Shenandoah University is committed to fostering a diverse community supported by an equitable, inclusive campus climate. We are intentionally working toward this goal in the following ways:
Diversity in Hiring of Faculty and Staff
Fall 2017 pilot program which provided diversity in hiring workshops for Search Committees tasked with hiring new faculty and staff members
This is a goal included in the university’s current strategic plan
Campus-wide Diversity Training
Delivering training in multicultural competence/awareness/appreciation for different groups of students, staff, faculty, and administrators in the following areas:
- Step UP! Bystander Intervention
- Safe Zone – Sexuality and Gender (more than 400 people trained!)
- Navigating Intercultural Understanding
- How to Have Difficult Conversations
- Creating Inclusive Classrooms
- Who are you? Self Identity Exercises
- Cultural Competency in Pharmacy
- Cultural Competency in Respiratory Care
- Listening and Empathy
- Privilege and Oppression
- How to work with Student Veterans (training coming soon)
Forming a Diverse, Presidentially Appointed Task Force
“President’s Representatives on Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity” (PRIDE) to develop and implement:
- Comprehensive campus Diversity Action Plan
- Campus Climate Survey
Support for Students from Diverse Backgrounds and Academic Preparation
Academic, Co-Curricular, and Student Life support, centrally located on main campus, in the following areas:
- Veteran, Military, & Family Resource Center
- [Not Just] Women’s Center
- Interfaith Prayer and Meditation Room in Goodson Chapel
- International Programs
- Accessibility for students transferring from community colleges
- Disability and access services
- Bias Response Plan and Incident Reporting System
- Transgender Task Force – addressing policy and structure related to transgender and gender non-conforming students
Diversity Built into Academic Requirements
- Student Life 411, which all students see during Welcome Week, begins with a message about Diversity and Inclusion
- Going Global: First-Year Seminar has a learning objective of promoting multicultural understanding
- Nursing Cultural Care Conference and Celebration
Diversity in Co-curricular Opportunities
- Global Citizenship Project — annual university-funded international trips to five foreign countries
- Opportunities to study abroad
- Year-round programming sponsored by the Mosaic Center for Diversity
Dedicated Diversity Staff
- SU Fellow for Academic Excellence reporting to VPAA (Michelle Brown)
- Mosaic Center for Diversity with 18 student staff
- Director of Inclusion and Diversity (Maggie McCampbell Lien)
- Diversity Programs Coordinator (coming soon)
Dedicated Space: Mosaic Center
Located in the heart of the Brandt Student Center, the Mosaic Center for Diversity is a brand new space that focuses on valuing and fostering the diversity reflected in our lives at Shenandoah and in the world beyond our campus. Room 120 now features a student lounge; a resource library; hands-on resources for health, responsibility and advocacy; and a work area for the dozens of students who run the center and plan events. 100+ programs and events a year focus on celebrating, education, advocacy, and leadership development. Also available: one-on-one student advocacy and support
Diverse Student Organizations and Service
- Scholars’ Latino Initiative – college students mentor high school Latinx students to create access to college
- Multicultural student organizations
- Black Student Union
- Estudiantes Unidos (Latinx)
- International Students Association
- Saudi Student Association
- Shenandoah Conservatory Students of Color
- Spectrum (LGBTQ+)
- Multicultural religious groups
- Christian Pharmacists Fellowship International
- Fellowship of Christian Athletes
- Harambee Gospel Choir
- Jewish Student Union
- Muslim Student Association
- Shenandoah University Catholic Campus Ministry
PRIDE diversity Task Force
At Shenandoah, we believe that respecting and celebrating diverse cultures, experiences and perspectives is integral to student learning.
In fact, our strategic plan promises to deepen and enhance this commitment.
I am therefore pleased to announce the formation of the President’s Representatives on Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity — or PRIDE — a task force that will convene this semester to address this strategic priority.
Specifically, the PRIDE will assess the campus climate with respect to diversity and inclusivity, and develop a transformative, campus-wide action plan informed by your voices — and others across the SU community.
The PRIDE will be co-chaired by Michelle Brown, Shenandoah University Fellow for Academic Excellence, and Maggie McCampbell Lien, Director of Inclusion and Diversity, with a diverse membership of representatives from across the university.
PRIDE Steering Committee
- Dr. Christine Custis, Assistant Professor of Information System Technology
- Rick Edinger, Music Director; Assistant Professor, Theatre
- Ms. Tamiya Earley, Administrative Assistant & Interfaith Coordinator, Spiritual Life
- Ms. Niccole Gatliff, Assistant Registrar, Veterans & Technology Specialist
- Dr. Cathy Loranger, Director of Marketing Services & Senior Editor
- Dr. Bryan Pearce-Gonzales, Professor of Hispanic Studies, College of Arts and Sciences
- Dr. Rose Schmieg, Program Director, Associate Professor of Athletic Training
- Ms. Jean Swartz, Director of Undergraduate Admissions