Focused on creating just societies through strategic planning
NEXT: 2020–2027, RISD’s seven-year strategic plan, includes among its three pillars a commitment to shaping just societies. In charting a path for RISD that upholds SEI-based principles, this pillar of the strategic plan provides an institutional foundation for advancing new and ongoing initiatives focused on racial justice.
Expanded scope and reach of Center for Social Equity and Inclusion
Founded in 2019, the Center for Social Equity and Inclusion supports faculty search committees; onboarding, mentoring and retention of faculty; the SEI action plans of RISD’s academic departments; an ongoing series of workshops and public lectures; and several other forms of co-curricular engagement.
The center has since expanded its research program with two new SEI Research and Teaching Fellows; integrated student leadership programming with the Office of Intercultural Student Engagement; launched the Office of Institutional Discrimination and TItle IX; and hired eight student workers as SEI advocates in a variety of roles that span research, community outreach, marketing and media and special projects.
Increased diversity of and access to Health and Wellness
In 2019 RISD integrated the programming, service models and facilities of Health Services and Counseling and Psychological Services to establish a more holistic approach to care and wellness on campus. In that time Health Services has expanded its team to 75% BIPOC staff and Counseling and Psychological Services to 80% BIPOC staff and continues to work on caseload allocation and management to ensure students have access to counselors and clinicians of color.
Supported community through new Office of Institutional Discrimination and Title IX
Launched in fall 2020, the centralized Office of Institutional Discrimination and Title IX provides community members with resources and support around all issues of bias and discrimination through a consistent and specialized civil rights process, with oversight from the Center for SEI and in partnership with Human Resources and Student Affairs.
Redirected Public Safety funds to support increased training
The Department of Public Safety (DPS) has suspended its Peace Officer initiative and redirected funds toward training in SEI-related competencies. As of May 2021, all officers have completed at least 12 hours of training in the following areas:
- Bias-based policing
- Prejudice, bias and hate crime
- LGBTQ+ cultural competency
All DPS staff have been re-certified in the Mental Health first aid. These training programs will be part of an annual training cycle.
RISD is also working with Margolis Healy and Associates, experts in higher education public safety, to consult with DPS to ensure that its mission and role, orientation and strategy, operations, policies and practices meet industry standards and best practices in order to continue to create a safe campus environment. The consultation will occur within an SEI framework to ensure that all policies, processes and practices are free from bias and in alignment with RISD’s SEI goals. We expect this work to be completed by September 2021.
Developed a land acknowledgment for institution-wide use
After two years of research and relationship building, RISD has developed a land acknowledgment for institution-wide use as a first step toward honoring the original occupants of College Hill. Land acknowledgments are only a first step toward honoring the original occupants of a place and demonstrating recognition of how systemic and institutional systems of power have oppressed Indigenous peoples. RISD is also working to build real, authentic relationships with Indigenous people of the Narragansett Tribe in Rhode Island, as well as to critically interrogate the fraught history and institutional structures of the college and museum.
Prioritized partnerships with BIPOC- and woman-owned businesses
RISD worked with Dun & Bradstreet to analyze our supplier database and spend. Approximately 50 percent of the suppliers they were able to obtain socioeconomic information for are small businesses; however only 1.35 percent of the suppliers are classified as owned by persons of color. We are instituting an ongoing supplier assessment to understand our vendor relationships and to monitor progress. This includes purchasing a supplier onboarding tool, developing reports through this system and Workday, and working with WB Mason and Amazon to provide information on suppliers through their services. RISD is also working with the Boston Consortium to develop common standards and monitoring tools for its member institutions. In addition, RISD Procurement Services is also:
- developing a "Mission and Vision" statement to include its commitment to inclusion and diversity principles in the RISD procurement process.
- developing a Procurement Handbook that will guide RISD-approved spenders on how to search for small, BIPOC/woman-owned and disadvantaged suppliers while reviewing options.
- working to update RISD’s general purchasing guidelines to include small, BIPOC/woman-owned and disadvantaged suppliers on requests for proposals (RFPs).
- increasing its role in consulting with RISD purchasers looking to increase their spend with small, BIPOC/woman-owned and disadvantaged suppliers.
- working with SupplyRI as an anchor institution to increase the local procurement of goods and services from local small, BIPOC/woman-owned and disadvantaged suppliers.
Created accountability and ownership for SEI across senior leadership
The members of RISD’s senior management who sit on the President’s Cabinet have been deeply involved in the creation of RISD’s inaugural 2017 SEI Plan, the institutional strategic plan and the most recent 2020 SEI Plan Phase II. As part of RISD’s commitment to social equity and inclusion, senior leaders are dedicated to embedding this work within their divisions while also continually expanding their own knowledge and capacities to further lead inclusive change at the institution. To do so, each member of cabinet has been engaged in a year-long series of professional development workshops and is currently conducting an intensive area assessment to aid in developing a strategic plan for leading SEI advancement in their division, under the guidance and consultation of social justice education expert Marta Esquilin.
Acknowledged histories of on-campus racism, activism and protest
In direct response to a demand from risdARC, over the spring the Center for SEI, RISD Archives and RISD Marketing & Communications, in consultation with Aya Alghanmeh 21 IL, Felicita Devlin 21 TX, Jaleel Porcha 21 PH and Joshua Coverdale 22 FAV, worked to digitize and present materials that originated from students, employees and the institutional record. The RISD Activism page on this site now provides highlights of these untold stories and unsung advocates as part of RISD’s complex history, and chronicles the history of student activism, including recent Black- and BIPOC-led movements, through the presentation of archival materials. Because it is a living document, new information will be uploaded regularly, through the hiring of a new, dedicated SEI Archives Research Graduate Assistantship.
Encouraged dialogue on race and privilege through staff training program
Under the training leadership of Chimi Boyd-Keyes, who also worked with managers and supervisors across the institution, RISD has established a “train the trainer” program that has engaged 25 participating staff members. After utilizing Ms. Keyes' guidance to create a foundation of knowledge, the group has now progressed to guided SEI conversations using videos, short essays, articles, podcasts, and other resources to provide a framework for dialogue with the goals of increased cultural humility, curiosity, and competence in order to begin learning how to facilitate these conversations.
Updated RISD’s family leave policy to expand eligibility and paid time off
Starting February 1, 2021, RISD implemented a new family leave policy that allows eligible employees up to nine weeks of paid time off to care for and bond with their newly born infant, adopted minor or fostered child. Paid family leave benefits are offset by benefits received under RISD’s supplemental short‐term disability program. The policy does not affect an employee’s eligibility for Rhode Island Temporary Disability Insurance (RITDI) or Rhode Island Temporary Caregiver Insurance (RITCI). This updated policy increases the ability of RISD families to balance the needs of the workplace and home.
Adopted Juneteenth as an annual, observed holiday
RISD will formally incorporate Juneteenth (June 19)—an annual holiday commemorating the end of slavery in the US—into the academic calendar and will also offer programming and educational resources for RISD community members. Juneteenth is an annual holiday commemorating the end of enslavement in the US. For many, this day symbolizes the continued ways in which freedom has been delayed for Black individuals and communities as ongoing forms of systemic and institutional racism persist.
Created an inclusive language guide for campus communicators
An inclusive language guide is now posted as part of the RISD Communications Guide. Created by RISD’s Marketing & Communications office with input from many colleagues across campus, the guide provides direction for communicating about identity and diversity using language that is respectful, aware and anti-discriminatory. Learn more (RISD login required).
