The surveys have been collected, focus groups completed, interviews conducted and literature thoroughly reviewed. Now, the Task Force on Race and Indigeneity at the Faculty of Kinesiology and Education (KPE) will begin the complex work of distilling, analyzing and synthesizing the data to develop recommendations for its final report.
Launched in 2016 at Accelerating Action, a symposium that explored race and indigeneity in physical activity, sport and education, the task force was born out of a report produced by a panel discussion series called A Hurdle To Success.
Continuing in the strong tradition of research and leadership in areas of equity and inequity in sport, recreational and curricular programs, the Task Force on Race and Indigeneity was established with the goal of improving equity and diversity in the faculty’s programs and operations.
Four working groups were formed in the fall of 2017, following a successful call for participation that saw over 90 applications submitted to the task force steering committee. Each working group is focused on a different area of the faculty’s operations:
- Student recruitment, admissions, success and retention
- Staff and faculty recruitment, retention and advancement
- Curriculum, research, pedagogy and learning
- Recreation and sport, community outreach and recruitment
Over the past six months, the working groups have been gathering data and conducting research to inform their recommendations.
Although each working group meets individually on a monthly basis, all four working groups came together in March to discuss their preliminary findings and some of the common challenges they were experiencing.
“It was really fascinating to see how each working group was taking a different approach to their research and to see where that approach has led them,” said Robin Waley, a member of the staff and faculty recruitment, retention and advancement working group. The larger meeting gave members of all four working groups a chance “to share ideas and really get an understanding of where the other groups are in their research,” Waley said.
Eleni Vlahiotis, co-chair of the curriculum, research, pedagogy and learning working group, echoed that sentiment. “There’s a lot of information and theory that informs our practice in our working groups that dovetails into one another”, she said. She gave the example of how the findings of the staff and faculty recruitment, retention and advancement working group might influence her own group’s recommendations.
Equipped with the data, along with the resources and tools shared at the March meeting, the working groups are now developing their recommendations. On June 15th, the chair of each working group will submit their draft recommendations to the task force’s steering committee.
The final report will be submitted to Dean Ira Jacobs in the fall of 2018.