Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

About

The Burnett School of Medicine at TCU is committed to the precept that diversity and educational excellence go hand in hand. We believe that diversity and inclusion are key drivers of institutional excellence that can accelerate our ability to innovate and solve complex problems. Excellence in this context refers to high quality patient care, research, and teaching, a culturally responsive climate, a focus on community outreach, and an engaged workforce.

The Office of Diversity and Inclusion provides, coordination, oversight and leadership of the School of Medicine’s diversity and inclusion programs and leads school efforts to build a diverse faculty and inclusive environment that values and respects the contributions of all members of the community.

Establishing a Culture of Inclusion as a Strategy for Excellence

Vision: The Burnett School of Medicine is adopting a strategy of leveraging diversity and inclusion to drive the School’s mission of excellence in medical education, delivery of care and scholarship. The School of Medicine aspires to be a national leader in the creation and sharing of health knowledge within a culture that promotes equity, diversity, and inclusion. Through Inclusive Excellence, the School of Medicine stands firmly committed to and champions diversity and inclusion as core values central to its mission.

Inclusion as a Strategy for Excellence in the School of Medicine is the recognition that the institution’s success is dependent on how well it values, engages, and includes diverse faculty, staff, students, and trainees. More than a short-term project or a narrow initiative, this comprehensive approach requires a fundamental transformation of the School’s culture by embedding and practicing inclusion in every effort, aspect, and level of the institution. The goal is to make inclusion a norm that is implemented and practiced.

DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION STATEMENT

“This is an Inclusive Learning Environment”

At Burnett School of Medicine, we are committed to the creation and maintenance of an inclusive learning environment. These are places of learning where you will be treated with respect and dignity and where all individuals are provided equitable opportunities to participate, contribute, and succeed.

Here at the School of Medicine, the dimensions of diversity that students bring to class are a resource strength and benefit. Dimensions include sex, race, age, national origin, ethnicity, gender identity and expression, intellectual and physical ability, sexual orientation, income, faith and non-faith perspectives, socio-economic status, political ideology, education, primary language, family status, military experience, cognitive style, and communication style and other diverse identities. The intersection of these experiences and characteristics are valued in our community.

Your success at the School of Medicine and beyond is enhanced by the innovation and creativity of thought that inclusivity facilitates. The success of an inclusive learning environment relies on the participation, support, and understanding of you and your peers. We encourage you to speak up and share your views and understand that you are doing so in a learning environment in which we all are expected to engage respectfully and with regard to the dignity of all others. We are committed to working together to build a community that is anti-racist, diverse, and equitable, grounded on inclusion and committed to social justice.

Names and Pronouns Statement

Everyone has the right to be addressed by their preferred name and pronouns. Pronouns are the parts of speech we use to refer to someone instead of using their name. Using the right pronoun, like using someone’s correct name or title, is a way to show respect. Non-sexist pronouns and other unbiased references are expected. See these links for further information:

Appropriate Pronoun Usage
Stereotypes and Biased Language

 

Responsibilities

The Office has the following responsibilities:

  • Fostering inclusion, so that students, faculty, and staff from diverse talent pools experience a genuine sense of belonging, engagement, and achievement.
  • Providing leadership, guidance, and support across the school to conceptualize, define, assess and nurture the climate required for diversity, inclusion and excellence to thrive.
  • Address issues of faculty, staff and student diversity and work closely with department chairs, unit leaders and senior administration to develop robust school-wide Diversity and Inclusive Excellence Strategic Plan to help position diversity and inclusion as core to the school’s missions of medical education, delivery of care and scholarship.
  • Develop and implement community outreach and service-learning programs that address health care needs of people in our communities.
  • Supporting efforts to recruit and retain a more diverse workforce.

Other initiatives and responsibilities:

  • Serve as a member of key leadership groups in the Burnett School of Medicine and/or present regularly to key leadership groups on diversity and inclusion.
  • Identify and disseminate diversity and inclusion “best practices” within the medical school, hospitals and elsewhere.
  • Routinely provide a presentation and set of instructions concerning diversity to search committees and admissions committees.
  • Develop training curricula and programs in diversity and inclusion that are available to leaders and departments/divisions, and assume a leadership role in encouraging, offering and implementing these curricula and programs.
  • Serve as a liaison with internal and external groups that advance the cause of diversity and inclusion, including the TCU Diversity, Equity and Inclusion committee (DEI).