Diversity and Inclusion

What DICE means to us

At West Virginia University’s John Chambers College of Business and Economics, our people are at the core of our mission. To meet the needs of our people, diversity, equity, and inclusion must be part of the fabric of our College and serve as a pillar of our core values. We seek to foster a culture where diverse voices and ideas come together to fuel innovative solutions for the future. We aim to positively influence the culture of our college, our state, and the future business leaders of the world.

Important Definitions

Diversity is the presence of different thoughts, perspectives, ages, genders, ethnicity, religions, abilities, sexual orientations, national origins, and education. Diversity allows for the empowerment and exploration of these differences in a safe and welcoming environment. Individuals within a diverse environment need to appreciate and respect the differences of others in order to reap the benefits of a diverse workforce. Each individual brings a diverse set of work and life experiences, perspectives, and ideas which can help to foster a more respectful, engaged, and innovative work environment.

Equity is the fair treatment, access, and opportunity for all people. Certain individuals may need more treatment, access and opportunities than others because of their positions within the environment. This is why equity and equality are not the same. Equality is ensuring equal treatment of all people. Equity is ensuring those who need more treatment have more treatment.

Inclusion is the organization’s commitment, effort, and practice of incorporating and including not only diverse people but policies, behaviors, conversations, and programming that enhance the inclusion of all. Inclusive environments enhance individuals’ sense of belonging and acceptance.

Culture is the organization’s norms, symbols, beliefs, values and history that are passed from one generation to the next and help shape behavior.

Intersectionality is the overlap of various social identities, such as race, gender, sexuality, and class, which contributes to the specific type of systemic oppression and discrimination experience by an individual.

Privilege is the unearned, unasked for, often invisible benefits or immunities experienced by certain social identities. Privilege is not a measure of work ethic; rather, that certain aspects of their identity did not — consciously or unconsciously — act as a barrier to success.

To read more about these terms and other very important terms, please visit the Division of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Terms Page.

Our Aspirational Goals

We commit to attracting and retaining a diverse faculty, staff, and student body. As a community, we will embrace and celebrate the many joyous differences of humankind. This diversity can be expressed in a variety of forms, including, but not limited to: race, ethnicity, national origin, sex, gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, language, culture, religious affiliation, military affiliation, age, (dis)ability, education, mental health, and political perspective. This includes an understanding of the intersectionality of these identities.

We commit to foster a welcoming climate, which supports and recognizes the diversity of people, thought, and experiences to elevate the “Chambers Experience” for all.  We commit to deliberately pursue such efforts to ensure diverse voices and perspectives are heard, valued, respected, and included in everyday College decision-making.

We commit to challenging, dismantling, and proactively responding to bias, harassment, and discrimination. We commit to recognizing and using certain privilege to shape norms that promote equity for all.