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UPDATE: The has now launched and remains open until Oct. 7, 2024.

Intentional. Deliberate. Systematic. All words that describe the process to date in the development of the ��ݮ����Ƶ����’s inaugural Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Accessibility (EDIA) Strategy. And rightfully so, given the goal to create an inspiring, strong, and evidence-based strategy and action plan that reflects the university’s future-focused vision. Equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility are foundational commitments in the university’s . 

The Presidential Task Force on EDIA (PTF-EDIA) was launched as a step in the institution’s transformation to inclusive excellence. The task force's robust consultation continues this fall with a campus-wide survey to gather more input on EDIA. Campus community members received an email on Sept. 16 with administered by Higher Education Strategy Associates (HESA), a Toronto-based public-interest consulting firm, specialized in higher education in Canada. All survey responses will go directly to HESA (and not ��ݮ����Ƶ����) and will be kept confidential. HESA will report to ��ݮ����Ƶ���� only de-identified and aggregate results on topics covered in the survey, ensuring that no one will be identifiable.

“It’s been inspiring to see the community come together in the development of this strategy, and now all of our students, faculty and staff have an opportunity to directly share their opinions and insights regarding EDIA on campus with this survey,” says Dr. Sandra Davidson, provost and vice-president (academic). “The ��ݮ����Ƶ���� has embarked on a life-long journey through this process, one that will contribute to making everyone’s experience at our university better and support the Ahead of Tomorrow strategic plan.” 

The survey is voluntary but everyone is encouraged to participate and support the development of the inaugural EDIA strategy. and you’ll be eligible to enter a draw for a chance to win one of 11 prizes, including an iPad Pro, MacBook Pro, Apple Watches and Beats Studio3 Wireless Headphones. The survey will remain open until 11:59 p.m., Oct. 7.

Drawing on to bring people together, the PTF-EDIA has been actively engaging the campus through internal scans, external scans of Canadian and international institutions, interviews, conversations with faculty, staff and students, and online focus groups with equity deserving groups, international students and an intersectionality group, as well as an organizational analysis and deep EDI data reviews. The survey will add further valuable input to the work to date as a campus-wide engagement.

“We have been consultative and systematic in our approach to ensure that when we draft this first-ever strategy, it reflects the strengths, opportunities, and aspirations of the ��ݮ����Ƶ����,” says Dr. Malinda Smith, vice-provost and associate vice-president research (equity, diversity and inclusion). 

“It’s an opportunity for us to think about how we ensure that diverse ideas, perspectives, peoples and knowledges are welcomed, included, and engaged in ways that enable and enhance creativity, ingenuity and innovation. It is also about policies and strategies to ensure we cultivate a more inclusive culture and use the best EDI data to make evidence-informed decisions.” 

Smith and Davidson are the co-chairs of the PTF-EDIA, working to create the strategy and action plan this year.

‘Nothing about us, without us’: Working groups key to progress

The PTF-EDIA’s membership is intentional and inclusive, reaching people from different roles and equity-deserving groups. It includes five working groups to focus efforts: EDIA in People Strategy and Experience, EDIA in Teaching and Learning, EDIA Data and Strategy, EDIA in Research and Scholarship, and EDIA and Community Engagement. 

Each working group has two co-leads and a diverse membership from different units, faculties, staff roles, and disciplines. Working groups were tasked with completing a SOAR analysis (strength, opportunities, aspirations and results) of their area of focus, as well as providing recommendations and actions for the strategy and action plan.

“Research and scholarship is a huge part of what we do at the university, and when we operate and move through research in a way that overlooks important perspectives, or keeps certain people and groups at the margins, the research can’t effectively address an issue,” says Jaya Dixit, manager, EDI in Research, Institutional Programs Division, Office of Research Services and co-lead of the Research and Scholarship working group with Dr. Smith.     

Dixit says the working group built off existing institutional work in EDIA in the research ecosystem, like the Canada Research Chairs Program and Dimensions EDI Pilot Program, extending the capacity, knowledge and infrastructure already developed over the course of the last few years. 

“There is already so much knowledge in the research space, but the working group brought fresh perspectives and taught us where we weren’t looking, or pointed us toward a bigger picture, or important priorities more reflective of the community need. I have a sense of gratitude, appreciation and respect for the time, energy, candor, bravery and expertise of people who were open to speaking from exactly where they were situated. You don’t get it on every project,” says Dixit.

For Dr. Fouzia Usman, PhD, educational development consultant at the Taylor Institute for Teaching and Learning and co-lead of the Teaching and Learning working group, the strategy and action plan is critically important for the student experience. 

“Our teaching and learning should be geared toward empowering students. We talk about entrepreneurial thinking, and through their teaching and learning experiences, students should be empowered in their learning practices to be critical thinkers and global citizens,” Usman says. 

Usman and co-lead Dr. Wendy Benoit, vice-provost (teaching and learning), focused on building relationships within the working group itself to ensure the process wasn’t just transactional. 

“There has to be community and belonging when we are trying to establish spaces for student learning. Students need to belong and have a strong sense of connection, reciprocity and community to trust each other and share lived experiences and expertise,” Usman says. “We were grounded in community and hope this will extend into all teaching and learning spaces here.” 

Dr. Hieu Ngo, associate dean in the Faculty of Social Work and academic director in the OEDI, co-led the Community Engagement working group with Amanda Affonso, associate vice president, Community and Partnerships in Alumni, to think about what community engagement looked like for ��ݮ����Ƶ����. 

“Coming out of the process, we learned community engagement is a way to recognize the diversity of campus partners and more broadly understand how people can have a say in how things are shaped with the strategy and into the future,” says Ngo.

Community engagement in this context is not a stage in strategy development but a lens to honour the idea of ‘nothing about us, without us,’ to reinforce and reach out to different communities, differently. 

“We have to think about the different partners we work with and involve in a meaningful way, not just as an isolated branch of the strategy, but in all the areas of focus. It’s not a separate priority on its own — it has to be integrated,” says Ngo.

Using data for diversity, inclusion and accessibility

While data isn’t usually particularly exciting for some, in the EDIA space, it is. There has been incredible progress with a cluster of data activity, including the EDI dashboard, the  and the , which offers evidence for robust standards and processes to reinforce excellence and diversity in hiring and admissions.

“People tend to think diversity is a trade-off with excellence or merit,” says Smith. “We know from Statistics Canada that racialized people have equal to or higher educational levels than the general population – but that’s not the perception. That’s why we promote EDI data literacy and encourage EDI data to enhance evidence-based decision-making.”

��ݮ����Ƶ����’s strategy builds on important initiatives, including the , which is the only one in Canada to include persons with disabilities. There are also equitable and inclusive admissions, equitable and inclusive hiring in the General Faculties Council (GFC) handbook, and plans to update the employee equity census and student equity census.

Looking Ahead of Tomorrow

In addition to the campus-wide survey this fall, the PTF-EDIA will continue their engagement with roundtables, governance bodies, and strategy drafts for feedback. As Smith says, there will be no stone left unturned as the PTF-EDIA puts pen to paper and drafts the strategy and action plan. 

“EDIA work will not be successful if it’s someone else’s business, it has to be everyone’s business,” says Ngo. “Everyone, from students, to faculty, to staff, to leaders, has to see themself in the strategy and the more you get involved, the more likely you are to see yourself.”