Aims

We have identified 3 main organizational aims to guide our work in supporting diversity, equity and inclusion and accessibility:

1. Centering equity in all we do.
   • Increasing our equity mindedness by supporting and promoting an anti-racist university culture. We facilitate an anti-racist culture through action-oriented education for employees and students, increasing awareness and application of anti-racist frameworks across all areas of university policies, culture, and patient care.
2. Promoting diversity in our working and learning environment.
   • We aim to contribute to the diversification of the healthcare workforce to meet the needs of our changing population, though recruiting and retaining students from communities underrepresented in health care.
     • We are developing strategies and policies that expand our recruiting efforts to students underrepresented in healthcare with the purpose of increasing knowledge of our profession and building a pathway toward student application. We are defining mission driven socially accountable admissions practices that reinforce the importance of learning among a diverse cohort of learners.
   • We aim to lead by example as a workplace with transparency in hiring practices, striving for diverse racial, gender representation at every level of the college.
3. Inclusion and belonging for all community members. Beyond recruitment, we seek to ensure student success and retention with a campus culture that demonstrates inclusive excellence. We are taking actions to address areas of improvement identified by our campus climate survey to ensure a welcoming environment that is inclusive for all members of our diverse community, –including racial, gender and cultural diversity.

At MBKU, we understand that the diversity of identities and lived experiences fosters a learning environment of acceptance and respect for each other and for our current and future patients. We are increasing our equity mindedness in the classroom and patient care clinics through faculty, staff and student development. We are regularly evaluating our curriculum and aim to empower faculty to ensure content is not only the most contemporary and evidence based, but also inclusive, culturally responsive and reflective of the many voices and lived experiences of the communities our students will serve. We are in constant exploration of how to improve the clinical experience for patients, to create inclusive spaces where health can thrive, and be a model for students to replicate in their own practices. We are also learning to be better listeners. Our community of learners bring lifetimes of knowledge and insight to all phases of our educational process, and as better listeners, we can be more effective in addressing our communities’ needs. It is through this learning and growth that we will create the space for increased diversity of students, supporting them through their own professional identify development, and promoting our role in moving toward racial and health equity while being empowered with the skills to act.