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Cultivating Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Educational Environments

1/31/2022

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It has been more than 60 years since Brown vs. Board of Education, one of the most important Supreme Court cases in the history of the United States. The decision made it illegal to segregate school systems on the basis of race. That cornerstone decision has played a major role in the efforts to destroy racial barriers. It has also enabled social scientists to study how diversity in the classroom can lead to an increased cultural understanding, strong critical thinking skills, and enhanced creativity for students.

It is important to utilize resources that will assist educators in creating a culturally inclusive classroom that celebrates diversity and inclusion. Providing instruction through a lens of diversity promotes inclusive thinking, learning, and educational practices. Once educators and students explore the benefits of promoting diversity in the school system, they can actively take steps to start implementing diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.


Diversity Improves Cognitive Abilities and Critical Thinking Skills:
The presence of diversity in the classroom allows students to consider perspectives and opinions beyond those they have already formed or were shaped in early life by family and friends. By presenting students with viewpoints far different from their own, it gives them the opportunity to think critically about their own beliefs and examine the world in fresh ways.

Exposure to Diversity Helps Students into Adulthood:
When students enter the professional world, they join a vast and diverse workforce. Interacting with people of all different backgrounds and mindsets can present a challenge without prior exposure to diversity, especially at a younger age. Therefore, it is essential for students to start participating in diversity-based programs now.

Diversity Improves Civic Engagement:
As part of the Century Foundation’s research study on diversity, the authors reviewed 27 different programs that reported the positive effects of diversity on people’s willingness to improve their local communities. Thus, when students immerse themselves in opportunities that promote diversity, equity, and inclusion, they can gain a better understanding of how to be an active participant in their communities.

Diversity Promotes Creativity:
At its core, creativity is all about uniting different ideas and transforming them to make something new, unique, and personal. The more ideas and experiences people are exposed to, the more creative they can be. Diversity will foster optimism and a free-flow of thinking throughout the school system.


Schools can benefit from diversity, equity, and inclusion policies and programs to assist students and faculty members in becoming well-rounded individuals. School systems should identify the school's priorities, values, and program needs. Then, the school can measure its progress over time. 


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The Importance of Inclusion in the Workplace

1/18/2022

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What is Inclusion?

Inclusion focuses on offering all people equal access to available resources, opportunities, and education. Without inclusion, many groups and people feel marginalized or even excluded in their own communities, workplaces, and school systems.

Within the context of the workplace, inclusion allows a company to foster a work environment where every individual is treated with fairness and respect. Each employee is encouraged to contribute to the organization's success. Empowering employees to celebrate their unique characteristics and talents is an essential part of creating an inclusive work culture.  

The Benefits of Inclusion in the Workplace:


According to Deloitte, companies with an inclusive work culture enjoy 2.3 times more cash flow per employee. Gartner equally realized that an inclusive team's performance could improve by as much as 30% in high diversity environments. Boston Consulting Group reported that organizations with diverse management teams witnessed a 19% increase in their revenue compared to those with a less diverse team set-up.

These 
statistics reveal how important it is to build and implement inclusion initiatives within the workplace. What advantages do you think will result from creating an inclusive work culture?

A Sense of Belonging Creates a Respectful and Prosperous Environment:

When workers feel a sense of belonging, they reap substantial bottom-line benefits. According to Harvard Business Review, a sense of belonging was responsible for a 56% increase in job performance, a 50% drop in turnover risk, and a 75% reduction for sick days. Employees also showed a 167% increase in employer promoter score (the willingness and probability that they would recommend their company to other people). Employees feel a greater level of respect and comfort in their daily operations when they are involved in inclusion-based initiatives.

Inclusion Leads to Bigger Talent Pools:

Companies must continually evaluate the structure of its recruiting process to ensure a diverse hiring pool. When the recruitment process includes more diverse candidates from various backgrounds, ethnicities, ages, religions, and educational statuses, the potential to discover talent improves. According to a survey conducted by Glassdoor, 72% of women, 89% of African Americans, 80% of Asians, and 70% of Latinos acknowledged that inclusion and diversity were essential values needed in the workplace. 

Inclusion Encourages Innovation and Optimism:

There is a higher probability of a team generating fresh and creative ideas when it has more diverse individuals contributing to the discussion. Harvard Business Review discovered there was a direct relationship between diversity and innovation. The most diverse enterprises in terms of migration, industry, career path, gender, education, and age happened to also be the most innovative. Diverse teams can identify products and services that fit the needs of emerging customer profiles.

Inclusion Fosters Quality Decision-Making:

Inclusive and diverse teams are in a position to make decisions that represent the company's values and the client's needs. Cloverpop, an online decision-making platform, analyzed 60 business decisions made by 200 teams. Cloverpop concluded that diverse teams demonstrated 60% improvement in decision-making. On average, gender-diverse teams specifically outperformed individual decision-makers 73% of the time. 


Overall, companies that develop and implement training, programs, and practices centered around inclusion will foster a workplace environment that will help employees feel respected and valued. When employees know that their company cares about their contributions and wants to celebrate their individuality, the entire enterprise will benefit as a whole.


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    Author

    Joseline J. Hardrick is the Founder and President of Diversity Access Pipeline, Inc. She is also an author, professor, and lawyer and resides in Tampa Bay, Florida. Guest bloggers are students in the Journey to Esquire® Scholarship & Leadership  Program.

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