Project Goals: 2018 - 2023

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.