Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Annual Report 2022

Chancellor’s Diversity, Equity,
and Inclusion Council
August 2022
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Table of contents
Introduction………………………………………………….....................................…………………… 1
Who TWU Looks Like..…………………………………………….................................…………… 2
Definitions of Terms.………………………………………………….................................……..….. 5
Frameworks we Used……………………………………..................................…………………..… 6
How We Collected Data................................................................................................. 7
Methodology……………………………………………...................................………………………... 8
Qualitative Data ……………………….................................………………………………………….. 9
Where We Are Today………………................................…………………………………………… 10
Our Findings and Recommendations……….........................……………………….………… 11
Our Progress and Our Path Forward……….........................………………………….…….… 17

Introduction
The Chancellor’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Council (CDEIC) at Texas Woman’s University was launched in
December of 2020 to share information, generate new ideas, and provide recommendations to the Chancellor’s
Cabinet regarding standardized, fair, and objective diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) practices for all employees.
The Chancellor’s Cabinet uses this data to inform their decisions and policies for the university. Through exploration
and research, members of the CDEIC also educate the TWU community about:
• Diversity, equity, and inclusion, broadly;
• Specific DEI programming, strategies, and tactics from various levels of the organization;
• Fair and equitable treatment of employees;
• Promising practices for the recruitment and retention of underrepresented faculty and staff; and
• Equal access to professional opportunities and advancement for underrepresented faculty and staff.
Who sits on the DEIC?
• Chair with a three-year term
• Faculty and staff employees
• Representation from
all three campuses
• TWU student regent
• Leaders from affinity groups
and college diversity committees
*Membership rotates with the leadership rotation of the respective employee resource group,
college DEI committee, office, division, or program
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Who TWU looks like – Our Students*
The Latinx/ Hispanic student population doubled since 2009, and comprises the largest number of non-White
students at all three campuses. *Averaged across all three campuses as of Fall 2021, 27.6% of our undergraduate
students and 19.6% of our graduate students self-identify as Hispanic or Latinx; 11.6% of our undergraduate students
and 15.7% of our graduate students self-identify as African-American or Black; 19.1% of our undergraduate students
and 14.1% of our graduate students self-identify as Asian; 34.4% of our undergraduate students and 44% of our
graduate students self-identify as White; and 7.1% of our undergraduate students and 6.4% of our graduate students
self-identify as Other.
*This data was adapted from secondary sources from the Office of Institutional Research that align with the U.S.
Census Bureau data categories at the time it were collected. The CDEIC recognizes and acknowledges that race is a
social construct and the identity group labels we used to describe our TWU demographics are incomplete and do not
fully describe or address the complexity of the variety of ethnic or racial backgrounds that exist.
2

Who TWU looks like – Our Employees*
Averaged across all three campuses as of Fall 2021, the TWU Office of Institutional Research and Data Management
reports 11.3% of all of our employees (both faculty and staff) as Hispanic or Latinx; 17% as African-American or Black;
19.3% as Other; and 52.3% as White.*
Dallas Denton Houston
In regards to TWU faculty, the Chronicle of Higher Education (2022) reports 6.5% of faculty as Latinx or Hispanic;
7.0% as African- American or Black; 11.3% as Asian; 1.1% as American Indian or Alaska Native; 1.8% as Unknown; 0.7%
as Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander; and 73.4% as White. By comparison to other 4-year degree doctoral-granting
institutions in the DFW or Houston area, TWU ranks 6th for overall diversity based on the total minority percentage
for faculty.
Race, Ethnicity, and
Gender of Full-Time
Faculty Members
at Four-Year Degree
Doctoral Granting
Institutions in DFW
Region
*This data was adapted from secondary sources from the Office of Institutional Research that align with the U.S.
Census Bureau data categories at the time it were collected. The CDEIC recognizes and acknowledges that race is a
social construct and the identity group labels we used to describe our TWU demographics are incomplete and do not
fully describe or address the complexity of the variety of ethnic or racial backgrounds that exist.
3

Who TWU looks like – Our Leadership
Approximately 26.2% of the leadership roles at TWU are held by individuals
from traditionally underrepresented racial identity groups
4

