Booth School of Business

The Chicago Booth Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan (2020) states that the school would "evaluate new ways to develop a strong pipeline of diverse candidates, including at both the college and pre-college levels, and will gather information and insight to understand why underrepresented minority (URM) students choose other schools over Booth."

The school has a webpage dedicated to "Underrepresented Students of Color" which states that the school was the "first business school to establish a minority scholarship program" and that the school continues to "work to increase access to a top-tier business education for students of color from underrepresented communities." The webpage also lists its partnerships and events aimed at increasing enrollment of underrepresented students of color at Booth.

Booth's ongoing recruiting initiatives include the following: "virtual and in-person diversity events; one-on-one office hours with diversity outreach staff; initiatives in diverse markets globally aimed at attracting more women to the Executive MBA Program; affinity group events expanding pipeline development with outreach to organizations and undergraduate schools, including historically Black colleges and universities; and frequent evaluations of our recruiting initiatives to measure diversity and inclusion efforts."

Booth partners with several student organizations for its recruitment initiatives, including the African American MBA Association, Chicago Women in Business, Hispanic American Business Students Association, OUTreach, Coalition of Minorities in Business, Booth Pride Group, and Graduate Women in Business. Booth also partners with affinity alumni groups such as the Chicago Booth Black Alumni Association and the Hispanic/Latinx Booth Alumni Association.

The Chicago Booth Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan (2020) states that "Implicit bias training will continue to be an important component of interviewer training" and that the school "will utilize the interview process to evaluate MBA candidates for qualities of empathy, self-awareness, and resilience."

The Chicago Booth Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan (2020) states that the school would "continue to offer an implicit bias workshop as part of Orientation+, and will look for new ways to enhance this session."

Booth's commitment to recruiting a diverse student body includes "providing implicit-bias training to interviewers."

The school's Leadership Development Office "offers programming on a variety of inclusion-related topics, including: addressing systemic racism; tackling social identity and bias at work; navigating power, privilege, and microaggressions; developing successful allyship and bystander intervention; fostering inclusive leadership; and more."

The Chicago Booth Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan (2020) states the following regarding its curriculum changes: "Diversity and inclusion, ethics, and leadership will be included as focus areas for the upcoming MBA curriculum review for the FullTime, Evening, and Weekend MBA Programs. The faculty committee leading this review has been assembled and the committee’s work has begun...Following their review, the faculty committee above will advise on changes to the LEAD curriculum, applicable to the Full-Time, Evening, and Weekend MBA Programs.... The Leadership Development Office will dedicate a significant portion of the time given to the Leadership Orientation Retreat (LOR) in order to address the topics of diversity and inclusion with the matriculating Full-Time MBA class, and will evaluate programming opportunities for our matriculating Evening and Weekend classes."

According to the Booth "Stories" webpage, "Career Services and Corporate Relations have also worked to make sure they are partnering with inclusive employers, and are offering students a way to report incidents of bias and discrimination they experience while working at a company."

Booth partners with the Kaleidoscope Group to increase diversity in hiring within its Chicago offices and cultivating an inclusive environment for current staff. Booth is piloting blind hiring practices within its human-resources efforts.

Booth has a two-day mandatory D&I training for the Booth Management Group, and all staff training.

The Chicago Booth Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan (2020) states that the school "support[s] business leaders who take a strong and public stance against racism and whose actions influence positive change; we will encourage and facilitate their engagement with you—as recruiting companies and also as speakers, panelists, and career education participants." The Action Plan also states that the school would "establish a social sector speaker series, led by the Rustandy Center in August 2020, on racial equity and the role of the social sector, investors, and markets."

On July 2, 2020, the school's Roman Family Center for Decision Research stated that it affirms the "university’s commitment to combating racism that has long permeated American culture" and that "as individual members of the Center for Decision Research, our faculty have investigated the science of prejudice, stereotyping, and intergroup relations—as well as real-world interventions that can mitigate some of the devastating effects of bias and racism."

The school's event series titled "Unpacking ESG [Environmental, Social, and Governance]" is co-sponsored by the Stigler Center for the Study of the Economy and the State and the Rustandy Center for Social Sector Innovation and "investigates the ways ESG is, is not, and could be a force for social and environmental impact."

