ABOUT VISIBLE

At Villanova, leadership for equity and inclusion is integral to the University’s Augustinian mission and strategic plan.

VISIBLE seeks to illuminate the responsibility of academic leaders to create a welcoming and equitable community, in service of Villanova’s mission and core values – Veritas, Unitas, Caritas.

VISIBLE aims to empower academic leaders by:

• Exploring possible process and policy change

• Providing professional development and support

• Fostering related research

VISIBLE takes an interest in all aspects of equity among faculty across all Colleges and disciplines at Villanova.

The VISIBLE team will plan and execute a series of initiatives to support the desired outcomes of the project. These initiatives are grouped into three spheres of action that will combine to build a community in which faculty are effectively hired, supported and advanced at Villanova.

Change Management

Prepare mid-level campus leaders to navigate a changing faculty culture and expectations, particularly as they impact equity and inclusion.

Hiring, Promotion and Assessment

Provide resources and expertise to improve intersectional equity and inclusion in the policies and procedures that impact hiring and advancement of faculty at Villanova. 

Improving the Culture for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion 

Advocate for policy and process changes to foster a climate at Villanova grounded in intersectional gender equity and inclusion. Execute a unique research project that studies the effects of different training techniques on the management of stress and reduction of unconscious bias during institutional transformation.  

While the NSF ADVANCE grant focuses on improving Villanova’s recruitment and advancement of women faculty in STEM disciplines, the VISIBLE office aims to leverage its programs to impact all disciplines and minoritized groups across the institution.

Focusing on both research and programming, the VISIBLE team will undertake a critical review of Villanova’s recruiting, hiring and promotion practices in the context of its evolving status as a national research university. To support this work, the VISIBLE team will develop unique and impactful leadership training and engagement opportunities for senior campus leaders, department leadership, and faculty. The stated goals of Villanova's ADVANCE grant are as follows:

1. Use the principles of organizational change management theory to prepare Villanova's leadership to manage the transition in institutional identity in an inclusive and equitable manner.
2. Employ workshops on individual change management theory to assist faculty members as they navigate a shifting landscape of expectations.
3. Implement interventions aimed at removing barriers to the success of women on the faculty in STEM departments, in the realms of hiring, assessment, and promotion, as well as in the broader University climate for diversity.
4. Execute a unique research project that parallels the change management focus and studies the effects of different training techniques on the management of stress and reduction of unconscious bias during institutional transformation.
5. Develop a model for other institutions undergoing major change.

Achievement of these five goals is anticipated to have a positive impact on:

• the scholarly productivity of the women on the faculty of STEM departments;
• the rate at which existing women on the faculty of STEM departments are promoted to Full Professor;
• the rate at which Villanova hires women, particularly minoritized women, in the STEM fields; and
• the diversity in key leadership roles.