Diversity / Equity / Inclusion / Belonging

Students getting food from a buffet table

Our Commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging

Yale Engineering strives to create an inclusive and supportive environment for all members of its community to learn, work, and live our lives together. We acknowledge, welcome, and celebrate our differences, including those related to age, race and ethnicity, gender and gender identity, nationality, immigration status, sexual orientation, religion, disability status, and socioeconomic status. We work to prevent implicit biases from negatively impacting our community. Motivated by the understanding that research and education benefit from the supportive involvement of all people, we are committed to broadening participation and diversity in our departments and in our professions. We actively support the recruitment, retention, and success of undergraduate and graduate students, postdocs, staff, and faculty from varied backgrounds.

Our Action Plan

Our Action Plan outlines our goals and actions strategically developed for Yale Engineering to prioritize diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging as fundamental in the pursuit of academic excellence.

Our Resources

Our Resources page contains a collection of links to Yale’s policies, anonymous reporting hotlines, mental health & wellness, affinity groups, cultural centers, and many more resources at Yale.

 

Action Plan

As a part of a university-wide initiative, the Yale Engineering DEIB Committee developed a 5-year action plan, drawing heavily from the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Action plans of the Yale Engineering departments.

All of the actions from the plan include methods for measuring progress and are divided into 6 priority areas:

Scholarship, Research Practice and Teaching

Diversity of the Yale Community

Equitable Process, Procedure, and Response

Professional and Personal Development of Inclusive Practices

Acknowledgement, Recognition and Respect

Communications, Transparency, and Accountability

  1. Establish more formal mentorship structures between undergrads, grads, postdocs and faculty, and among staff
  2. Encourage community engagement to establish a culture of addressing harmful behavior through bystander training
  3. Incentivize activities to foster inclusion and mentorship between faculty PIs and members of research groups - retreat, social activities
  4. Establish SEAS best recruiting practices for graduate students, including database of institutions/organizations/events to reach out to for recruiting purposes and including best practices of community involvement
  5. Host DEIB Town Halls, including all members of the SEAS community, for schoolwide updates and opportunities for input
  • Incorporate DEIB into courses through discussions on issues encountered in research and professional settings, invited guest lecturers from diverse backgrounds, discoveries/histories of prominent URM researchers
  • Invite speakers of more diverse backgrounds (URMs, experiences outside of academia) for departmental seminars. Host broader DEIB-focused engagements with visitors, geared toward all members of the SEAS community
  • A semiannual message from the dean emphasizing SEAS DEIB efforts, requesting feedback, and highlighting the community diversity statement
  • Establish a SEAS events calendar, including DEIB events, academic seminars, social events, conferences, workshops; display on website and in physical spaces
  • Reach out to prospective graduate students, encourage to apply

Year 2 Summary

  • Offer evidence-based diversity training for students, postdocs, staff, and faculty, ensuring sufficient opportunities and accessibility for all to participate. Training will address implicit bias, inclusive teaching, and other relevant topics
  • Appoint SEAS DEIB point person; pursue dedicated DEIB personnel resources if enabled by the addition of staffing in SEAS
  • Communicate regularly with SEAS communities from departments and dean's office; include key events and decisions made of relevance to the unit
  • Create SEAS diversity website, which will include a SEAS diversity statement, highlighting opportunities and successes, including those of alumni
  • Track and report efforts and progress annually on DEIB goals and other key DEIB metrics

Year 1 Summary