Definition of Terms
We define diversity, equity, and inclusion as follows:
Diversity is the presence of differences that may include race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, ethnicity, nationality,
socioeconomic status, language, (dis)ability, age, or religious commitment. When we discuss diversity, it is in regard to
employees who have been - and remain - underrepresented in higher education and marginalized in the broader society.
We captured race, ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation of employees for this report.
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Equity is promoting justice, impartiality and fairness within
the procedures, processes, and distribution of resources by
TWU. We recognize that tackling equity issues requires an
understanding of the root causes of outcome disparities
for employees which may not be salient on the surface.
Inclusion refers to the degree to which employees are able
to participate effectively at TWU. This includes having
equal access to job- and duties-related information and
resources, being involved in the decision-making processes
when relevant, and creating a sense of belonging for all
employees.
5

Frameworks we used
Multicultural Organizational Development (MCOD) model
Grounded in frameworks and theories from both organizational development and diversity in the workplace literature,
the MCOD is a process model that identifies the strength of an organization’s climate of diversity. Based on what stage
an organization is in, the MCOD process determines what organizational change interventions are needed.
.
Change team
System
Readiness
Assessments
Implement
change
Evaluate &
Renew
The six stages of development include:
1 Exclusionary
2 Club
3 Compliance
4 Affirming
5 Redefining
6 Multicultural
Reaching Stage 6, the Multicultural Organization,
should be the goal of organizational leadership.
Multicultural
Redefining
Affirming
Compliance
club
Exclusionary
IMAGIN Framework
Building on existing conceptualizations of change management, the IMAGIN framework provides an alternate
explanation for the organizational change process by merging organizational development theories with DEI
frameworks. (Lambert & Akinlade, 2020)
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How we collected data
Over the past year (AY 2021-22), the CDEIC collected data in three ways:
1. Focus Groups
2. Leadership Questionnaires
3. TWU system-wide employee surveys
TWU Discovery Tour (Focus Groups)
A series of virtual meetings were held across TWU to share with employees information about the CDEIC and to
gather preliminary information about employees’ perceptions regarding the climate of DEI at TWU. The feedback
served as a foundation from which the CDEIC began to examine DEI at TWU and create our survey instruments.
The chair of the CDEIC met various stakeholder groups including but not limited to:
Affinity Groups | Faculty Senate | Staff Council Academic Affairs | Ombudsperson
Student Life | Human Resources | Center for Faculty Excellence
TWU Organization Readiness Leadership Questionnaire
The Organization Readiness Questionnaire captures the perspectives, perceptions, and attitudes of “leaders” (N=17)
at TWU towards cultivating a climate of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Responses help TWU identify what the
organization does well, forces for status quo that impede change, and resources and opportunities available to
promote change. This questionnaire and a climate survey was also instrumental in forming recommendations to the
Chancellor and Provost. Links to view the data and results from the questionnaire are included at the end of this report.
TWU Work and Climate Survey
TWU is always looking to find ways to better serve its students. Research shows that when faculty and staff perceive
that their university values a diversity climate of respect, it relates to positive outcomes for students (Gavino, Lambert,
& Akinlade, 2021). This survey is designed to measure how TWU continues to be inclusive towards faculty and staff in
order to meet the needs of students. A climate of diversity is formed by the collective perceptions that organizational
members have towards their environment based on how influential the organization’s policies, practices, and
procedures impact a sense of belonging, equity, and appreciation of individual differences. Survey items were
adapted from previously validated scales found in published research. Links to view the data and results of the
survey are included at the end of this report.
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TWU Organization Readiness Questionnaire
Methodology
The Organization Readiness Questionnaire is made up of two sections. Section
one asks seven open-ended questions developed by the DEIC based on the
MCOD framework and section two includes five multiple choice questions and
three open-ended follow-up questions adapted from various diversity surveys
designed to be answered by leaders of the organization.
42.5 %
Response rate
Targeted participants included faculty with the role of associate dean or higher
and staff with the role of assistant vice-president or higher, across all three
TWU campuses. Out of 40 potential participants, 17 responded resulting in a
42.5% response rate.
The answers to open-ended questions were analyzed using the reflexive
thematic method using Nvivo software. The analysis produced multiple themes
overall suggesting that TWU’s leaders view its policy, practices, representation
of employees, available resources, and environment as important issues to
examine further. Here is a link to a copy of the thematic analysis results. Raw
data is available upon written request.
TWU Diversity and Work Climate Survey Methodology
TWU employees were invited to participate in a voluntary and anonymous survey available electronically and as a
hard copy in either English or Spanish across all three campuses. A total of 895 employees took the survey. Participants
with missing data related to the variables being investigated were removed resulting in 887 valid responses, a response
rate of approximately 47.7%.
A total of 379 participants were faculty and 409 staff responded to the demographic questions in this survey.
Respondents included 513 (65.1%) individuals who identify as women, 161 (20.4%) who identified as men, 6 (0.8%)
non-binary and 73 (9.3%) preferred not to say. In terms of sexual orientation 15 (1.9%) stated they were asexual, 24
(3.0%) bisexual, 16 (2.0%) gay, 518 (65.7%) heterosexual, 6 (0.8%) lesbian, 8 (1.0%) pansexual, 6 (0.8%) queer, 3 (0.3%)
undecided/questioning, and 99 (12.6%) preferred not to identify. There were 12 (1.5%) Native American; 35 (4.4%)
Asian/Pacific Islanders; 11 (1.4%) South Asians; 75 (9.5%) Black/African-American; 63 (8.0%) Hispanic (non-White);
and 445 (56.5%) White participants. The aggregate data can be viewed here. Raw data is available upon written request.
8

