the information from the report.  Some of the issues we raised were:  the possible need for a more clear articulation from the Dean re: his expectations of our college around diversity; how to build involvement in diversity into performance assessment of administrators, faculty, staff -- where does this fit within the reward structure and is it in conflict with our "research 1 status... etc.... 

    Several ideas were forthcoming that could inform our intended development of "working groups"... 

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As John Dattilo put it --- we need to look at how to "take some ASSERTIVE STEPS"... and as others put it... look at how to take our diversity work to a different level by having it become more institutionalized within our college framework... 
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Therefore: 

    -    develop  a working group around the recruitment and retention issue -- Tarek Grantham is willing to help convene that group BUT OTHERS ARE NEEDED. 

    -    develop a working group to look at the existing structures in the college and how diversity can be more pervasive within those structures.  (Fleshing this out will be a focus of our 11/13/00 meeting) 

    -    develop a working group around the curriculum issues, e.g. getting the cultural diversity requirement implemented, etc.. 
  

*****        Pamela Orpinas shared with us her work with the faculty senate on developing Student Evaluations of Teaching.  This is clearly a place where issues related to diversity can play themselves out.  PLEASE READ Pam's email of recent and respond to her with your ideas. 

*****        Next meeting:    Monday 11/13/00 2:00 - 3:30 PM in Aderhold