On June 21, 2023, the school hosted an event titled "Is Corporate ESG 'Woke' Capitalism?" which is described as follows: "Some politicians have argued that corporate ESG is part of what they see as ‘woke’ capitalism – a broad umbrella referring to public corporate support for issues as varied as abortion access, addressing racial inequality, LGBTQ+ rights, and more. Join the discussion as academic and industry thought leaders unpack whether corporations are putting politics in the way of their shareholder and stakeholders best interests or looking out for their long term best interests."

The school's Rustandy Center for Social Sector Innovation "advances social innovation and equips bold thinkers and doers with the knowledge and tools necessary to positively impact human life and our planet." The Center also states that it is "committed to helping solve social and environmental problems" and that it "harness[es]the power that social business innovation can wield in making the world more sustainable and equitable," (The Center celebrated its tenth anniversary in 2023.)

On January 19, 2023, the school's Rustandy Center for Social Sector Innovation published an article titled "Unpacking ESG: Can Mandatory Reporting Help Clean Up the Environment?" The article discusses the practice of fracking in America and "whether mandating certain disclosures might make the practice cleaner, and how this work fits into the broader debate about increased transparency in environmental, social, and governance (ESG) reporting."

The school's Civic Scholars Program is "Designed for impact-driven professionals dedicated to a career in social impact." The program offers a "full-tuition scholarship to MBA students who work in a 501(c) designated nonprofit organization or for the government."

The school's Rustandy Center for Social Sector Innovation utilizes "social impact research" which "combines data, rigorous analysis, and real-world experience to explore solutions to complex social and environmental issues" including identifying "discrimination in hiring practices and ways to tackle systemic racism."

On September 21, 2020, the school published highlights of a global conference that it hosted in 2020 which discussed and debated Milton Friedman's famous 1970 article on corporate responsibility. The highlights featured a video transcript titled "Strength in Numbers: Using Data to Track Diversity and Inclusion," which is described as follows: "Recent protests against racism and police brutality, along with the #MeToo movement, have increased pressure on businesses to measure and improve their recruitment and promotion of women and people from underrepresented racial groups."

The Chicago Booth Diversity and Inclusion Alumni Task Force was created to "help diversify our student outreach approach, strengthen more diverse alumni community engagement and visibility, and raise new funds for diversity and inclusion initiatives."

The school's Rustandy Center for Social Sector Innovation brings "nonprofit organizations together with Chicago Booth alumni, students, and faculty to tackle complex social and environmental challenges." The Center refers to itself as the "hub" for social impact that "bridge[s] the gap between Booth students and alumni looking for hands-on learning in the social sector and nonprofits seeking pro bono expertise to solve strategic problems and guide decision-making."

The Social Impact Lab at Booth School of Business is a "project-based course that deeply examines a social or environmental issue, and in which students work in small groups to develop a proposal for a company, nonprofit, or other organization to address the issue." Students must apply in order to participate in this course.

The Net Impact Board Fellows Program (2023-2024), through the school's Rustandy Center for Social Sector Innovation, matches "Chicago Booth students with local nonprofit organizations, bringing valuable pro bono business skills to nonprofits while giving students hands-on experience with nonprofit management and governance."

Booth Social Impact (BSI) Consulting provides "pro bono, strategic consulting to nonprofit, social impact organizations in the Chicagoland area." The consulting firm states that it believes in "being a strong partner to organizations in order to support them in addressing social challenges and making an impact."

The school's Rustandy Center for Social Sector Innovation offers many "Social Impact" courses including; "Corporate Social Responsibility Social Impact Practicum," "Navigating the ESG landscape: Sustainability. Information and Analysis," and "The Political Economy of Climate Change." According to the Center, "Social impact courses are an area of significant growth and innovation in the MBA curriculum."

The University of Chicago Obama Foundation Scholars program at Booth is a "joint initiative of the Obama Foundation and three schools at the University of Chicago: Chicago Booth; the Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice; and the Harris School of Public Policy." The program is described as follows: "During this one-year program, participating students develop a distinctly interdisciplinary approach to advancing social change. Students leave the University of Chicago prepared to address the most complex social challenges through impactful careers in a wide range of settings."

