Goal 5. Support further research to advance the University's commitment to diversity and to assess the ways in which diversity advances the University's mission.

To assure Carolina 's path towards excellence in diversity, further research must be undertaken to investigate and review best practices in institutional diversity. Moreover, to assess the ways in which diversity contributes to educational excellence, the University must commit itself to ongoing study and documentation. Numerous issues emerged from the 2005 Task Force on Diversity that require deeper investigation and analysis. Adequate resources must be provided to key units in order to advance systemic and continuous research and assessment on these issues.

Action Steps

A number of research agendas should be developed to inform Carolina 's diversity goals and strategies. In particular, research projects should investigate the educational benefits of diversity in general and in the specific contexts of schools and colleges of the University. Research is also needed on the concept of critical mass both nationally and at Carolina as it affects underrepresented and low-income students, faculty and staff. Moreover, to assess the ways in which diversity contributes to excellence, the University must commit itself to ongoing study and documentation. Regular assessments of the state of diversity at Carolina should also be performed, building upon the baseline data captured in 2004. These assessments should include investigations of climate issues for underrepresented populations among faculty, staff and students.

Illustrative Benchmarks

Examples of benchmarks that can help measure the progress of research efforts on diversity include:

• Research reviews and findings published.
• Programs and processes revised, based on research findings.
• Research findings are used to inform programs, curricula and initiatives

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