Chancellor's Open Letter on Diversity
December 19, 2000
I write this "open letter" in response to the report submitted by the Chancellor's Advisory Committee on Diversity at the beginning of this academic year. I appointed this committee last year to help develop a strategy to deal with the decline in the percentages of women and underrepresented minorities being hired for faculty positions, and in the light of increasing difficulties in recruiting and retaining a diverse staff.
The committee included a diverse group of faculty, staff, students, regents, and community members and was chaired by the dean of the Goldman School of Public Policy, Michael Nacht. It was charged with the task of examining the reasons for the decline in faculty and staff diversity and making a set of recommendations that would serve as a base for reversing the decline. The committee's report is attached.
In examining the current state of affairs, the committee identified several factors as contributing to the decline. Of course, Proposition 209 and Regent's resolutions SP-1 and SP-2 have had an impact both at the substantive and the symbolic level. Substantively, a major impact on faculty diversity has been the elimination of the target of opportunity (TOP) that provided a material incentive for departments to diversify. Symbolically, these legislative actions have helped to create a national perception that UC Berkeley in particular, and California in general, are not supportive environments for women and minority faculty. It is difficult to measure what impact this perception has had on our efforts to attract a diverse pool of candidates for each faculty position. Moreover, it is clear that Proposition 209 and SP-1 and SP-2 have created a great deal of ambiguity about what departments and the administration can and cannot do to promote faculty and staff diversity. Finally, the report cites the need for an attitudinal change at the faculty level. It argues that Berkeley faculty need to regard diversity as an integral part of academic excellence, rather than a compromise with academic excellence, if the University is to achieve its full potential as a land-grant institution and leading public university.
The committee offers four sets of recommendations in the following areas: organizational change, accountability, education and training, and data collection and analysis. Throughout the fall semester, the administration has been working to implement the committee's recommendations in an efficient and effective manner.
Organizational change: We agree that responsibility for faculty and staff recruitment and retention needs to be better coordinated and needs additional resources. We believe, however, that this coordination is best done through a reorganization of the Office of Faculty Equity Assistance (FEA) rather than the creation of an additional layer of bureaucracy at the Vice Chancellor level. The Faculty Equity Associate now reports directly to the Chancellor (and is included in the Chancellor's Cabinet) on matters of policy, while continuing to work with the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs on academic personnel matters. In addition, the FEA office will be strengthened with additional professional staff support.
Accountability: As a first step in emphasizing the need for a broadly shared accountability, we have requested that each department perform a self-assessment of its efforts to diversify faculty over the past five years. These evaluations will be a factor in the allocation of FTE requests for the coming year. In addition, all decanal searches will now be reviewed by the FEA office to make certain that every effort is made to have a representative pool of candidates.
Education and Training: Diversity training is now part of the annual retreat for deans and department chairs. The FEA office has produced a new search committee manual, which includes best practices and resource lists that is sent to all department and search committee chairs. It also sends data on recent women and minority graduates (at the sub-field level) to search committees for junior positions. Each new hire is now receiving a packet of information concerning resources and the tenure process. This packet supplements the annual workshops on the tenure process for junior faculty conducted by the Vice Provost.
In spring 2000, a pilot program was launched in the College of Engineering that was highly successful. Interactive theater was used as a tool to increase faculty awareness of diversity issues. Plans are underway to expand this program to the entire campus.
On January 25, UC Berkeley will host for the first time the annual system-wide meeting of the Coordinating Committees on the Status of Women. These committees are the only fora in which issues of concern to women are discussed by faculty, staff and students. A highlight of this year's meeting will be an address on women in science by Professor Nancy Hopkins of MIT. Breakout sessions will also provide an opportunity for training and brainstorming on women's issues.
Data Collection and Analysis: The administration believes that a climate survey addressing attitudes and issues concerning women and minorities would provide useful information needed to improve the campus climate. Discussions have already begun on the components of the survey with the expectation that it could be completed by the end of the academic year.
The American Cultures requirement has provided a unique opportunity to diversify course offerings across a wide range of academic fields. We expect that an assessment of this requirement and its contribution to campus diversity will provide valuable information to guide future curriculum development.
I am profoundly grateful to the Chancellor's Advisory Committee on Diversity. It is to be commended for its thoughtful and comprehensive report. It is now the responsibility of each member of the campus community to embrace the spirit and substance of the committee's work. Let us renew our efforts to build a university whose excellence is also marked by a spirit of inclusion.
Sincerely,
Robert M. Berdahl
Chancellor