We strive to cultivate an inclusive and diverse community because we understand that diverse groups bring diverse perspectives; this diversity produces better outcomes in a variety of contexts, including learning and decision making, and our ability to work with one another.
Diversity enhances the learning potential in our classrooms, inspires and enriches our research, and improves the social climate of our classes, the department, and the university.
We strive for an environment where diverse lifestyles, cultural backgrounds, and orientations are considered assets to be valued and respected. We expect every member of our academic family to embrace the underlying values of this vision and to demonstrate a strong commitment to attracting, retaining, and supporting students, faculty, and staff who reflect the diversity of our larger society.
We are committed to enhancing diversity by working toward the following goals:
- Fostering an atmosphere of acceptance and inclusion in which all individuals are supported and integrated both academically and socially;
- Welcoming honest and open discussion regarding diversity issues;
- Attracting faculty, students, and staff of diverse backgrounds to our department and departmental programs;
- Incorporating diversity as a topic in our academic curriculum;
- Enhancing awareness of diversity issues through ongoing research.
In sum, we value diversity because multiple perspectives improve our ability to understand psychological processes and to understand and contribute to the communities we serve.