How “set in stone” are the plan’s goals and objectives?

The goals and objectives, published in draft form in October 2021, were developed based on both the data gathered through the IDE planning process, as well as data already available at Carleton. So, a better way of thinking about these is not that they are “set in stone” so much as “data driven.”

The IDE Steering Group built the goals and objectives specifically to address this data and in response to its particular charge to develop a 10-year plan focused on racial equity. The goals and objectives are intended to be durable and flexible enough to allow for new and updated strategies over the course of the decade beyond those that are included in the initial round of strategies. 

The Steering Group received input that was used to refine the goals and objectives, primarily from the president’s senior leadership group and the Board of Trustees, and we expect that the language will remain relatively unchanged. Future drafts with the specific strategies included will be offered for feedback to campus constituencies at the end of January 2022, as well as on the IDE website.

View the October 2021 IDE Steering Group presentation on the goals and objectives of the plan.

Will the working groups revisit the goals and objectives, or are they working within these set parameters? What are the mechanisms to provide input into the IDE Plan?

While there may be some minor adjustments to some of the wording in the goals and objectives, that is not the focus of the working groups’ efforts. Working groups will provide a first round of strategies to help Carleton achieve those goals and objectives with the idea that more strategies can be added as it becomes evident what is working and what is not.

The working groups will seek input and expertise from the community in various ways as they move ahead with their task. All stakeholders are invited to provide input through the feedback form on this website or directly to Steering Committee Co-Chairs Jeninne McGee and Chico Zimmerman.

I don’t see the equity and inclusion issues that I care about specifically named in the draft plan. Why aren’t they included?

This is Carleton’s first strategic plan in the area of IDE, and we know that it cannot address every issue that our community has concerns about. We are trying to improve the institutional experience of our community members in a way that is measurable and sustainable. The draft plan does not preclude the institution carrying out other IDE initiatives; indeed, we hope that the plan will bring with it more clarity and capacity to do other valuable work in this area. The final plan will contain more contextualizing language than early drafts.

I’m concerned this process is closed off or already decided. What has been done to ensure transparency?

The IDE Steering Group solicited broad input during the data-gathering and analysis phase in the winter and spring of 2021. Presentations were made to faculty, staff, students and alumni in June 2021 to share major themes that emerged from the data collection phase of the planning process. These themes are foundational to understanding the work we were charged to do. The presentations are available on this website.

This process of developing an IDE Plan involves using representatives from various stakeholder groups, people with direct accountability for IDE strategies, data, and feedback. The Steering Group will continue to solicit input as it carries out its charge of developing the actual strategies for the institutional plan. Input may also be provided through the feedback form on this website or directly to Steering Committee Co-Chairs Jeninne McGee and Chico Zimmerman.