Posted noon Friday, Sept. 13, 2019
New, online employee training aims to foster a more inclusive campus, hour-long course available now.
New, online employee training aims to foster a more inclusive campus, hour-long course available now
A new online course to help foster a more inclusive UWL campus community is now available for all UW-La Crosse employees. All employees should have received an email with subject line “University of Wisconsin La Crosse Online Training” the week of Sept. 9. The email includes a personalized link to access the course, “Diversity: Inclusion in the Modern Workplace.”
UWL employees are expected to complete the course that imparts valuable knowledge and skills that will help employees excel in their work and maintain an inclusive campus environment. It can be completed in less than one hour.
The course includes both first person narratives and interactive components, which appealed to members of UWL's Joint Multicultural Affairs Committee, who wrote a letter to the chancellor’s leadership team recommending the training.
“The members of JMAC feel that this diversity training should become an essential and mandatory part of employee and student training because of the large number of hate/bias related incidents occurring on campus,” writes Yuko Iwai, associate professor of Educational Studies and chair of JMAC, in the letter.
The training also furthers two key components of UWL’s mission and strategic priorities: “Investing in Our People” and “Achieving Excellence Through Equity & Diversity.” The course has been reviewed by JMAC—which represents UWL's four governance groups—and members of the university's leadership team.
The course is similar to other required trainings UWL employees have completed in the past. It is intended to be just one step in a larger sequence of learning opportunities UWL is providing to faculty and staff. Many on campus have participated in workshops and trainings through the Center for Advancing Teaching & Learning, Campus Climate, the Institute for Social Justice, and other resources on campus.
In the near future, UWL will also offer a certificate program to recognize faculty and staff who have engaged in and implemented these concepts in the classroom, workplace, and community contexts. Visit the diversity training website for more information: www.uwlax.edu/diversity-training.