CHICAGO (October 24, 2016) — In an effort to better serve its intercultural campus community, şÚÁĎłÔąĎ launched its strategic new Diversity Team this academic year. Consisting of University Dean , Assistant Vice President for Student Engagement Dr. Barrington Price, Director of Diversity Jacqueline Strapp, and Director of the International Office Dr. Sumie Song, the team will focus on student success and recruitment, as well as retention of diverse students and faculty.
Strapp, who joined the staff this fall, is a 2008 North Park graduate. Her return to campus follows the appointment of Acosta as University dean and the creation of Price’s new role over the summer.
Acosta works with deans across campus to create strategies for faculty development and diversification, while Price, formerly the director of student success, provides leadership for students to effectively navigate college transition and establish clear pathways to graduation. Song will now also guide global campus conversations within the context of the diversity team.
Strapp calls the University’s approach to diversity programming “cutting-edge.” Here, she shares her thoughts on what compelled her to return to North Park, how the Office of Diversity is expanding its initiatives, and how their work addresses everyone on campus.
North Park: What made you want to return to North Park as a staff member?
Jacqueline Strapp: Having the chance to come back to North Park and really make some changes that I wish were being done for me when I was a student was an amazing opportunity. So I jumped at the chance to do that. I worked for some great institutions before I came here, but nothing can compare to being back where you started everything. I have a vested interest in North Park.
NP: What are some of the new initiatives that the Office of Diversity will be pursuing?
JS: We’re going to have a real focus on student success. It’s something that’s worked very well for the , helping students get integrated into college life and providing them with success counselors. So we’re going to emulate a lot of those practices. My background is in student success, making sure we’re increasing retention rates, specifically with students who are of minority status. So that’s really going to be helpful for us.
We also want to talk about topics that maybe have been avoided in the past on campus. What I’m hearing from students in conversations and from the administration is that we’re in a climate where we can’t ignore things anymore, we can’t talk around it.
NP: What are some of the sponsored talks you’re hosting?
JS: We’re going to hit things head-on, and we’re going to do things like talk about Black Lives Matter; immigration; “Race and Politics,” an event we just held, focused on some of the racial tensions that have been expanding in our country, and what that means for students.
This relates to student success because it’s very difficult for students to be successful with a lot of these things playing in the backdrops of their mind. You can’t separate a successful student from their experience—it goes together. So we’re addressing these issues and giving students places to talk about them safely.
We’re going to make sure we have a wide spectrum of views, and give students a chance to voice things that they’re thinking about. The process of letting people hear from others that are different from them, and becoming informed on things that maybe they weren’t before, is going to be huge. So this is going to play out on our campus in a lot of different areas.
NP: How does the work of the Diversity Team differ from how we’ve approached these issues in the past?
JS: The Division of Student Engagement has been really intentional in making sure we’re giving focus to each one of the areas represented on the team, whereas before, it’s largely fallen only to the Office of Diversity. So now with me specifically focusing on students, Barrington expanding his programs, Dr. Acosta focusing on faculty and staff, and Sumie focusing on the greater global picture, I feel like we have a dream team. I’m excited about the role we’re going to play on campus, making sure that we’re keeping leadership informed about things that are happening, how what’s going on in the world is impacting our students, and the changes that they want to make.
We’re going to start off by making sure our approach is data-driven. We’re going to conduct focus groups, including a climate survey for diversity across the entire campus, and we’re going to use the results from these focus groups and surveys to influence what we’re going to tackle first.
NP: How does Dr. Price’s work in student success within Student Engagement interact with yours within the Office of Diversity?
JS: Barrington has done great work with the COMPASS program, and working with and those cohort models. So our future-thinking is that we’re going to implement some cohorts and expand on what has already been done in COMPASS. They’ve done a great job of mentoring students—minority students, specifically—and encouraging their retention at şÚÁĎłÔąĎ. I looked at the data and said, “Whoa. We’re going to have to emulate this elsewhere.”
The Office of Diversity is under Student Engagement, and we’re going to be more intentional about making sure that our efforts are the same. We’re going to expand programming, and some of them will be working directly with me.
The Diversity Team is about focusing our positions, and zooming in on these specific things. That’s the difference that I love about this job. When I first heard about it, I thought, “Wow, that’s very intentional.” It’s cutting-edge for an institution to even take the time to change the structure and think strategically in this way.
NP: What are some of the ways that work will be expanded?
JS: We’re not just focusing on creating groups and places of community for individuals of minority backgrounds, but we’re also focusing on educating students that are outside of the minority status on issues and sensitivities that they need to have in order for them to be successful as whatever they plan to do in the world. They have to learn how to work with people of diverse backgrounds.
So that’s something else that’s going to be very intentionally targeted. Our events will not just be for minority students, although we do still have those. We’re going to be intentional about addressing the entire campus.
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