A series of campus forums on Nov. 21 will launch the next phase in the University of Nebraska–Lincoln’s campuswide diversity and inclusion study.

The forums, led by Rona T. Halualani of Halualani and Associates, a leading national research firm that is assisting the university with the diversity and inclusion study, will discuss the diversity benchmarking results announced in October and the upcoming diversity mapping process. Details about both studies are available online.

“These forums will kickoff the next phase in the university’s diversity and inclusion study,” said Lance C. Pérez, interim dean of the College of Engineering and chair of the Chancellor’s Diversity Council. “Reports generated by this study will have long term impacts on how the institution addresses issues of diversity and inclusion. And, active participation by the campus community is essential as we move forward with this process.”

Rona Halualani will guide five hour-long forums on Nov. 21 in the Nebraska Union’s Centennial Room. Three of the sessions are designated for faculty, staff and student audiences, while the other two are open to the entire campus community. The final 15 minutes of each forum will allow for a question and answer exchange.

The forum schedule is:

• 11 a.m. — Faculty forum

• 1:30 p.m. — Staff forum

• 2:30 p.m. — Open forum

• 3:30 p.m. — Open forum

• 7 p.m. — Student organization forum

This study is part of the university’s continuous efforts to enhance diversity and inclusion on campus. Campus administrators and the Chancellor’s Diversity Council are currently leading the diversity and inclusion initiative.

Chancellor Ronnie Green has identified the initiative a priority for the university. Former chancellor Harvey Perlman launched the diversity and inclusion initiative during his 2014 State of the University address.

Based on feedback from the campus community and focus groups, the university has opted to pursue a long-term plan for systematic change rather than enact short-term strategies to address diversity issues. That decision led to the Office of Academic Affairs commissioning a report about best practices in the academic enterprise for diversity and inclusion. This report led to the university contracting with Halualani and Associates for deeper analysis and planning.

Halualani and Associates is a leading research and consulting organization primarily serving higher education institutions in diversity research, analytics, and consulting. Founded in 2008 by Rona T. Halualani and her brother, Roger Halualani, the California-based firm has mapped 35 colleges/universities, ranging from small to mid to large sized, public, private, and faith based types of institutions. Those institutions include Nebraska’s Big Ten Conference colleagues Michigan, Indiana and Penn State University.

For more information on diversity and inclusion at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, click here.