Academic Council tackles faculty diversity in final 2014-15 meeting

A faculty-led task force on diversity reported to the Academic Council at its final meeting of the year Wednesday.

The Diversity Task Force was created in 2014 to assess the current status of diversity at Duke and make suggestions for improvement. Expanding the hiring process and promoting conversations about diversity should be central goals for the University, said Nan Jokerst, J. A. Jones distinguished professor of electrical and computer engineering and co-chair of the DTF.

“The DTF recommends that we focus on creating a culture of inclusion at Duke,” said Trina Jones, professor of law and co-chair of the DTF. “What we mean by this is we should try to create an environment that positively recognizes the value of different individuals—an environment that treats members of underrepresented groups as essential, constitutive members of Duke.”

According to the report, one way to encourage diversity could be the formation of diversity committees in each department and school. These committees could work to train faculty members and administrators in the importance of diversity and in ways to improve diversity within departments.

Duke can also learn from practices at its peer institutions, Jones said.

Currently, Duke has lower percentages of female faculty at all ranks when compared to schools in the Association of American Universities Data Exchange, which includes a number of top-ranked universities.

Historically, most initiatives to improve diversity have focused on race and gender, Jones said. Although race and gender continue to be priorities, she noted that sexual orientation and gender identity should also be areas of focus. Other conceptions of diversity—such as political ideology, religious beliefs and age—should also be considered, she added.

“We are all responsible for the Duke that we are and the Duke that we create,” Jones said. “This means that all of us—faculty and administrators—must work together to achieve greater diversity.”

A comparison between clinical and nonclinical faculty revealed significant differences in satisfaction. Nonclinical faculty reported notably higher satisfaction in 19 of 26 areas than did clinical faculty, whereas clinical faculty reported higher satisfaction in only one area.

There were notable findings among different racial groups. Asian faculty were found to have significantly lower satisfaction than white faculty. The survey also revealed that black faculty and Latino and Latina faculty are increasingly feeling devalued by their colleagues. In 2005, 80 percent of black faculty and 71 percent of Latino and Latina faculty agreed with the statement “My colleagues value my research/scholarship.” Those numbers fell to 52 percent and 54 percent in 2015.

A proposal to create a new master’s degree in analytical political economy was approved with 41 out of a possible 61 votes. The program, which was presented to the Council on April 16, will combine resources and advising from the fields of economics and political science.

Joshua Socolar, professor of physics, led the final meeting of his two-year term as chair of the Academic Council. Jokerst will replace Socolar July 1.

Adam Beyer contributed reporting.

Correction: This article previously stated that the Academic Council still had to elect Socolar's replacement when Jokerst had already been selected. The Chronicle regrets the error.