OID’s guidance for diversity, equity and inclusion learning consists of nine strategic priorities for student, faculty, and staff cultural competence.
While not exhaustive, OID’s guidance is comprehensive and attends to competencies at interpersonal, institutional, structural and global levels and is overlaid on the American Psychological Association's Layered Ecological Model of the Multicultural Guidelines.
OID’s guidance serves as a “place to begin” and a platform from which any member of the OSU community can make sense of cultural competence and chart a path for their learning, the learning of others and the transformation of their respective organizations.
OID’s guidance for diversity, equity and inclusion learning has many applications. We intend our guidance to have utility for all constituents of Oregon State University for integration in personal, organizational and community development. When reviewing this content, please be mindful that:
Individual learners (administrators, faculty, staff, students and community members) may find this guidance useful in the following ways:
Teams and leaders within organizations may find this guidance useful in the following ways:
KNOWLEDGE (6)
SKILLS (11)
ATTITUDES (4)
To better illustrate and clarify the nuances of the following nine cultural competencies, several examples of faculty, staff and student learning have been elaborated in five institutional contexts: (1) Instruction; (2) Research; (3) Leadership; (4) Support; and (5) Community. We expect viewers of this guidance to occupy multiple contexts and to find value in each illustration. Delineating each competency in diverse contexts improves clarity and relevance for the reader and also elaborates and advances our shared understanding as we work collectively for institutional change. For the purpose of this guidance, the following contexts were defined by the following roles, environments and responsibilities:
Instruction:
Research:
Leadership:
Support:
Community:
Faculty, staff, and student collaborators have helped the Office of Institutional Diversity elaborate our guidance by co-authoring 90 stories of faculty, staff, and student diversity, equity, and inclusion learning.
A culturally competent community member will recognize and understand that identity is fluid and complex and that interactions between individuals are dynamic. This includes appreciating and respecting that identity development is a long process, full of negotiations and shaped by a multiplicity of social contexts.
A culturally competent community member will recognize and understand self and others as socialized and cultural beings. This includes the examination of attitudes and beliefs that can influence our perceptions, interactions, and conceptualizations of others and challenging our own categorical assumptions, biases and misinformation about individuals and communities. A foundation and parameter of this domain is a shared belief in the inherent worth, dignity and respect of all human beings. Growth in this domain results in empathy, patience, and respect for self and others..
A culturally competent community member will recognize and understand the impact and influence of language in community interactions. This includes engaging others with responsiveness and sensitivity.
A culturally competent community member will recognize the diversity and dimensions of power and privilege in work styles and communication. This includes seeking to understand the impact and influence of our own norms and values of communication and collaboration on individuals and communities. Growth in this domain results in increased capacity to communicate and collaborate with people whom we disagree with.
A culturally competent community member will adapt their practices to meet the needs of diverse constituents. This includes ongoing evaluation of one’s practices to attend to the dynamic needs of individuals and communities. Growth in this domain results in increased motivation and capacity to engage with perspectives of those we do not understand or with which we disagree, as well as thoroughly consider opportunities to reevaluate our practices and experiment with new ways of being in the world.
A culturally competent community member will increase their awareness of the role of the social and physical environment in the lives of other community members. This includes the impact of campus climate and the built environment on others’ access and sense of belonging.
A culturally competent community member will understand and be intrinsically motivated to translate diversity, equity and inclusion concepts into their daily behaviors and decision-making. This includes bridging the theoretical to the practical and interacting with the immediate happening of our community and all its members in a manner that is congruent with our highest ideals. Individuals have responsibility to hold themselves responsible for this congruence and also explore how they can shape organizations to enable the congruence of others with institutional values.
A culturally competent community member will recognize and understand individuals’ and groups’ historical and contemporary experiences with power, privilege and oppression. This includes actively confronting institutional barriers, inequities and disparities in education and other systems in pursuit of justice, and doing so with thoughtfulness, savvy and an intersectional lens.
A culturally competent community member will examine one’s work and professional standards, assumptions and practices within an international context. This includes considering how economic, cultural and political globalization has an impact on one’s self-definition, purpose, role, and function.