Through the Innovation Buffs program, I am leading a team that will concentrate on one of the university’s greatest challenges—how to build a more diverse, equitable and inclusive campus community. Our goal is to identify problems and potential solutions using human-centered design techniques which will guide us through a progressive process starting with idea generation. This four-month program will culminate in November, when we will pitch our ideas to campus leaders. The human-centered design workshop seeks to minimize risk through rapid prototyping and continuous iteration, and encourage an inclusive process that gives participating staff a voice and a means to identify areas where individuals are affected by injustice, inequity and discrimination in higher education and beyond. After implementation, the university will measure progress by monitoring employee adoption and practice of human-centered design methods.

As a team leader, I ensure that weekly deliverables deadlines are met, guide discussions, communicate with workshop directors about any changes.

My team has chosen to focus on DEI training in the onboarding process for new staff. While there is currently no DEI training required for staff during the onboarding process. subsequent professional development opportunities offer a weak or surface level introduction to concepts of DEI and rarely go beyond the basics. Our goal is to create a robust program that encourages deep self reflection and gives participants the knowledge and language to confidently discuss and understand their relationship with DEI topics.
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This project is scheduled to culminate at the end of the Fall 2021 semester.