Diversity ‘Dine’alogue with Vice Provost, Dennis Mitchell: "Race and Policy in Higher Education"

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“It’s critical that voices are bubbling up across the University as central administration alone cannot solve all problems, especially in such an incredibly decentralized organization [like Columbia]” observed Dennis Mitchell, Vice Provost for Faculty Diversity and Inclusion. “I don’t have all of the answers, but let’s think through some as we move forward”, added Dr. Mitchell appealing to the room full of students, faculty, and staff who joined the Vice Provost for SIPA’s first Diversity 'Dine'alogue on April 11, 2018.

Vice Provost Mitchell discussed the timeline of University-wide initiatives spearheaded by the Office of Faculty Diversity and Inclusion and noted the prioritization of diversity under President Bollinger. Mitchell emphasized that Columbia was over a decade ahead and a leader amongst its Ivy peers in its commitment to faculty diversity, having dedicated over $85 million within the last 11 years. This is in addition to the recent 5-year commitment of $100 million announced last Fall under the leadership of President Bollinger and Vice Provost Mitchell.

Notwithstanding the approximately half-billion dollars now on the table as other Ivy plus universities have stepped up their commitments, Columbia and its peers remain challenged, which has meant increased competition to recruit and retain top faculty. This is particularly the case among tenured faculty where underrepresented groups currently make up only 10% of faculty, according to a recent TIAA Institute report.

However, there has been great success as well over the past five years, with the successful recruitment of 60 new hires from underrepresented groups, including four faculty through the new LGBTQ initiative. Although Mitchell acknowledged that this is relatively good among Columbia’s Ivy plus peers, it means “there is still a lot of work to be done”. He emphasized that it’s “critical we create environments to attract and retain faculty” and discussed guidelines for expanding the pipeline and supporting faculty throughout their careers.

- Laura McCreedy, MPA '21