“With the need to mentor first year students scattered all around the world and transitioning all welcome and orientation programs into a virtual format, IC leaders had to grapple with various challenges faced by their peers. This led to a deeper understanding of how certain cultural and personal identities play a role in the academic and social success of students.”
-Mariyah Salem, Assistant Director of International Programs in the Davis International Center
Davis International Center
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Overview
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In 2019 the Davis International Center was invited to participate in the Diversity & Inclusion Framework Pilot Program. We identified the International Center (IC) Leader program as the best area to implement this project. This was an opportunity to be part of an initiative to assess how the IC Leader program meets the learning outcomes and goals set forth by the Student Learning Outcome Rubric, and also how the program might be able to integrate D&I more explicitly.
A process was set to include auditing the current IC Leader program, finding strategic areas within the program where the learning outcomes could be integrated, and then performing an assessment as a result of the effort(s).
The IC Leader program was mapped to the D&I Framework particularly focusing on the “Emergence” column of the learning outcomes rubric. By engaging in the mapping exercise and through planning conversations, we discovered the need to be mindful that the learning outcomes take into consideration not just a U.S. perspective but a more global view of diversity and inclusion, given the population served in Davis.
After mapping, we identified the IC Leader Fall Training as a good place to start. This meant that during the IC Leader Fall Training, leaders would engage in additional self-reflection about their identities and share with their peers. This allowed students to identify personal and social identities that they hold. During fall training we were also able to help students consider the integration of the framework into their goals for the year.
Mariyah Salem, Assistant Director of International Programs in the Davis International Center, provided the following reflection about how participating in the D&I Framework pilot program translated to the IC leader student experience.