Healy Hall from Dahlgren Quad framed by two trees
Category: University News

Title: Georgetown Releases First Cultural Climate Survey Results

“The task for us, within our Georgetown community, is to build and sustain a culture that encourages respect, inclusion, equity, and understanding that responds to and rejects all forms of discrimination.”

– President John J. DeGioia

Survey Development

Work on the survey began in August 2019 with the formation of the 2020 Campus Cultural Climate Survey working group. Led by Kilkenny and the Office of Institutional Diversity, Equity and Affirmative Action (IDEAA), in partnership with the Office of Assessment and Decision Support, the survey working group comprised faculty, staff and students from the Main Campus, Medical Center and Georgetown Law.

Adapted from the Culturally Engaging Campus Environments questionnaire developed by the National Institute for Transformation and Equity, the survey was designed to examine, understand and improve campus environments.

The university’s survey for undergraduates also included custom Georgetown-specific questions developed by the working group and student representatives. These questions covered topics on encounters with police, faculty diversity, campus facilities and accessibility, student services, affordability and food options, pronouns and preferred names and documentation status.

Moving Forward

The survey data will help inform ongoing discussion and action related to diversity, equity and inclusion. OADS will continue analysis on the survey responses on specific areas, such as pedagogy and the classroom experience, in order to support ongoing engagement with survey results.

University-wide and campus-specific efforts will focus on enhancing and building meaningful programs and support systems to ensure an inclusive education for all members of our community. As the Georgetown community continues to seek racial justice through teaching, research, artistic expression, advocacy and activism, new efforts will be informed by ongoing engagement with students, faculty and staff.

“In addition to new initiatives, we will welcome partnerships with student leaders from across the campuses to collaborate on moving us forward,” says Kilkenny. “It is imperative our university community know that talking about race and its intersections with other identities is really difficult – but also critically important.”