The Edit 5

Acknowledge in tenure and promotion the specific challenges faced by faculty of marginalized identities in their academic careers, such as bias in student evaluations, disproportionate expectations of service, and misunderstandings about the seriousness of their creative or professional work. Be sensitive to the precarious positions of adjunct faculty and staff, and ensure they have access to mentorship and departmental support systems, as well. Be aware that faculty who integrate issues of identity or social justice in their classrooms, especially production classes where students might not expect such topics, are particularly at risk of disproportionately negative teaching evaluations. Provide training in pedagogy and inclusion throughout your faculty and staff cohort, especially for those transferring from professional careers into academia.

Make equity and inclusion an explicit departmental policy for faculty, staff, and students. Provide regular pedagogical training that addresses the specific populations at your institution for all faculty and technical staff who work with and support students. Make conversations about inclusion in teaching, research, and academic culture a central element of faculty, staff, and departmental meetings. Develop partnerships with key offices on campus, including the disabilities office, diversity and inclusion office, LGBTQ office, etc., to better provide support and resources for your faculty, students, and staff.

Create a snapshot of inclusion in your program by tracking student statistics. Include demographic data on who initially enrolls in your program or major, who drops out and when, with attention to what might be causing students to change programs or withdraw from school. Where possible–and with respect to the fact that not all students report their race, ethnicity, or sexual orientation–monitor which students track into particular areas of study, advanced courses, or technical specializations within your program, noting where there are imbalances. Where you see needs based on data, establish systems of support for students of underrepresented groups, such as funding opportunities, partnerships with industry that promote new career pathways, or student-run clubs, organizations, or campus media groups. Do a self-study to see whether these student numbers change when departments are flexible about required software, equipment, or access to labs or campus facilities for low-income students, working students, and students with family responsibilities.

Create paths of communication and collaboration between production and critical studies faculty to better bridge the relationship between theory and practice in curriculum. Provide opportunities for coordinated curricular development that reinforce key concepts across classes in both approaches. Incentivize collaborative teaching between production and studies faculty. As well, encourage and develop partnerships and collaborations with other departments and programs on campus, including cultural studies, women’s and gender studies, LGBTQ studies, disability studies, and so on, to further integrate questions of equity into media production programs. Build bridges across ranks: ensure that adjunct faculty, contingent faculty, and a diversity of students have a voice in departmental decision-making, including curricular development.