The fall 2017 ODA IPHY profile shows seven (of 21) tenure stream faculty members (30%) who identify as women, four (17%) who identify as people of color, and three (13%) who are members of underrepresented minority groups. These percentages place IPHY sixth, fourth, and first among the biological and environmental science units for diversity in these respective categories.
Of IPHY’s 1,743 undergraduate majors in fall 2017, the ODA unit profile reports that 74% are Colorado state residents and 2% are international students. Undergraduate majors include 68% who identify as women (ranking IPHY second of the eight departments in the review cycle), 30% identifying as Asian American, African American, Latinx, or indigenous (Native American or Pacific Islander) (second of the eight departments), and 19% who are members of underrepresented minority groups (third of the eight departments). The ODA unit profile reports fall 2017 demographics of 61 graduate students, including 35 master's (including BAM) and 26 PhD students. Of these, 84% were Colorado residents, 3% were international students, 46% identified as women (ranking IPHY seventh of the eight departments in the review cycle),18% identified as people of color (third of the eight departments), and 11% identified as belonging to an underrepresented minority population (third of the eight departments).
The self-study highlights the department’s participation in several campus programs intended to improve recruitment of underrepresented students into science, technology, engineering, and mathematics-based PhD programs. These include the Colorado Advantage Program, the Colorado Diversity Initiative’s Graduate Preview Weekend, and the CU SMART Program, which offers an opportunity for potential recruits to do summer work with a faculty mentor while also attending communication-focused workshops. The internal reviewers say: “We view the diversity issue as an ongoing challenge given the lack of articulation of specifics for how diversity is addressed in the self-study, and comments from those we spoke to such as the colloquium series being ‘very white and very male.” The internal reviewers also note a self-study comment that the IPHY diversity committee was disbanded. They requested examples of how the department considers inclusive excellence, above and beyond the mandatory discussion of hiring diversity. IPHY’s response struck the internal reviewers as vague and non-committal: “The Diversity Committee that previously existed was not active, and philosophically the IPHY leadership strongly believes that diversity and inclusiveness should be part of our ‘moral fabric,’ rather than being relegated to a ‘committee task.’ This is a recent change, and for the time being the Executive Committee will provide umbrella oversight for diversity and inclusiveness on issues pertaining to undergraduate and graduate student recruitment and retention.”
The unit’s overall climate appears to be positive, according to the results of a March 2018 climate survey addressed to IPHY faculty and staff members and to graduate student appointees. The overwhelming majority of faculty members and graduate students reported feeling respected and valued by their colleagues. However, a few items of concern remain; notably the lack of a sense of community by staff, consensus among faculty members and graduate students that they feel excluded from informal networks, and a dearth of departmental cohesion, likely exacerbated by the department’s previously noted physical dispersion.