Program offers financial support, literacy programming. It didn’t take long for Sarah Bencivenga to know the University of Delaware was the right fit for her. The Toms River, New Jersey, native was recruited in 2013 to play softball, and by sophomore year, her bio had…
Inclusive Excellence
Our University is committed to embracing a diverse and inclusive campus that reflects our collective views, experiences, capabilities, cultures, aspirations, and ultimately our commitment to excellence.
Educational communities are enriched by the contributions and full participation of people from different backgrounds.
We strive to:
- Increase the racial and cultural diversity of its students, faculty and staff.
- Create a climate that encourages the University community to respect and appreciate individual and cultural differences.
- Promote equity for people of different backgrounds throughout all areas of University life.
- Develop organizational practices that include the participation and perspectives of these groups.
- Enhance the curriculum by including the contributions and perspectives of different races, cultures and gender
Status Report
One of the hallmarks of a great institution is its ability to harness the extraordinary gifts and talents of its diverse citizenry to do extraordinary things in our communities that change the world.
Inclusive Excellence, as a practice, ensures that we as an institution continue to cultivate an environment at UD that promotes student success and the holistic development of faculty and staff. Diversity is a core value and guiding principle for the University of Delaware’s educational mission as we work to prepare students to live in an increasingly interconnected and diverse world. We are committed to building an inclusive educational community, one whose excellence is based not only on stellar disciplinary achievement, but also on understanding people from different backgrounds and circumstances, with different needs, perspectives and ways of thinking. We work hard to make all people who are part of the University feel welcomed and valued in campus life.
Areas of Progress 2017
- New staff positions, rich programming, scholarships and community-based partnerships focused on attracting underrepresented and first-generation undergraduate and graduate students and ensuring their success and persistence to graduation;
- New resources dedicated to the recruitment, retention, and advancement of a diverse faculty;
- Training, courses, and mentoring programs to bolster hiring and retention of underrepresented employees and encourage respect for and appreciation of individual differences; and
- Mechanisms for ensuring continued diversity planning and accountability.
We Are Diversity
Diversity on campus benefits all students. We know that being around people from diverse backgrounds fosters innovation and encourages collaboration. Increased racial diversity on campus is positive, and results in higher levels of academic achievement and contributes to the improvement of intergroup relations.
Engaging with our Community
Engaged, dedicated, loyal and enthusiastic are some of the adjectives that describe the University of Delaware community.
The University plays an integral role in Newark and the state of Delaware, working to better the community with service projects, research benefiting local agencies and industries, and public outreach throughout the state.
Among the University’s greatest strengths is its long and vibrant tradition of public service. In a recent national survey, 75 percent of UD students indicated that they participated in community service by the time they were seniors. In 2015, UD was recognized with the Community Engagement Classification from the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.
UD is the place to hear world-renowned speakers, enjoy first-rate music and theatre, cheer on Fightin’ Blue Hens teams and see compelling exhibits, all of which complement the rich academic experience.
Combating Food Waste
UD students, faculty and Dining Services pitch in to fight waste, hunger. Food waste is an extremely frustrating concept. According to the Natural Resources Defense Council, approximately 40 percent of food in the U.S. is never eaten; simultaneously, one in eight…
Flint Rising: A Call to Protect Our Water and Our Human Rights
featuring Gina Luster, Co-founder of Flint Rising Wednesday, April 11, 2018 @ 6:00pm University of Delaware, Memorial Hall, Room 127 Residents of Flint, Michigan, are living with poisoned water in a crisis that has riveted the nation and exposed the deadly…
Breaking Barriers
Celebrating William Majett Jr. As the University of Delaware’s Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics celebrates the 100-year anniversary of business education at UD, the Breaking Barriers blog series tells the stories of the first individuals from…
Campus Connections
- Division of Student Life
- Office of Equity and Inclusion
- Center for the Study of Diversity
- Office of Disability Support Services
Student Life supports your self-discovery and development through opportunities to cultivate your curiosity, develop awareness of your interests/strengths/values, build a greater understanding of your personal identity, and draw meaningful connections between your identity and your purpose in life.
Providing leadership and support in creating an equitable, diverse and inclusive working and learning environment for all in our community. OEI is responsible for managing complaints of harassment and discrimination, affirmative action compliance, protection of minors on campus, and on-going education in all of these areas.
The Center for the Study of Diversity promotes academic research and scholarship that facilitate dialogues about and understanding of the social and academic impact of diversity. The Center brings a broadly interdisciplinary focus to its activities, projects, programs, and publications on research and analysis, training, public scholarship, community projects, and information dissemination. The goals of these activities are to:
1.) generate and transmit scholarship about specific diversity-related issues both at UD and beyond;
2.) fund faculty and graduate student research and projects related to diversity;
3.) bring outstanding researchers and scholars of diversity to campus to share their expertise;
4.) communicate the results of the Center’s research and scholarship;
5.) apply scholarship of Center faculty to community issues; and
6.) assist the Vice Provost for Diversity in identifying diversity objectives and information needs for the University of Delaware.
The University of Delaware is committed to providing access to its academic experience, employment opportunities, programs and activities for all individuals with disabilities. Through an interactive process that includes the individual with a disability and various campus stakeholders, the Office of Disability Support Services (DSS) facilitates appropriate and reasonable accommodations in order to eliminate or minimize accessibility barriers the individual may face. DSS also provides educational resources and consultation to the University community across a variety of topics related to accessibility and inclusion of people with disabilities within our community. Reporting to the Office of the Vice Provost for Diversity, DSS is proud to be a partner in the University of Delaware’s commitment to embracing a diverse and inclusive campus that reflects our collective views, experiences, capabilities, cultures, aspirations, and ultimately our commitment to excellence.
