(electronic music)
Inclusive excellence is important to engineering
for two very simple reasons.
First of all, if we're going to meet the workforce needs
of the state and the nation,
we need more people studying engineering.
And that's only gonna happen
if we diversify our student body.
Secondly, it's been documented in several studies
that diverse engineering teams are more productive
and lead to better solutions.
So industry is demanding a more diverse workforce.
It's our job to provide that workforce, so it's important.
We are one of only three colleges
of engineering in the United States
to have received silver recognition
from the American Society of Engineering Education.
We're very proud of that accomplishment,
and other universities are coming to us
to learn about what we did to earn that recognition.
Among our initiatives with respect to inclusive excellence,
include our complete engineer program
that seeks to develop six non-technical competencies.
They include things such as teamwork, communications,
professional ethics and inclusive excellence.
We have created several cohort programs
to diversify our student body.
This includes our Women in Engineering Program
and our Multicultural Engineering Program.
We've also partnered with the Peter Kiewit Foundation
to create the Peter Kiewit Foundation Engineering Academy.
This amazing program provides the complete cost of education
for 40 students per year,
and is focused on diversifying the engineering workforce.
These are just some of the things that we are doing
to broaden the diversity
of students in the College of Engineering.
We wouldn't have had the success we've had
with respective inclusive excellence if it hadn't been part
of a broader culture change in the college,
and if that hadn't been fully embraced
by our faculty, staff, and students.
And we're fortunate
that we are now a national leader in these efforts.
People are looking to us
to explore how they can have the similar change
within their colleges.
We have lots of work yet to do,
but we're on the right track
and our trajectory is really great.