Qualitative Data
Survey participants were asked to answer two open-ended questions:
1. “What have we not asked that you feel should have been included?”
2. “Is there anything else you wish to share? Any comments and suggestions are
welcome.”
The answers to open-ended questions were analyzed using the reflexive thematic method using Nvivo software.
The analysis produced multiple themes overall suggesting that TWU should address the following issues:
• Unbalanced Power Relations
• Perceived Lack of Caring from Leadership
• Low Salary Compensation vs Workload
• Lack of sufficient employee development
• Lack of DEI training
• Perceived Discrimination
The TWU Diversity and Work Climate Survey was designed to capture general work climate perceptions and attitudes
in addition to those specific to DEI. For the purpose of this report the CDEIC is presenting only those themes related
to DEI that emerged from the analysis. A copy of the entire Fall 2021 Diversity and Work Climate Survey-Thematic
Analysis can be viewed here.
9

Where we are today
Based on the data we collected, the results suggest there are a number of matters that should be addressed in order
to meet the criteria for becoming an inclusive organization. Drawing from the MCOD model, TWU is two stages below
Stage 6, The Multicultural Organization. TWU can be classified as transitioning between Stage 3, The Compliance
Organization, and Stage 4, The Affirming Organization. Both stages fall under the category as a non-discriminating
organization. An example of the MCOD stages can be found here. This categorization is due to the following reasons
based on our data:
Evidence for Stage 3: The Compliance Organization
• Strengths
- TWU is verbally committed to removing discrimination barriers.
- TWU has initiated policies that address equity in evaluation processes and
advancement opportunities for faculty.
- TWU’s mission references the embracing of diversity.
• Opportunities for growth
- TWU has not fully addressed removing discrimination barriers for staff.
- TWU does not reference equity and inclusion explicitly in its mission.
- TWU has not yet formally restructured its organization and leadership to sustain a
climate of diversity, equity, and inclusion, especially for staff employees.
Evidence for Stage 4: The Affirming Organization
• Strengths
- TWU formally recognizes its affinity groups.
- TWU has begun to intentionally address ways to diversify the labor pool of
candidates for various roles and promote members of groups who are traditionally
under represented.
- TWU is beginning to intentionally change the profile of its workforce.
- TWU has begun to encourage employees to be more inclusive through an
increase in the number of voluntary DEI, Ally, Inclusive Pedagogy, and
Awareness trainings.
- Some (not all) colleges, divisions, and department promote DEI effectively
as evident from the creation of college-level diversity committees.
• Opportunities for growth
- TWU lacks a comprehensive and university-wide DEI agenda that is present across
all three campuses.
- Some (not all) employees still perceive a need to assimilate into an
organizational monoculture.
The six stages of development include:
1 Exclusionary
2 Club
3 Compliance
4 Affirming
5 Redefining
6 Multicultural
Multicultural
Redefining
Affirming
Compliance
club
*Reaching Stage 6, the Multicultural Organization, should be
the goal of organizational leadership.
Exclusionary
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Our findings and recommendations
Because TWU is a “campus with a heart”, the CDEIC recommends that TWU adopt the H.E.A.R.T.
Campaign as a guide to begin crafting a DEI strategy:
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Our findings and recommendations
Holistic
The data we collected suggest that employees believe that some identity groups receive more attention than others
