Worcester Polytechnic Institute

WPI's "Inclusive Excellence Division/School Actions" states that it would "[r]emove barriers to enrollment for underrepresented students of color, low-income students, and first generation students."

On June 29, 2023, WPI's president issued a statement in response to the Supreme Court's ruling on affirmative action which reads in part as follows: "In the coming days and weeks, we will be analyzing the Supreme Court’s decision and assessing its impact on WPI...We remain committed to providing our transformative WPI education to diverse groups of students who share a passion for learning, exploring, and discovering, and are motivated to better the world."

As part of its 2021-2023 Inclusive Excellence Summary Updates, WPI states that "[s]tudents from underrepresented groups, first generation, and/or low-income are recruited and supported at Mass Academy, Army ROTC, Teacher Prep Program/STEM Education Center, Academic Advising, and Office of Undergraduate Studies."

WPI's 2023-2024 Report Card (part of the Strategic Plan) states that it would "increase the number of Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) students and students from low-income families who attend WPI."

Mandatory Anti-Racism Training.

On February 13, 2023, WPI's Morgan Teaching and Learning Center announced a faculty workshop titled "Accomplices in the Classroom: Social Justice- and Anti-Racism-Informed Teaching," which took place on March 3, 2023 and was described as follows: "Social justice in higher education has evolved to mean creating teaching and learning environments that support all students equitably and seeking to address potential gaps among students based on race-ethnicity, gender identity, religion, ability, or learning potential. Yet, to discuss social justice in higher education we first must face racism within the academy."

As part of its 2021-2023 Inclusive Excellence Summary Updates, WPI states that it has established "an anti-racist and advocacy educational workshop series to support student co-curricular education around topics of identity, diversity, equity, access, and inclusion with establishing and enhancing advocacy workshop series."

As part of its 2021-2023 Inclusive Excellence Summary Updates, WPI states that "[p]rofessional development workshops for educators, mentor trainings, and Teacher Preparation curriculum will include Culturally Responsive Pedagogy and practices."

As part of its 2021-2023 Inclusive Excellence Summary Updates, WPI states that it would "[d]evelop and provide training on implicit bias training model for faculty and staff."

As part of its 2021-2023 Inclusive Excellence Summary Updates, WPI states that the Department of Engineering "[aims] to have all faculty search committee members trained in best practices in inclusive and equitable recruitment and hiring processes."

The Division of Talent and Inclusion offers a variety of trainings, including "Best Practices for Inclusive Faculty/Staff Search," "Recognizing and dealing with Microaggressions," and "Understanding Unconscious Biases." These trainings were developed in order to "assist employees and students with incorporating inclusive excellence, cultural competency, and racial and gender equity into their day-to-day work...."

WPI's 2023-2024 Report Card (part of the Strategic Plan) states that it has trained its faculty in "inclusive pedagogies."

WPI launched the Bias Response Program (BRP) in order to provide an “equitable, inclusive, and anti-oppressive community.”

WPI's "Inclusive Excellence Division/School Actions" states that it would "Build WPI’s academic DEI [Diversity, Equity, Inclusion] capabilities by promoting "socially just research and scholarship opportunities."

On May 18, 2018, WPI News announced that the Davis Educational Foundation awarded WPI researchers a $240,000 grant which would support teaching "WPI students how to identify and address bias and work in groups in ways that promote equity, preparing them for an increasingly diverse workforce."

WPI describes several of its Social Justice Initiatives and state, "we work every day to increase our engagement with social justice through research, teaching, projects, and community engagement—critical to the mission of The Global School at WPI."

The WPI LSAMP (Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation) Scholar Program is a "critical resource for high-potential historically underrepresented students with a passion and commitment to become industry and academic leaders in STEM areas." Eligibility is "limited to select underrepresented students specifically: Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino/a/x, Native American, Alaska Native, and/or Pacific Islander...."

WPI's "Inclusive Excellence Division/School Actions" states that it would "Build WPI’s academic DEI [Diversity, Equity, Inclusion] capabilities by promoting diverse pedagogy" and "culturally responsive teaching."

WPI's Gordon Library provides an "Exploring Bias" guide which is an "overview for identifying underrepresented voices and communities within research" and includes an article titled "Algorithms of Oppression."

WPI's Gordon Library provides a "Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging" guide.

The Morgan Teaching and Learning Center's "Communities of Practice" at WPI includes the "Integration of Social Justice and STEM" and "Alternative Models of Assessment/ 'Ungrading'."

On February 1, 2023, WPI's Morgan Teaching and Learning Center published a list of "workshops and seminars, an open-access learning module, podcast series, and other resources for listening, learning, and taking action toward anti-racism in teaching and learning spaces."

WPI's states that the "strengths" of its Technology, Policy, and Sustainability Program "lie in areas of: urban sustainability and planning; critical race studies; environmental and climate justice; global development; economics; system dynamics; cross-cultural design for technology and innovation; and policy and evaluation."

One of the objectives of Employee Resource Groups (part of the Division of Talent and Inclusion) is to "create communities across WPI that align with the institution’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion." Current groups include the "Jewish Faculty, Administrators, Staff, and Allies Group," "Men of Color Coalition," and the "Turkish Faculty and Staff Support Group."

The Center for Black Excellence at WPI "serves as a community gathering space and community resource center for Black undergraduate and graduate students at WPI."

WPI created the Sustainable Inclusive Excellence (SIE) Action Plan to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion and racial justice for marginalized communities.

The Social Science and Policy Studies Department Faculty and Staff published a document titled "There is No Place for Racism in SSPS" and stated the following: "For many of us, there is no way to know the anger and anguish caused by decades of barely veiled institutionalized racism. We also cannot fathom a lifetime of suffering from insidious and institutionalized injustice. We acknowledge that many of us have come to our privilege unfairly; we can be who we are without having our identity or intentions questioned because of the color of our skin."

The Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging facilitates the "Faculty & Staff of Color Receptions and Lunch & Learn Events."

WPI's 2023-2024 Report Card (part of the Strategic Plan) states that it would "enhance the outcomes and experience of minoritized and underrepresented student populations at WPI."