Liberal Studies Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Student Learning Outcomes

WCU is committed to creating a campus reflective of our core values. We offer curricular and co-curricular educational programs designed to prepare our students for the diverse world in which they live. As part of WCU’s commitment to Inclusive Excellence and in response to calls from students and the Faculty Senate to embed Inclusive Excellence into the required curriculum, the Liberal Studies (LS) Program proposes adoption of new “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI),” student learning goals in the Liberal Studies curriculum. The adoption of these goals ensures that diversity, equity, and inclusion are foundational to the university's educational offerings. Courses identified as offering a DEI component must include one of the following conceptualizations to qualify as a Liberal Studies course with a DEI student learning outcome:

• Diversity acknowledges, accepts, and celebrates the inevitably wide variety of shared and different personal and group characteristics that include, but are not limited to age, race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, nationality, cultural norms, religions, belief systems, ideologies, socio-economic status, education, marital status, language and linguistic differences, physical appearance and abilities, and the values contained in these identity-forming characteristics of individuals.
• Equity is defined as fair treatment, access, opportunity, and advancement for all people through identification and elimination of social, institutional, and/or individual barriers that disadvantage some groups while advantaging others.
• Inclusion acknowledges, accepts, and celebrates intentional efforts to create environments where all individuals feel welcome, supported, respected, and able to participate fully.

WCU acknowledges the history of passive and intentional discrimination, including within higher education and is committed to developing a richer understanding of diversity and equity in the pursuit of justice and inclusion for all.

No one DEI-designated course will be expected to address all areas of inclusive excellence, and each instructor determines the best means by which the selected outcome is taught. Instructors also document the ways in which learning outcomes in the selected learning outcome will be assessed. The adoption of these learning outcomes does not add any additional hours to a student's liberal studies degree requirements but provides an opportunity for our students to enroll in at least one liberal studies course that includes diversity, equity, or inclusion.

The DEI Liberal Studies student learning outcomes provide a visible marker for our students on the importance of inclusive excellence. We are encouraging students to recognize the important role that understanding and embracing DEI has on their education, on their participation as a democratically-engaged citizen and in their future careers.