Realizing our Promise: The Second Roadmap on DEI – Final report, 24 goals, next steps
December 15, 2021
Dear Johns Hopkins Community:
Last month, we shared a draft of Realizing Our Promise: The Second JHU Roadmap on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and today, we are excited to provide the final version of the plan to all of you. Deeply informed by your partnership, ideas, and feedback, and now endorsed by the university’s board of trustees, the Roadmap will help us build on the work of the past five years and guide us through the next phase of this important journey.
At Johns Hopkins, we know that a rich diversity of people, experience, background, and thought is core to our university and to the critical inquiry and robust debate that fuel our excellence in research, education, and service. We also believe that diversity, inclusion, and equity are essential to the well-being of a democratic society and to a university environment that allows each member of our community to feel valued, engaged, and empowered to succeed.
Last year we undertook a reevaluation and assessment of the first Roadmap and sought ideas and recommendations from our university community through the efforts of the Roadmap 2020 Task Force and its working groups. Those thoughtful recommendations and the further input of key stakeholders have brought us to this moment— with 24 new and measurable goals for the next five years and a continued commitment to transparency, accountability, and open, thoughtful dialogue.
Our new Roadmap goals include, among others, major investments in programs that remove barriers and create pathways to success for staff; increased university and divisional resources for DEI personnel, with an expanded role for the university’s chief diversity officer; adoption of a new universitywide diversity statement; regular climate and engagement surveys, which will inform divisional and departmental action plans; creation of two universitywide advisory councils for staff and students, respectively; new funding for recruitment and retention of diverse faculty and PhD students, with an emphasis on STEM fields; innovation funds for community-academic partnerships; and increased visibility for the community-based initiatives of our faculty, staff, and students. In all these goals, we are striving to embrace a broad and encompassing definition of diversity that supports the needs and aspirations of underrepresented groups.
We are greatly appreciative of our faculty, staff, students, alumni, trustees, and community partners who shared feedback on the November draft at one of six open sessions, in individual conversations and meetings, and online.
Beginning next month and throughout the spring 2022 semester, we will turn in earnest to the development of implementation plans and timelines for each of the Roadmap’s 24 goals, and we hope you will continue to be part of this important work. Look for information about a universitywide kick-off event in February as well as other opportunities for engagement and regular web updates through the Office of Diversity and Inclusion.
With the Roadmap as our guide, it will take each one of us—and all of us working together in concert—to realize our promise as a community committed to opportunity and excellence. Thank you for continuing this journey with us.
Sincerely,
Ron Daniels
President
Sunil Kumar
Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs
Katrina Caldwell
Vice Provost for Diversity and Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer
