Promoting a “Home for All” at an Urban Midwestern University Through a DEI Seminar Series

We explore changes in perceptions and actions related to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) among faculty, staff, students, and community members who participated in a year-long seminar series at a university located in the urban core of a Midwestern city. The results of a pre-/post-survey to assess color-blind racial attitudes and post-project individual interviews demonstrate that participants changed their perceptions to adopt a broader definition of diversity and developed a new awareness of their own intersectional identities and biases. Participants also reflected on the cohort experience and relevance of the curriculum, and they engaged in actions in their professional and personal lives to apply concepts from the series. The paper shares implications for successful DEI professional development projects within urban higher education communities in an increasingly challenging political context.