Mission
The Office for Diversity and Inclusion’s mission is to foster a welcoming and inclusive environment for the College of Nursing’s students, faculty, and staff. We are committed to promoting the essential values of diversity, equity, and inclusion through services, outreach, and consultation. The office works with constituents, both internal and external, to fulfill the mission and build a culture that celebrates diversity.
Commitment to Diversity
The College of Nursing embraces diversity, equity and inclusion as core values in both its mission and vision. We believe that the understanding and appreciation of diversity is fundamental for building the next generation of culturally sensitive nurses prepared to work with diverse communities.
Penn State Statement of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion:
The Office for Diversity and Inclusion in the College of Nursing fully supports Penn State’s Statement on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.
Penn State is committed to and accountable for advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion in all of its forms. We embrace individual uniqueness, foster a culture of inclusive excellence that supports both broad and specific diversity initiatives, leverage the educational and institutional benefits of diversity, and engage all individuals to help them thrive. We value inclusive excellence as a core strength and an essential element of our public service mission.
At Penn State:
- We will foster and maintain a safe environment of respect and inclusion for faculty, staff, students, and members of the communities we serve.
- We will educate our faculty, staff, and students to besocial justice advocates, creatively providing curricula, programs, and environments that reflect the diversity of our communities, and elevate cultural awareness.
- We will ensure fair and inclusive access to our facilities, programs, resources, and services, and ensure that all of our policies and practices are inclusive and equitable.
- We will advance and build our workforce by assessing hiring practices and performance review procedures to attract, retain, and develop talented faculty and staff from diverse backgrounds.
- We will address intergroup disparities in areas such as representation, retention, learning outcomes, and graduation rates.
Support and Services:
The Office for Diversity and Inclusion upholds the mission by providing:
- Advocacy for underrepresented undergraduate and graduate students, faculty and staff.
- Support for academic, personal, career, and financial related matters through individual or group meetings.
- A welcoming and safe atmosphere for dialogues, networking and community building.
- Guidance and referrals to resources within the college, the university, and local community.
- Relevant information on engaged scholarship opportunities, leadership development and scholarship exploration.
- Enrichment workshops on diverse topics that foster educational, professional, and cultural growth.
- A variety of programming that further the understanding of diversity, equity and inclusion.
- Support and expansion of efforts within the college that celebrate diversity, culture and heritage.
- Leadership to the College on initiatives for recruitment and retention of underrepresented graduate and undergraduate students, faculty and staff.
- Consultation and resources for administration, faculty and staff.
- Collaboration opportunities with external stakeholders.
Resources
Faculty and Staff
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Resources:
- Office for Graduate Educational Equity Programs leads the Graduate School’s efforts to foster diversity and to provide a welcoming climate for both prospective and current graduate students of underrepresented groups.
- Office of the Vice Provost for Educational Equity serves as a catalyst and advocate for Penn State’s diversity and inclusion initiatives.
- Affirmative Action Office serves as a resource in promoting and furthering the University’s commitment to equal opportunity and diversity.
- Student Disability Resources is the designated office that provides reasonable accommodations and services to students with disabilities enrolled at the University Park campus.
- Pasquerilla Spiritual Center promotes an environment of appreciation and respect for religious and spiritual diversity.
- Multicultural Resource Center provides individual counseling and educational services for undergraduate multicultural students.
- LGBTQA Student Resource Center provides a comprehensive range of education, information, and advocacy services to students, faculty, staff, and alumni.
- Paul Robeson Cultural Center provides cultural enrichment programming and social justice discussions.
- Gender Equity Center provides support for anyone who has been impacted by sexual violence, relationship violence, stalking, or harassment as well as education on gender equity issues.
- Adult Learner Programs provides support for non-traditional students.
- Office of Veterans Programs is a comprehensive, direct service unit for veterans and Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) benefits recipients.
Reporting Concerns:
- Report Bias is a webform for reporting acts of bias or intolerance that occur at Penn State.
- Office of Sexual Misconduct Prevention & Response ensures compliance with Title IX, a federal law that prohibits discrimination based on the sex or gender of employees and students.
- Affirmative Action Office responds to complaints of or concerns about prohibited harassment or discrimination.
- The Office of Ethics & Compliance
- Report A Crime – University Police & Public Safety provides information on how to report an on-campus crime.
Professional Diversity Nursing Resources
Connection with resources beyond the University for professional development and engagement is highly encouraged. Explore the many national organizations and initiatives that promote and advance diversity and inclusion listed below:
- American Assembly for Men in Nursing
- Asian American/Pacific Islander Nurses Association, Inc.
- MinorityNurse.com
- National Alaska Native American Indian Nurses Association, Inc.
- National Association of Hispanic Nurses, Inc.
- National Black Nurses Association (NBNA)
- National Coalition of Ethnic Minority Nurse Associations (NCEMNA)
- Philippine Nurses Association of America, Inc. (PNAA)
- Transcultural Nursing Society
- Black Nurses Rock