Diversity Workshops On Campus: A Survey Of Current Practice At U.S. Colleges And Universities

Telephone interviews about use of diversity workshops were conducted with 281 administrators from a random sample of 356 U.S. 4-year colleges and universities (79% return rate). Results indicate that diversity workshops have been tried by 81% of U.S. colleges and universities, and that 70% were using diversity workshops in 1996-1997. Workshops are slightly more likely at more selective institutions, and substantially less likely at institutions where minority students predominate. Diversity workshops employ a wide range of activities; most common are group activities in which participants share stories of bias and discrimination, and group exercises exploring ethnic differences. The great majority of administrators report that the workshops are positively received by students, but, surprisingly, no institution has undertaken an evaluation of the impact of diversity workshops on the beliefs, attitudes, or behaviors of participants.