Need for Collaborative and Evidence-based Culture for DEI Commitment at Higher Ed
Dr. Tanuj Singh1 and Dr. Anupama Singh2
1Clarion

University tsingh@clarion.edu

2Drexel

University as5456@drexel.edu

Keyword: Student Affairs (SA), Academic Affairs (AA), Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Higher
Education
Introduction:
This conceptual paper will holistically discuss diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the
context of higher education institutions in the USA. We will delineate the DEI-related planning
and policies higher education institutions are undertaking, the existing challenges and provide
recommendations on the best practices. The landscape of Higher education institutions is more
diverse now than a decade ago. The shift is more evident among students than faculty and staff.
According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), college attendance increased
among every racial minority group between 1976 and 2018. We can witness an upward
movement in the socioeconomic diversity among students; Pell Grant recipients nearly doubled
within the last two decades. The increase in student diversity over the past decades is indicative
of the enduring success of the U.S. higher education system. This change also caters to the
changing values, priorities, and needs of 21st-century College students. The evolution should be
attributed to revising the missions and visions of the higher education institutions, systemic
policy changes, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) becoming the strategic priority of
institutions and student activism.
Higher education-related scholars have generated a robust body of evidence on the significance
of DEI on college campuses. "Research has shown that diverse groups are more effective at
problem-solving than homogeneous groups, and policies that promote diversity and inclusion
will enhance our ability to draw from the broadest possible pool of talent, solve our toughest
challenges, maximize employee engagement and innovation, and lead by example by setting a
high standard for providing access to opportunity to all segments of our society." - President
Obama, October 5, 2016
Even after the steady increase in diversity, U.S. colleges and universities face several challenges
with DEI.
Conceptual Framework
The proposition that guides the flow of the paper is that institutions need to deepen their DEI
capacity to optimally facilitate the interplay between internal and external constituents that
disrupt inequitable policies and practices and seek to create conditions for minoritized student
populations to thrive. Consequently, this study draws on the conceptual framework of LePeau's
(2015) Cycle of Continuous Commitments to Diversity and Inclusion. LePeau (2015)
contextualized barriers to a partnership that are both seen and unseen in Academic Affairs (A.A.)
and Student Affairs (S.A.) organizational cultures. LePeau argued that the normative separation

between the two is related to "the premise that A.A. and S.A. are rewarded differently, that is,
more often faculty are rewarded for working in isolation through individual scholarly pursuits for
the tenure and promotion process while S.A. is rewarded for working collaboratively" (p. 99).
LePeau's (2015) model points to the need to intentionally explore how institutional subcultures
(whether it be academic affairs student affairs) related to the prospect of realizing an
organizationally pervasive commitment to DEI (Rall et al., 2020) facilitated by the development
of collaborations across subcultures. Another model that guided the paper is Data-Driven
Decision Making (DDDM). DDDM is a process for deciding on a course of action based on data.
As data systems and technologies have become more accessible and interactive, it has become
easier to use data to inform decision-making. DDDM can move an organization toward an
evidence-based culture focused on the future. It promotes decisions based on data,
experimentation, and evidence rather than opinions or intuition.
Based on the framework, this paper will point to the need for data governance in terms of DEI at
higher education institutions and intentionally explore how institutional subcultures (whether it
be academic affairs student affairs) related to the prospect of realizing an organizationally
pervasive commitment to DEI (Rall et al., 2020) facilitated by the development of collaborations
across subcultures.
References:
LePeau, L. A. (2015). A grounded theory of academic affairs and student affairs partnerships for
diversity and inclusion aims. The Review of Higher Education, 39(1), 97–122.
https://doi.org/10.1353/rhe.2015. 0044

Rall, R. M., Morgan, D. L., & Commodore, F. (2020). Towards culturally sustaining
governance: Best prac[1]tices of theory, research, and practice. Journal of Education Human
Resources,

National Center for Education Statistics.2018. Chapter 3: Postsecondary Education. Digest of
Education Statistics: 2016 (2017-094).
Raising the Floor: Sharing What Works in Workplace Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion |
whitehouse.gov (archives.gov)