Do Faculty Diversity Programs Work?: Evidence from 600 Universities Over 20 years

Registration Link

Event Summary: Faculty diversity at U.S colleges and universities grew between the 1970s and the 1990s. Progress has since slowed. Universities deserve part of the blame, for implementing diversity policies that social scientists have long known to be ineffective. An analysis of the efficacy of diversity policies, at 600 schools over 20 years, sheds light on how universities can build faculties that look more like their student bodies.

Frank Dobbin is Henry Ford II Professor of the Social Sciences at Harvard University. He holds a B.A. from Oberlin College and a Ph.D. from Stanford University. His Inventing Equal Opportunity (Princeton University Press, 2009), which won the Distinguished Scholarly Book Award from the American Sociological Association, charts how corporations have responded to anti-discrimination law since the 1960s. With Alexandra Kalev, he is developing an evidence-based approach to diversity management, using administrative data and panel surveys to explore how hiring, promotion, diversity, work-life and harassment policies have shaped both corporate management and university faculty over 30 years. Dobbin has held fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, the Russell Sage Foundation, the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, and the Safra Center for Ethics.

Discussion Facilitated by Amanda Shaffer, Shaffer Consulting, LLC

Based in Washington, DC, Amanda Shaffer is a professional coach and consultant whose practice is defined by its dedication to advancing equity, inclusion and social progress. She has developed career advancement and DEI programs for a range of universities on topics such as Cultural Humility & Awareness, Building a Mindful Career, Intentional Communication and Conflict as Opportunity. She also offers individual and group coaching for executive leaders, emerging leaders, and mission driven professionals using a wholistic, intersectional lens.

Amanda has served as a consultant and screenwriter for several Diversity, Equity and Inclusion videos including the Implicit Bias Search Committee Training videos for the Higher Education Recruitment Consortium (HERC), for which she also provided a toolkit.

Agenda:

9:30 – 9:45 AM  Introductions

9:45 – 10:30 AM  Presentation by Dr. Frank Dobbin

10:30 – 11:00 AM  Q&A

11:00 – 11:10 AM  Coffee Break

11:10 – 12:10 PM  Break out room discussion & reporting

12:10-12-15 PM  Wrap Up

Important Details:

Registration is free of charge and open to all individuals employed at HERC member institutions from the following regions:

Mid-Atlantic, New England, Metro New York and Southern Connecticut, New Jersey-Eastern Pennsylvania-Delaware & Upstate New York. 

For a complete list of HERC Member Institutions, please visit regional pages at https://main.hercjobs.org/jobs/explore

A Zoom link will be distributed the week of the event to all registrants.

* Attendees in need of accommodations, please contact Ruth Molina at rmolina@fas.harvard.edu