On October 7, 2020, the school's Rustandy Center for Social Sector Innovation reported on a September 2020 event titled "Innovating for Social Equity: New Approaches in Philanthropy," which it described as follows: "From a global pandemic, economic devastation, and social unrest sparked by systemic racism, the past six months have laid bare the deep disparities that persist in our country. With billions spent by the public, private, and philanthropic sectors, why do profound inequities persist?"

On October 15, 2020, Booth published an article titled "Fostering Diversity and Inclusion in Economics," which states "[a]mid national conversations on racial inequity, professionals across industries are reflecting on what they can do to promote diversity and inclusion in their own fields...that includes Matt Notowidigdo, a professor of economics at Chicago Booth."

The school offers an MBA course titled "Diversity in Organizations" which uses "insights from behavioral science to promote organizational health as it relates to diversity, equity, and inclusion." The course examines "person-centered sources of bias, such as implicit and explicit stereotypes, as well as more systemic/ institutional sources of bias" and identifies "why work environments often aren’t equitable."

On October 22, 2020, Booths Women's Network hosted an "Anti-Racism Dialogue" event that was "based on the books White Fragility by Robin Diangelo and How To Be An Anti-Racist by Ibram X. Kendi."

Booth's Becker Friedman Institute of Economics (which unites researchers from the Booth School of Business, the Kenneth C. Griffin Department of Economics, the Harris School of Public Policy, and the Law School) launched the UChicago "Expanding Diversity in Economics (EDE) Summer Institute" to identify and support talented undergraduate students from diverse backgrounds who previously may not have been interested in the study of economics.

Booth's Leadership Development Office offers programming on a variety of inclusion-related topics, including: addressing systemic racism; tackling social identity and bias at work; navigating power, privilege, and microaggressions; developing successful allyship and bystander intervention; and fostering inclusive leadership.

Booth has a Staff Diversity and Inclusion Committee, Deans' Diversity Advisory Committee, and Diversity and Inclusion Alumni Task Force.

Booth's D&I event programming includes D&I Dialogues (a quarterly series offering academic lectures, interactive workshops, and peer-led discussions), Innovating for Social Equity (a series examining racial, economic, and religious equity in philanthropy, private corporations, and nonprofits), and Marketing for Good (a quarterly series through the James M. Kilts Center for Marketing).

In July 2020, the Rustandy Center launched Booth Community Volunteers, a short-term, project-based volunteer program that connects organizations dedicated to anti-racism with full- and part-time Booth students. Students who participate dedicate 10-15 hours per week to these organizations for six weeks in addition to their regular commitments.

Booth has an annual Diversity Day and Diversity Week. Its DuSable Conference provides a forum for African American students, alumni, and executives to share insights and build connections.

Regarding its efforts in developing relationships with inclusive employers, Booth states the following: "We expanded efforts to proactively develop and maintain relationships with employers who articulate a commitment to diversity and inclusion as critical to business success. We support business leaders who take a strong and public stance against racism, and whose actions influence positive change. We are taking steps to address and eliminate biases in the recruiting and hiring processes of firms that source Booth talent."

From June to July 2020, Dean Rajan and Booth leadership had been listening to students, alumni, faculty, and other voices about investments the school can make to strengthen diversity and inclusion in their community. In July 2020, Dean Rajan sat down with full-time student Morgan Franklin to "discuss Booth's commitment and how the actions outlined in the [Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan]" can improve the campus environment.

Booth leadership was part of the university's effort to establish the new Department on Race, Diaspora, and Indigeneity (RDI) within the Social Sciences Division (SSD)--"a novel approach to exploring these increasingly interconnected concepts."

Booth is building on existing and new partnerships with groups that support diversity and inclusion, including 30% Club, Forte Foundation, JumpStart, Management Leadership for Tomorrow, Posse Foundation, Prospanica, Riordan, Reaching Out MBA, and Toigo.

Booth has an annual Fogel Diversity Dinner that brings students, faculty, and staff together to celebrate the business school's "diversity of voices" and "instill a sense of belonging." The Fogel Dinner was established in 1982 by the late Professor Robert W. Fogel, a Nobel laureate, and his wife, Enid, the first African American to serve as associate dean at the school.

Booth has "Diversity Stories" where the school highlights its diverse community and thought leadership around D&I.