The MIT Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (where I was a grad student) demands that faculty job applicants include a “diversity statement” and they helpfully explain how to write a successful one:
In general, a well-structured diversity statement mimics the structure of a teaching statement, showing your knowledge of the topics you choose to discuss, demonstrating a track record of advancing DEI through past experiences, and presenting your future plans around DEI, as shown in the structure diagram below. However, diversity statements may also contain the same content organized topically rather than chronologically. Typically, diversity statements are no longer than 1-2 pages.
1-2 pages to grapple with one of the greatest issues of our age?!?!
A faculty application diversity statement is NOT a document explaining how you as a candidate are diverse.
Self-criticism is welcome:
It may be appropriate to acknowledge aspects of your own marginalized identity and/or your own privilege
Learn from books, not by talking to the people you’re supposedly attempting to serve:
If you have not spent much time engaging with issues and ideas related to diversity, equity, and inclusion, it’s never too late to start educating yourself. Look for resources that will introduce you to relevant literature and help you learn about people with experiences different than your own. However, remember that it is not the job of members of an underrepresented or marginalized group to educate you on topics related to their experience.
It’s not about the quota, but “I will strive for gender parity among my graduate students.” (doesn’t this hatefully imply that that there are only two genders?):
Duckspeak galore!
In Amazon those are called weasel words 🙂
It looks like they have to reduce the number of women to reach gender parity:
https://www.aei.org/carpe-diem/women-earned-the-majority-of-doctoral-degrees-in-2020-for-the-12th-straight-year-and-outnumber-men-in-grad-school-148-to-100/
I still don’t care about Black Lives Matter!
Course 6’s best days are behind it and opening range. I, for one, welcome the new Zampolit class to the Institute.
Told you razing Building 20 was the start of the end. The Old Gods will not be mocked.
Seems to me that anyone who wants to think independently shouldn’t end up at a university more than necessary, though this is pretty bland as far as this sort of thing goes, like why wouldn’t you aspire to do most or all of the stuff in the table, except that you are being told to do it, and the gender parity aspiration does not imply to me two genders.
I always openly admitted trashing any student feedback without even reading it, on the grounds I know what students need to know, and how well, and I do not care about their ignorant opinions on a subject they have, by definition, not mastered in the least… my bad?
What is the end goal with respect to constantly forcing us to embrace diversity? Why do we have to constantly make concessions for “underrepresented” groups as opposed to encouraging them to elevate themselves to a point of responsibility for their own successes and failures? I was taught to regard challenges as an opportunity for growth instead of asking for the path forward to be easier.
Who gets to determine what constitutes diversity? Not too long ago, Italian and Irish immigrants to the US were discriminated against and they certainly weren’t considered “white” in the same sense that the word is used today. Now everyone with fair skin is lumped together as if Celtic people, Mediterranean people, Nordic people, Anglo-Saxons, Germanic people, Slavs, etc. all share the same background and the same culture. Those promoting these arbitrary diversity policies seem to have a very peculiar definition for diversity.
*and they certainly weren’t considered “white”*
This is an imbecilic lie. Quit repeating it.
It’s not just MIT, corporations are doing this too.
At my Big company we are constantly reminded of DEI and are asked to share our stories so they get published in our monthly news letter. And of course, we have to take and pass a yearly mandatory “training” on DEI. The test? Basic questions with 1 right answer to which you must get right and *agree* to even if the answer isn’t what you believe in.
Remember when diversity in CS meant using tabs or spaces?
They need to write a masking statement, grocery bag statement, & whatever else the current crisis is.
Question for MIT if there are more than 2 genders why are there only two choices for gender reassignment surgery?