Inclusive Climate Assessment Survey Results

University Summary

Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS) is dedicated to fostering a diverse, vibrant, and fully inclusive institutional climate. To assess its current diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) climate, MCPHS partnered with Diversity Science to conduct a comprehensive Inclusive Climate Assessment (ICA).

Purpose

The purpose of the Inclusive Climate Assessment was to identify strengths and opportunities for growth in MCPHS’s current DEI climate and to use this information to develop a roadmap for inclusion. All MCPHS faculty, students, and staff had the opportunity to confidentially share their experiences and perspectives on institutional diversity, equity, and inclusion. This information is essential for MCPHS to create an appropriate and responsive institutional action plan for advancing MCPHS’s DEI goals.

Procedures

Diversity Science worked closely with MCPHS to develop an institutionally tailored DEI assessment. During a discovery phase, Diversity Science engaged in a process of institutional learning to better understand MCPHS’s priorities, mission, challenges, and opportunities. To this end, Diversity Science conducted a series of interviews and focus groups with institutional stakeholders, including leaders and a range of faculty, students, and staff. Diversity Science also reviewed relevant policies, documents, and other materials. The results of institutional learning, along with the information shared anonymously by members of the MCPHS community and consultations with representatives of the MCPHS leadership, were then used to inform both the design of the survey and the interpretation of results.

The Inclusive Climate Assessment (ICA) questionnaire used validated survey questions to measure the seven Key Domains of Inclusion, each representing institutional characteristics and experiences known to impact the DEI climate, as well as items about institutional growth climate, readiness for change, and MCPHS policy related to well-being. Additional items were created for faculty, students, and staff.

All assessment processes and procedures were designed to guarantee respondent confidentiality.

On January 31, 2023, all MCPHS faculty, students, and staff were invited via email to participate in the DEI survey via a secure online link. Data collection was conducted over a period of 4.5 weeks, closing on March 3, 2023. A total of 1,479 faculty, students, and staff responded to the survey out of 7,405 who were invited, resulting in an overall response rate of 20%. There were 301 faculty who responded out of 1,147 faculty who were invited, for a response rate of 26%. Twenty-one percent of faculty who responded identified as adjunct faculty. 940 students responded out of 5,892 invited, for a response rate of 16%. Also, 238 staff out of 366 invitees responded, for a response rate of 65%.

The 1,479 respondents to the survey were representative, in terms of gender, race/ethnicity, and age, of the MCPHS faculty, student, and staff populations.
Based on this response rate and sample size, the margin of error was calculated at ± 2%. This means, for example, if 50% of survey participants agree with a statement, we can be confident that between 48% and 52% of all your faculty, students, and staff would agree with that statement.

Key Domains of Equity and Inclusion

The seven Key Domains of inclusion represent aspects of the perceptions and experiences of members of the MCPHS community that contribute in different ways to an inclusive institutional climate. Learning how people think and feel about these different elements not only provides a comprehensive understanding of MCPHS’s inclusive climate but also can help inform efficient and effective interventions to achieve significant institutional growth. The seven Key Domains of Inclusion are:

• Relationship Resilience: feelings of investment in and commitment to the University
• Inclusive Leadership: perceptions of leaders’ commitment to a welcoming climate for all
• Interpersonal Inclusion: experiences of feeling accepted and supported by others
• Diverse Perspectives: perceptions of encouragement of expression of diverse viewpoints
• Psychological Safety: feeling free to contribute without unjustified negative consequences
• Fairness and Equity: perceiving that decisions are fair, and outcomes are equitable
• Transparency and Open Communication: having access to information and opportunities for input

High-Level Findings

The survey results revealed that MCPHS has many strengths and has room for improvement in several Domains of Inclusion. Also, while faculty, students, and staff view and experience MCPHS’s DEI climate in some similar ways, there are several noteworthy differences among these groups.

The Table summarizes the pattern of responses for all aggregated responses (total, faculty, students, and staff), identifying each of the seven Key Domains of inclusion as a Current Inclusive Strength, a Growth Opportunity, or a Significant Growth Opportunity.

The Inclusive Climate Assessment results reveal several areas of strength in MCPHS’s inclusive climate. Three of the strongest domains for MCPHS are Inclusive Leadership, Interpersonal Inclusion, and Relationship Resilience. Inclusive Leadership (reflecting perceptions of leaders’ commitment to a welcoming climate) is a distinctive strength of MCPHS. MCPHS is very high on this domain relative to other, comparable organizations. Faculty, students, and staff share this view. For example, two-thirds or more of respondents to the MCPHS survey either somewhat or strongly agreed that “the leadership of MCPHS takes action to create an environment that feels welcoming to all.” With respect to Interpersonal Inclusion (feeling accepted and supported by others), about three-quarters of the staff, two-thirds of the faculty, and half of the students feel accepted by colleagues and peers for “who I am.” This reflects an important sense of belonging at MCPHS. Relationship Resilience, which represents commitment to the institution, was notably high for faculty and staff but an area for growth among students. Over half of the faculty and staff strongly agreed that “MCPHS is a good place to work for people like me.” Slightly over a third of students strongly agreed with the analogous statement, “MCPHS is a good place to get an education for people like me.”