when addressing issues of equity and access. Notably, DEI programs and activities for employees with disabilities and
LGBTQ+ employees are less visible and less promoted or supported. Also, the CDEIC encountered challenges
translating survey and marketing materials into Spanish, and ensuring that flyers promoting the survey were
distributed effectively and efficiently across all three campuses. The CDEIC recommends that an intentional focus is
made to ensure that DEI programs, policies, tools, resources and activities are in place to effectively address the climate
of DEI for members from all identity groups across the TWU system. The data collected suggest the following:
Equity
• Employees perceive that performance evaluations and advancement opportunities are not considered fairly as it
relates to race, gender identity, and sexual orientation.
• Employees perceived that workload is distributed unequally based on race, gender identity, and sexual orientation.
The CDEIC recommendations to be holistic and pursue equity are as follows:
1. Hire an outside consultant to perform an equity audit to investigate disparities in workload, pay, promotion, and
performance evaluation based on race, sex, gender and sexual orientation.
2. Include representation from the CDEIC in the strategic planning process so that employees from all backgrounds are
intentionally included in the strategic planning process.
3. Create mechanism to recognize and compensate for invisible labor such as service (e.g., DEIC, informally advising
traditionally underrepresented students) as research suggests that employees of color and LGBTQ employees are
disproportionately sought out by students of shared identity groups compared to their White, cisgender, or straight
colleagues.
4. Promote events and activities targeting employees, not just students, that recognize their heritage, abilities,
and identities.
5. Craft policy, promote and reduce the stigma related to floating holidays to accommodate the diversity of religion on
the TWU campus.
6. Determine merit pay by committee to mitigate the likelihood of implicit bias.
7. Hire a Senior Diversity Officer, create a centralized office, expand the Office of Diversity, Inclusion, and Outreach to
address employee culture, or designate a point-person for DEI programming just for employees to coordinate DEI
efforts for faculty and staff across the TWU system
12

Our findings and recommendations
Access
The data we collected suggest the following:
• Employees believe access to advancement opportunities
and mentoring is limited for traditionally
Under represented employees.
• Employees are uncertain how to report potentially
discriminatory incidents.
• Some facilities are not easily accessible, or their
accessibility is not visible for
employees with a disability.
• Language regarding the criteria for using the ethics
hotline is confusing.
• Human resources is the only place where staff employees
can voice their concerns.
The CDEIC recommendations to improve accessibility are as follows:
1. Continue to ensure that all new building projects follow guidelines for ADA
accessibility.
2. Allocate funding to renovate older buildings so they are ADA accessible.
3. Allocate funding for menstrual products in all bathrooms.
4. Make information about the EEOC/HR grievance process available- train and update employees
on the process.
5. Create an anonymous suggestion box as an alternate form of reporting incidents
specifically related to DEI in order to track our progress towards becoming an inclusive university.
6. Create a sponsoring program where employees are assigned an “Employee
Ambassador” to prepare faculty or staff them for leadership roles or guide junior
faculty towards a successful academic career.
7. Create an ombudsperson position for staff employees.
8. Review faculty ombudsperson position to ensure that the current dual role of faculty/ombudsperson.
does not hinder or discourage faculty from utilizing this service
13

