The Commitment
In September 2020, MPA created an Antiracist Action Group (AAG) to engage the MPA community in reflection, advocacy, and action to strategically dismantle racism in the school and the larger community. The recommendation of this collaborative group of faculty and staff, students, parents, and alums led to multiple outcomes, most notably the formation of the Office of Equity & Belonging. It also inspired current and future efforts to further cultivate belonging for all students at MPA.
MPA’s 2024ward Strategic Plan defines four pillars, one of which is to "Ensure an equitable and inclusive community." To fulfill this commitment, MPA leadership found it imperative to develop the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, & Belonging (DEIB) Strategic Action Plan that dovetails with the overall strategic plan for the school and serves as a compass to accomplish the goals.
DEIB Strategic Action Plan
Guiding Principle
Deepen our commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging and ensure it is reflected in our policies, programs, and practices and in the life and culture of the MPA community (from 2024ward).
Priority 1: Building Capacity
Identify and establish the resources and relationships that generate the momentum needed to propel our DEIB commitment forward at MPA.
| Goal 1 | Expand Resource Support |
- Expand resource support to ensure achievement of DEIB strategic imperatives.
- Establish a formal office for DEIB work that aligns with MPA’s organizational structure.
- Create a new assistant director position to support MPA DEIB initiatives, with a special emphasis on student engagement.
- Explore opportunities to partner with key local, regional, and national organizations that reflect our DEIB commitment.
- Create an internal council/committee that will lead the implementation and maintenance of DEIB plan goals and strategies.
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| Goal 2 | Develop Strategies and Support Structures |
- Develop strategies and support structures to enhance recruitment and retention efforts of BIPOC staff, faculty, and leadership across all divisions and administrative units.
- Develop a plan to increase and retain the percentage of total full-time BIPOC faculty, staff, and administrators to 20% by 2025.
- Establish mandatory training on inclusive hiring practices for hiring managers and committees.
- Explore opportunities to actively attract future BIPOC faculty/staff through programming, internships, and career fairs.
- Create support mechanisms that are intentionally responsive to the specific needs and unique experiences of BIPOC faculty/staff in a predominantly white institution.
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| Goal 3 | Foster Work Environment |
- Foster a work environment that supports anti-bias and cultural competency development for faculty, staff, and leadership.
- Create a repository of DEIB-related resources accessible to faculty and staff.
- Develop a comprehensive DEIB employee development program that will include mandatory and optional training and professional development opportunities.
- Establish employee affinity groups.
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Priority 2: Culture of Belonging
Center the MPA experience to be one that embraces individual and collective authenticity.
| Goal 4 | PK-12 Curriculum |
- Ensure PK-12 curriculum, teaching practices, and environments are culturally responsive.
- Ensure DEIB standards and outcomes are formally incorporated into MPA’s comprehensive curriculum review process.
- Develop pedagogy and curriculum that expand our students' perspectives and experiences and focus on real-world learning opportunities outside MPA
- Assess anti-racist and anti-bias standards into the scope and sequence of grade-level courses and school-wide curriculum.
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| Goal 5 | Promote Active Student Engagement |
- Promote active student engagement in fostering a sense of belonging for all students.
- Create student programming and training that expand our students' perspectives on culture and identity in developmentally appropriate ways.
- Identify and implement ways to enhance the experience and sense of belonging for international students.
- Continue to provide safe spaces for students through ongoing support and expansion of student affinity groups, communities of practice, and clubs.
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| Goal 6 | Create Opportunities |
- Create opportunities that honor, celebrate, and support the diversity of our broader collective MPA community.
- Establish a Parent Group to provide a space for our families to dialogue, learn about, and explore issues of identity, diversity, and equity.
- Identify ways to improve relationships with and engagement with BIPOC alumni and support the efforts of the Alumni Relations DEI Council.
- Provide support for MPA Parents Association DEIB efforts.
- Explore opportunities to engage the broader neighborhood and Twin Cities community in MPA’s DEIB work.
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Priority 3: Radical Accountability
Putting in place the mechanisms that ensure we take ownership of our commitments and actions to DEIB.
| Goal 7 | Create, Review, and Revise Policies and Practices |
- Create, review, and revise policies and practices that reflect a culture of inclusion, equity, and anti-racism across the whole of MPA.
- Review, revise, and/or create school statements and policies around discrimination, anti-bias, and harassment, and update employee handbooks.
- Review and revise the current divisional handbook and policies for students and families. Establish a communication strategy that ensures all language, branding, and messaging are inclusive and represent the MPA community across all forms.
- Establish inclusive admissions practices that actively support increased enrollment of Latinx, Black, Indigenous, gender-expansive, and international students.
- Review and consider Indexed Tuition and scholarship policy modifications to promote socioeconomic diversity.
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| Goal 8 | Identify and Eliminate Institutional Barriers |
- Identify and eliminate institutional barriers that limit MPA’s ability to fulfill its’ DEIB commitment.
- Create a Bias Incident Reporting System and investigation process that is trauma-informed and restorative in nature, while also remaining timely and responsive to discriminatory behaviors and actions.
- Conduct assessment on students and employees to collect data about school climate and culture.
- Create shared DEIB language and defined terminology that can be utilized consistently across the school.
- Establish a culture of DEIB goal setting for all employees and embed measures of accountability in evaluations of performance and compensation.
- Review, and address facility barriers to ensure equitable access and access/usage for all.
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| Goal 9 | Regularly Review Strategies and Tactics |
- Regularly review strategies and tactics to ensure effectiveness and long-term sustainability of DEIB plan.
- Develop an internal dashboard that illustrates the impact of the DEI strategy and plan by tracking advancement towards goals and measuring data points.
- Create Equity & Belonging BoT Committee that provides strategic oversight and support for MPA’s long-term DEIB vision, contributes to Board level DEIB goals, and determines training/development needs for board members.
- Utilize assessment tools to collect and analyze data to inform decision-making and evaluating effectiveness of DEIB initiatives.
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