NADOHE 2nd Annual Standards of Professional Practice Institute a Success!

June 20, 2018 - The National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education (NADOHE) second annual Standards of Professional Practice Institute (SPPI), June 13 - 16, 2018, concluded this past weekend with nearly fifty registrants and faculty in attendance. Held at the Georgia Institute of Technology Global Learning Center, Atlanta, participants spent three and one-half days engaging in structured learning and in-depth conversation around best practices and research related to professional competencies for leaders in higher education diversity and inclusion.

NADOHE president Archie W. Ervin notes, " We are excited to have reached this point in our maturation as a national association to conceptualize, design and deliver a program of this caliber and impact. As diversity and inclusion professionals, we are uniquely positioned by our collective expertise and knowledge of best and effective practices to offer guidance and solutions that will move our college campuses and society toward becoming truly more equitable and inclusive communities."

Published in the Journal of Diversity in Higher Education (Nov 2014), the Standards of Professional Practice for Chief Diversity Officers (CDOs) continue to advance the professionalization of the CDO role across institutions of higher education. The standards provide comprehensive guidelines that can inform the work of current and aspiring CDOs in providing effective institutional leadership. A link to the standards is available on the NADOHE website, http://www.nadohe.org/nadohe-standards. 

"The standards are a tool to facilitate the advancement of significant and effective change on college and university campuses by emphasizing the CDO role as an organizational change agent for equity, diversity and inclusion," remarks NADOHE Professional Development Committee Chair, Rosemary Kilkenny, Georgetown University who, along with co-chair Clyde Wilson Pickett, Minnesota State, facilitated the development of the inaugural Institute. Pickett comments, “This intensive professional development opportunity for current and aspiring higher education diversity leaders is critical to our collective success in moving the needle towards advancing inclusive excellence in higher education.”

The Institute faculty consisted of nationally renowned researchers and practitioners who engaged and challenged Institute participants.  This included: 

• Dr. Nancy “Rusty” Barcelo, Past President, Northern New Mexico College
• Dr. Mitchell Chang, Professor of Higher Education and Organizational Change and Asian American Studies, University of California, Los Angeles 
• Dr. Archie Ervin, Vice President, Institute Diversity, Georgia Institute of Technology
• Dr. Paulette Granberry Russell, Senior Advisor to the President for Diversity, Michigan State University
• Dr. William B. Harvey, Founding President, NADOHE
• Dr. Joan Holmes, Special Assistant to the President for Equity and Special Programs (Retired), Hillsborough Community College
• Dr. Elizabeth Ortiz, Vice President, Office of Institutional Diversity and Equity, DePaul University
• Dr. Benjamin D. Reese, Jr., Vice President, Institutional Equity, Duke University
• Dr. Debbie M. Seeberger, Assistant Vice President for Diversity and Inclusion, Towson University
• Dr. Christine Stanley, Vice President and Associate Provost Emerita, Texas A & M University
• Dr. Clyde Wilson Pickett, Chief Diversity Officer, Minnesota State 
• Dr. Roger L. Worthington, Interim Associate Provost and Chief Diversity Officer, Office of Diversity and Inclusion, University of Maryland, College Park

Dr. Mitchell Chang, Institute faculty member and Professor of Higher Education and Organizational Change and Asian American Studies, University of California, Los Angeles notes, “The work concerning diversity in higher education has become increasingly more complicated and challenging and those who provide key leadership for this work need to continually build their skills and networks. Given the high stakes associated with diversity, opportunities such as those sponsored by NADOHE provide the much needed support to enable campus leaders to achieve desirable outcomes that facilitate their respective institution’s broader educational mission.” 

SPPI registrants, representing institutions ranging in size and scope, also left feeling engaged and energized.

“The engaging and interactive sessions during\the Standards for Professional Practice Institute produced robust discussion and fostered a safe space for honest dialogue that addressed some of the challenges of being a Diversity Officer. As a seasoned Diversity Officer, this Institute provided an affirming, cathartic and enjoyable experience.  It was exactly what I needed!” notes Naomi R. Thompson, J.D., Associate Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer, Office of Community, Equity and Diversity, The University of Rhode Island.

Dr. Willie Clarence Fleming, LPC, Chief Diversity Officer, Office of the Chancellor, Appalachian State University, comments,“The Institute was the most important career endeavor I've engaged in since taking my position as CDO at Appalachian State University two years ago.  This is a first year "must do" for any new CDO and much needed for the seasoned CDO.  I found the course work relevant, and the professional disclosure from the instructors meaningful and most affirming.”

Plans are underway for the 2019 Standards of Professional Practice Institute and more information on this will be available shortly.

NADOHE serves as the preeminent voice for diversity officers in higher education. Its vision is to lead higher education towards inclusive excellence through institutional transformation. For more information about NADOHE, please call 561-472-8479 or visit www.nadohe.org.