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Strategic plan

This plan is a process in which ME’s Diversity and Outreach Committee has focused on a vision for the future and identified the department's goals and objectives.

Completed and ongoing priorities

  •    

    Established the UW Mechanical Engineering DEI Officer position

    •  DEI officer hire
    •  Work with the Diversity & Outreach (D&O) Committee
    •  Advise on hiring for specific staff and faculty positions
  •    

    Elevating student voices

    •  Have representation from graduate and undergraduate students representation on the D&O committee
    •  Offer committee spots for MEGA, MESAR, ASME and any other student groups on the committee
    • Provide feedback on the student survey and have ongoing discussions about survey results
    • Continue forum discussions
    • Focusing communications activities on students
  •    

    Grow DEI knowledge in the College and departments

    • Forum discussions
    •  DEI resources website
    • Entering Research class
    •  Newsletters
    • DEI programming
  •    

    Partnering with departments

    • Partner with the College of Engineering
    • Partner with other departments, particularly departments outside the college with a DEI-focused mission
    •  Advise on hiring for specific staff and faculty positions
  •    

    Building strategic partnerships

    • Partnering with clubs such as Brotherhood Initiative, AVELA (A Vision for Electronic Literacy & Access), the Washington State Academic RedShirt (STARS) program, community colleges, historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) amongst others
    • Partnering with alums who are industry leaders on a student mentorship program.
  •    

    Improve faculty hiring processes

    •  Common search committee rubrics and processes
    • Increase the number of places jobs are posted and diversify where they are posted
  •    

    Increase transparency by growing communications infrastructures

    •  Student, faculty, and staff surveys
    •  Email updates
    •  Avenues for students to access/talk to chair
    • Reporting of department climate survey results (students, staff, and faculty)
  •    

    Inclusive Excellence Faculty Fellows

    •  DEI officer hire
    • Work with the Diversity & Outreach (D&O) Committee
    •  Advise on hiring for specific staff and faculty positions
  •    

    Let’s Talk Diversity: Speaker Series

    •  DEI Officer’s bi-weekly forums
    •  Invite speakers from different departments, particularly for departments where research on DEI is occurring
    •  Engineering Education Research seminars
    •  Engineering Design for Diverse Populations seminars
    •  Affinity group in STEM seminars
  •    

    D&O Provides compensation for DEI-related honorariums

    •  Compensation for student groups that  want to focus on DEI-related issues or gatherings