How is the CECE Survey different than other campus climate surveys?

It is intentional that the CECE Indicators do not reflect specific activities because the ways in which faculty members and staff cultivate culturally engaging campus environments will likely vary across different roles and offices on campus. Rather than measuring the existence of isolated activities (e.g., diversity workshops) that are often seen as the work of cultural centers, the CECE Indicators are intended to prompt all faculty members and staff working with diverse populations to think meaningfully about how they can (further) embed these culturally engaging practices into their work. For example, to create more culturally engaging classroom environments, faculty members might consider the importance of the following:

• Intentionally create space for students to connect with community members and peers who share their cultural backgrounds.
• Embed culturally relevant knowledge into their courses by ensuring that course readings reflect voices from the different cultural communities that are represented in the classroom.
• Integrate cultural community service into their curricula by making efforts to construct course assignments that allow students to engage in problem-based research projects or service-learning projects that focus on issues within their respective cultural communities.
• Validate students by allocating time during the beginning of the term to get to know students’ backgrounds and identities, so that these can inform the refinement of course curriculum and pedagogy throughout the remainder of the course.
• Humanize the classroom by integrating mechanisms (e.g., jokes, personal stories, reflections, etc.) into discussions that make it more likely for students to see the faculty member as a human being who cares about their success.

Alternatively, an academic advisor in a targeted support program might not control the content of a course, but might consider the importance of the following in their advising:

• Injecting a human element into their advising and enhancing their abilities to provide holistic support by (1) recognizing that the’ academic, social, and psychological aspects of students’ college lives are intertwined and (2) spending time getting to know their students’ psychological and social challenges so that they are better equipped to help them offer or connect these students with appropriate psychological and social supports.
• Strengthening their abilities to offer holistic support by building stronger connections with registrar, counseling, career counseling, financial aid, and academic support staff so that they can serve as a mediator and easily connect their students to the appropriate services across their campuses.
• Engaging proactive philosophies by creating systems to consistently and frequently disseminate information about internships, scholarship, and developmental opportunities to students, rather than waiting for students to ask them for this information.