News
Equity, Diversity and Inclusion at SFU: September in Review
The Equity Office and partners continue to work towards operationalizing our value of equity and belonging. Here is a snapshot of EDI actions advanced at SFU in September.
Demographic & Diversity Data Survey
Aligned with our commitments in the Equity Compass, SFU launched the Demographic and Diversity Data Survey to the SFU community on September 17. This survey will provide a clearer understanding of our community, helping SFU better meet regulatory and institutional commitments to faculty, staff and students.
Faculty, staff and students received the invitation to participate as a direct email from the Office of Institutional Research and Planning (IRP). The survey is not mandatory, however, each person that completes the survey contributes data that will help make SFU a better place to learn, research, teach and work. We encourage you to share the survey among your SFU network and remind your teams to contribute to this data collection initiative.
For more details, see the Demographic and Diversity Data Survey FAQs.
Tip: Depending on your email settings, your invite may have been filtered into your “Other” or “Spam” folders. Check those folders or search “IRP” to find the email.
EDI Community of Practice (CoPr) update
As the CoPr enters the second year of work, 'Pods' have developed as sub-sets of the larger CoPr to focus on three action areas identified as important by the community and aligned to the goals of the Equity Compass. The three pods are as follows:
- Training and Resources
- This Pod will identify and document the educational resources that already exist at SFU related to EDI and develop an appropriate pathway to share with the broader SFU community to support learning
- Faculty Leadership Development
- This Pod focuses on developing an EDI path towards leadership development for faculty who center EDI in their teaching, research and service.
- 2SLGBTQIA+ Equity Pod
- This pod focuses on advancing initiatives to address 2SLGBTQIA+ equity and inclusion structural gaps.
The Pods began meeting over the summer and will begin sharing their work with the larger CoPr over the next few months.
Accessibility Plan
The inaugural SFU Accessibility Plan is in its final stages of review and will be shared with the community in early October.
Days of Significance
A number of important initiatives and days of significance were observed in September including Consent Matters, World Suicide Prevention Day and International Day of Peace.
At the end of the month, SFU will commemorate National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, also known as Orange Shirt Day, with a number of events and activities across all three campuses. The SFU library also offers a wonderful starting point for resources on Orange Shirt Day here.
EDI-related supports are available
SFU is committed to creating a diverse, equitable and inclusive community for all. Important work is being undertaken by our Equity Office to ensure that SFU is a safe and welcoming space for all students, faculty and staff. Please see our list of identity-based supports and reach out if you need help. For all other supports, please visit our community supports page.