(CBS-DETROIT) – The University of Michigan will no longer request diversity statements as part of its hiring process and when considering promotion and tenure.
University Provost Laurie McCauley announced the decision Thursday following the recommendation of an eight-member faculty working group.
“Diversity, equality and inclusivity are three of our core values at the university. Our collective efforts in this area have made important progress in opening opportunities for all people,” McCauley said in the University Record, the school’s faculty and staff publication. “As we continue this challenging and complex work, we will continually refine our approach.
“I am grateful for this faculty committee, which spent months soliciting feedback from across campus, evaluating our methods and determining the best course forward.”
In June, McCauley tasked that group with examining the use of diversity statements in the faculty hiring and promotion process at Michigan and other academic institutions and making a recommendation based on their findings.
According to the university, that group considered other universities’ policies, reviewed published reports and surveyed nearly 2,000 faculty members.
The university says that most faculty surveyed believe that diversity statements “put pressure on faculty to express specific positions on moral, political, or social issues” and that a slight majority disagree that these statements “have a enable institutions to demonstrate a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion by cultivating DEI” among faculty members.
“Critics of diversity statements view them as expressions of personal identity traits, support of specific ideology or opinions on socially relevant issues, and serve as a ‘litmus test’ for determining whether a faculty member’s views are politically acceptable,” the research group wrote. report. “Thus, as currently believed, diversity statements have the potential to limit viewpoints and reduce the diversity of thought among faculty members.”
The working group also said diversity statements can be useful in assessing the ability of applicants or faculty to contribute to the school’s mission.
Although the eight-member group recommended that the university include content about DEI in teaching, research and service statements, as well as training on writing and evaluating that content, the school did not adopt those recommendations.
CBS News Detroit has contacted McCauley’s office for comment and is awaiting a response.