Our findings and recommendations
Recruit and Retain
The data we collected suggest the following:
• Employees experience differential treatment based on their identity group membership and regularly
encounter microaggressions.
• Differential treatment may explain why according to our survey less than half of the respondents have
intentions to stay at TWU.
• Research shows that employees leave their boss, not their company. Based on focus groups and
open-ended responses from our survey, faculty report differential treatment from their deans and
associate deans and some faculty and staff report fear of retaliation from their boss.
• According to feedback from focus groups and open-ended responses from our survey, employees are
ridiculed or discouraged from attending meetings for employee resource groups.
• There is no formal policy for faculty search committees or staff hiring panels to attend recruitment
training in order to reduce unconscious bias during the hiring process.
• As a policy, job ads are not reviewed for gender-neutral language which is shown to increase the
diversity of an organization’s labor pool.
• Employees do not receive formal mentorship and professional development for staff is limited.
• Training on inclusive pedagogy and universal course design is limited.
The CDEIC recommendations to improve recruitment processes and retention are as follows:
1. Mandate search committee and hiring panel training for all committee or panel members and all
employees with leadership roles.
2. Mandate annual, in-person, synchronous training on inclusive leadership and microaggressions for
employees with leadership roles.
3. Establish a DEI committee within each college.
4. Continue to offer inclusive pedagogy and universal course design training from the
Center for Faculty Excellence, but it should be mandated.
5. Provide funding to employee resource groups for professional development opportunities and
mentoring programs for employees and students.
6. Create policy to offer corrective action plans and training to leaders with poor 360
degree evaluation feedback or a certain number of grievances against them.
16 4

Our findings and recommendations
Transparency
TWU does many things well. But, TWU also has much
room for improvement. Our data suggest two
primary things:
1. employees are not aware of the work that TWU
and the CDEIC does to promote and improve our
climate of inclusion and belonging, and 2. employees
are not aware of the current programs in place that
support traditionally underrepresented employees.
To mitigate this issue, the CDEIC recommendations
to improve recruitment processes and retention are
as follows:
1. Create an internal dashboard that is accessible to
all employees and students. This dashboard will
serve two purposes:
a. share information about current DEI programs,
events, and policies.
3. Develop a rubric for merit pay, promotion and
performance evaluations.
4. Share feedback to employees regarding their
evaluations
b. share updates on our progress towards
creating new DEI programs, events, and policies
that support the overall DEI climate at TWU.
2. Improve how TWU shares information regarding
the process for determining performance
evaluations. The criteria for deter mining merit
pay, promotion and performance evaluations
should be transparent.
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Our top recommendations
Like many organizations, we learned that we have some work to do, but realistically we cannot do
everything at once. Based on the HEART initiative, here are the top recommendations we believe will
make the strongest impact for the upcoming academic year. We also recommend that leaders of each
organizational unit at TWU (i.e. deans, vice-presidents, vice-provosts, directors) craft their own DEI
strategic plan tailored to fit their unique needs and circumstances based on the HEART initiative.
1. Make diversity training mandatory for serving of faculty hiring committees.
2. Make diversity training available for all employees but required for leadership.
3. Post dashboards about DEI for improved communication about what is happening.
4. Hire a chief people and culture officer as the leader for Human Resources.
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Our Progress and Our Path Forward
• Instituted formal recognition of affinity groups.
• Created DEI resource directory for employees on
Chancellor’s DEIC webpage
• Initiated planning for faculty
and staff search committee training.
• Discussed future plans for mandated
DEI leadership training
• TWU was featured in Diverse: Issues In
Higher Education for high ratings on their four Diverse
Organizational Impact and Transformation
(DOIT) pillars.
Affinity groups
formally
recognized
DEIC begins to
meet
Discovery tour
focus groups
begin
Adopted Linked
In Learning in
Bridge as
temporary
search
committee
training
DEIC formal report
including data
results and
recommendations
Plan policy for
annual and new
hire DEI
leadership
training TBD
Fall
2020
Jan
2021
Feb
2021
May
2021
Sep
2021
Oct
2021
Feb
2022
May
2022
Fall
2022
DEIC
formed by
Chancellor
DEIC
charge
officially
announced
Org Readiness
Questionnaire
administered to
leadership
TWU Diversity
and Work
Climate Survey
administered
Plan policy for
mandated search
committee
training TBD
Utilize new
training vendor
TBD
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Chancellor’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Council
twu.edu/chancellor/dei-council
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