Commitment 2 | Equity, Inclusion & Social Innovation
To ensure WSSU’s long-term viability, the institution must evolve with changing societal conditions. WSSU’s
student demography has shifted from a traditional-aged residential undergraduate population to a non
traditional commuter population comprised of community college transfer students, students who have been
readmitted after stopping out, and adult learners (>25 years old). WSSU’s student population continues to
evolve as the institution experienced a 6% increase in Hispanic undergraduate students from fall 2020 to fall
2021 and a 7% increase in the number of students who self-identify as “two or more races” from fall 2020 to
fall 2021; moreover, WSSU’s graduate student enrollment in fall 2021 reached its largest number of students
in the history of the institution.
With a more diverse student body and an increasingly diverse workforce, WSSU will design campus operations that are culturally responsive. As a culturally engaging campus, WSSU will acknowledge the unique knowledge and skills that each learner brings to the community and will leverage those gifts to create an enriched environment; thus, faculty and staff commit to “unleash the genius” of each learner.
Strategies 〉
- Promote an equitable, inclusive climate that values the contributions of all people.
- Increase the recruitment, retention and graduation of culturally diverse students.
- Integrate diversity, equity, and inclusion, innovation, and entrepreneurial thinking throughout curriculum and student programming.
- Deepen community engagement activities in culturally diverse environments.
- Strengthen relationships with local and regional partners.
