An Update from “Working Group 4” (KPIs, Metrics)

During the 2021 – 22 academic year, the members of CEC Working Group 4 were asked to develop indicators or metrics which would be traceable over time to assess our campus progress towards the  goals outlined in the Diversity, Inclusion & Equity (DI&E) Plan 2021 – 26.  

We considered specific types of metrics of progress on the diversification, inclusion and equity factors which would map to the strategies and goals of the DI&E plan. We split into teams related to goals for students, faculty, staff and leadership / the institution. 

Drawing from best practices already in place about recruitment, onboarding, retention and advancement (because of the ADVANCE Center for Women STEM Faculty (ADVANCE) and IChange, and Human Resources and others), we reviewed what is already measured and what else was missing.

We also considered, with the support of EAB consultants, what represents an output, an outcome, or an impact of a program or policy—and which of those point to detecting progress towards the priorities listed in the DI&E Plan 2021 – 26. The workshop with the EAB consulting group gave us space to organize the recommendations.

The recommended indicators were then passed along to senior leadership, and they determined which ones were most feasible and urgent to commit to making transparent to our community to help us all be accountable.

It’s important to note that just because something isn’t collected yet, doesn’t mean it won’t be soon. Some of the indicators we recommended need to be defined for valid collection, analysis, and interpretation. Another thing to note is that some indicators detect change at slower rates than others, thus no single measurement will be able to assess the totality of our progress across the individual, policy,  and cultural changes we seek to achieve.