Areas of some strength, with ample opportunity for growth, were the domains of Fairness and Equity and Openness to Diverse Perspectives. The domain of Fairness and Equity relates to seeing MCPHS as a just community. Over a third of faculty, students, and staff strongly agreed that MCPHS’s policies and processes are fair, with another quarter somewhat agreeing. However, about one in five expressed concerns. This is a particularly important domain because when people believe that processes are fairer, they are more willing to support organizational decisions even when they do not personally benefit from them. Openness to Diverse Perspectives is also an important domain of inclusiveness: A major institutional benefit of diversity is the greater opportunity for new perspectives. While about one in three respondents strongly believed that “free and open expression of different viewpoints, ideas, and beliefs” are encouraged at MCPHS, about one in six disagreed to varying degrees.

The domains for which there are the greatest opportunities for growth are Psychological Safety and Transparency and Open Communication. These are areas that pose the biggest challenges for organizations, generally. The experience of Psychological Safety is critical to creating a workplace and learning climate where people can grow, learn, and contribute fully. Between a quarter and a third of faculty, students, and staff at MCPHS do not feel free to speak their minds because they fear negative consequences. While the majority strongly believe that they have not been the target of discrimination, about 20% of respondents believe that they have experienced some discrimination at MCPHS because of their background or personal characteristics.

The domain of Transparency and Open Communication is important for building trust in the institution. While most faculty, students, and staff feel that they are informed about matters that affect them, most still believe that you have to be an insider to know what is really going on at MCPHS. People feel informed but not fully involved.

While the ways faculty, students, and staff respond on average to survey items representing the seven Key Domains of Inclusion, examining the variability of responses related to diversity characteristics is also critical in the assessment of institutional inclusive climate. Three diversity characteristics most robustly related to differences across the seven Key Domains of Inclusion were Disability Status, Race/Ethnicity, and Sexual Orientation. Whether the respondent was a woman or man (Binary Gender) had strong effects for staff but not for faculty or students.

Faculty, students, and staff had less inclusive perceptions and experiences when they had a disability than when they did not. Staff with a disability had less positive perceptions and experiences than those without a disability for all seven domains. Faculty with a disability had less favorable responses for five of the seven domains (Interpersonal Inclusion, Inclusive Leadership, Diverse Perspectives, Psychological Safety, and Fairness and Equity). Students with disabilities responded less positively on three domains (Inclusive Leadership, Diverse Perspectives, and Fairness and Equity). With respect to sexual orientation, respondents who identified as a sexual minority, compared to those who identified as heterosexual/straight, experienced a lower level of inclusiveness, particularly among staff (for five of the seven domains: Relationship Resilience, Interpersonal Inclusion, Inclusive Leadership, Psychological Safety, and Transparency & Open Communication) and students (four of the seven domains: Relationship Resilience, Interpersonal Inclusion, Inclusive Leadership, Openness to Diverse Perspectives). Faculty who identified as a sexual minority scored lower on only one domain (Interpersonal Inclusion). There were significant differences based on race/ethnicity for all seven domains for staff and students and for six of the seven domains (all but Transparency & Open Communication) for faculty. Across faculty, students, and staff, respondents who identified as White/European perceived the MCPHS climate as the most inclusive, and those who identified as Black/African American experienced it as the least inclusive. There was no consistent pattern of effects based on religion.

Whether the respondent was a woman or man (Binary Gender) had a substantial effect on the responses of staff: Female staff members viewed the climate as less inclusive than did male staff members on all seven Key Domains of Inclusion. However, there were no systematic differences in any of the domains of inclusion as a function of binary gender for faculty and students.

In assessing the inclusive climate, it is important to recognize the differences, as well as similarities, in the experiences of faculty, students, and staff based on their diverse characteristics. A climate is truly inclusive when it is inclusive for members of all groups.

Diversity Science Recommendations

On September 27, 2023, Diversity Science shared its recommendations and recommended actions and advised MCPHS to dedicate its efforts to the following three recommendations, which addressed several domain targets and were a priority for Faculty, Students, and Staff.

1. Improve Current Communication Systems and Practices (Domain Targets: Transparency and Open Communication, Relationship Resilience, Inclusive Leadership, Fairness and Equity)
2. Increase Skills and Support for Constructive Disagreement (Domain Targets: Diverse Perspectives, Inclusive Leadership, Psychological Safety)
3. Create a Culture that Promotes the Open Expression of Diverse Ideas and Perspectives (Domain Targets: Transparency and Open Communication, Relationship Resilience, Inclusive Leadership, Fairness and Equity, Inclusive Leadership, Psychological Safety)

Next steps toward a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive climate at MCPHS

Growth toward a positive DEI climate is a continual process and is not achieved all at once. It is important to adopt a growth mindset in this process and to represent members from as many groups as possible in planning and implementing change. To be effective, the process needs to be strategic. It should be grounded in evidence, provided by the Inclusive Climate Assessment and other data, and guided by a clear vision. Moreover, it should be inclusive. The University is deeply committed to this enterprise and poised to move from assessment to strategic action.

In addition to sharing the results of the ICA with our community, MCPHS will create opportunities for our community members to learn more about the ICA findings and provide their feedback on the recommendations and actions. MCPHS's next steps include the following:

• In December, MCPHS will offer an online form on the MCPHS DEI webpage for the community to provide their feedback about the recommended actions.
• Students, Faculty, and Staff Focus Groups will be conducted in early Spring 2024 to discuss the recommendations and potential actions.
• MCPHS will use the information gathered through the survey, as well as insights from our community, to develop the university’s DEI Five-Year Strategic Plan. Throughout this process, MCPHS will engage with the university’s community as it creates working groups to design and implement the MCPHS DEI strategic plan, actions, and initiatives.

As a community, we at MCPHS will develop our roadmap for inclusion while at the same time implementing actions that continue to enhance our diversity, equity, and inclusion strategic priorities.