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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

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    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
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    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
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    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
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    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.
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    Improve faculty hiring processes

    • Common search committee rubrics and processes
    • Increase the number of places jobs are posted and diversify where they are posted
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    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)
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    Inclusive Excellence Faculty Fellows

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

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