Mohawk College recognized for leadership in equity, diversity and inclusion

dimensions-logo-foundation

Mohawk College is among only two colleges and eight universities in Canada to be recognized under the Dimensions: equity, diversity and inclusion Canada program, receiving a Foundation Stage designation in an announcement made today.

Dimensions is a recognition program introduced by the federal government to help drive deeper EDI cultural change across the post-secondary research sector. Mohawk’s recognition reflects that the college has started to address equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) in a strategic and coordinated way, and has met the expectations of the first of four stages of the program.

“Mohawk College is committed to supporting evidence-based EDI work and identifying and eliminating obstacles and inequities in its research administration and practices,” said Mohawk College President and CEO Ron J. McKerlie. “This recognition confirms that we are moving in the right direction and reminds us that there is much more work to be done. We are motivated to continue through the stages of the Dimensions model to demonstrate that EDI is a regular core activity of day-to-day research-related operations at the college.”

The applications were independently assessed by a committee of 18 academics and professionals with EDI expertise and lived experiences. Institutions provided extensive evidence of the state of EDI in their respective institutions gathered through broad community engagement, gaining insight into the culture of the institution; critical analysis of internal policy and practices; and qualitative and quantitative data collection to identify barriers and gaps. Informed by these sources of evidence, institutions set forth innovative and ambitious initiatives in their action plans that will help measure their progress over the years.

Mohawk College has been a proud member of the Dimensions pilot cohort since May 2019, contributing to the development of the current program. The main objective of the program is to help drive a deep cultural change within the Canadian postsecondary research ecosystem by identifying and eliminating obstacles and inequities faced by women, Indigenous people, persons with disabilities, members of racialized groups, and members of 2SLGBTQI+ communities. Dimensions is one of the leading international programs promoting EDI in higher education, along with Athena SWAN and the Race Equality Charter in the United Kingdom, Athena SWAN in Ireland, SAGE in Australia and SEA Change in the United States.

Dimensions: equity, diversity and inclusion Canada is supported by the three federal research granting councils: the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC).

2023 Recipients

Stage 1 - Foundation

Mohawk College

Mount Saint Vincent University

University of Ottawa

University of Winnipeg

Stage 2 - Construction

Sheridan College

Toronto Metropolitan University

The University of British Columbia

Université Laval

University of Calgary

Wilfred Laurier University

The four recognition stages for Dimensions are:

Stage 1 – Foundation

• The institution is in the early stages of strategically addressing EDI in a coordinated way.
• A strategy to collect representational data has been established.

Stage 2 – Construction

• The institution is strategically addressing EDI in a coordinated way.
• It has done critical self-assessment and reflection, as well as the development and implementation of an action plan.
• Preparation for the assessment of impact and effectiveness of the action plan is underway.

Stage 3 – Consolidation

• The institution has made significant progress in addressing the issues established in its action plan.
• Course correction analysis has been performed, and the institution shows responsiveness to outcomes and analysis of implemented actions.

Stage 4 – Transformation

• The institution has made substantial progress on issues identified in successive action plans and can provide evidence that shows representational and cultural change with respect to EDI.
• EDI is a regular core activity of the day-to-day research-related operations of the institution.
• But reaching the Transformation stage does not mean the project of addressing EDI is complete.