Welcome to The Diversity Community of Practice

Image of four people seated around a table at a DCOP meeting.

About the Systemwide Diversity Community of Practice

If you're interested in joining the DCoP, please fill out this questionnaire.

The Diversity Community of Practice (DCoP) is a grassroots community of faculty and staff from collegiate and administrative units that started on the Twin Cities Campus. All systemwide faculty and staff are invited to join monthly meetings via Zoom. The purpose of the DCoP is to develop and leverage personal, professional, and technical expertise, and to share innovative strategies that ensure successful implementation of equity and diversity goals at the University of Minnesota.

The goals of the DCoP are to:

  • Increase awareness of diversity goals, events, and practices as part of our core work 
  • Share resources and collaborate 
  • Support one another as members innovate and take risks 
  • Develop diversity, equity, and inclusion capacity and leadership at all levels 
  • Create concrete and lasting changes on campuses, in colleges, and across units
     

How do we do this?

  • Centering the experience and voices of Black people, Indigenous people, and people of color (BIPOC) 
  • Monthly meetings, email communications, committees
  • Presentations, readings, discussions, and resources from experts on campus and around the world
  • Providing consultation to campus and system programs and administrators to provide insights into administrative decisions and policies.
  • Fostering engagement with DEI data and measures and encouraging campus and system programs to establish concrete goals and metrics for DEI.
     

DCoP Membership

DCoP membership is open to all faculty and staff at all U of M System campuses who share a commitment to diversity, equity, access, and justice. Some members are formally charged diversity professionals, while others come from a range of roles and positions across the University System who see DEI work as a core priority. Members bring issues and considerations from their units to DCoP meetings for discussion, brainstorming solutions, and follow-up action and convey these lessons learned through their participation with the DCoP with their departments, programs, units, and campuses.

If you're interested in joining, please fill out this questionnaire.

If you have any questions about membership, please contact [email protected].

DCoP Representation Systemwide

There are currently 4 out of the 5 System Campuses and over 80 University of Minnesota colleges and units represented in the DCoP. See a current list here.
 

What is a community of practice? 

Communities of practice (CoP) form around topics of common interest, especially in large organizations. A CoP helps to foster connections, interactions, and relationships among members to help address common problems and concerns. In addition, a community of practice focuses on the ideas, tools, information, experiences, and activities members have used in the context of their work to address the practical work.

The Diversity Community of Practice grew from a felt need among diversity professionals at the University to connect with one another about their core work. Since its inception, the membership of the DCoP has expanded to include all members of the University of Minnesota system interested in diversity, equity, access, and justice. Regular large group meetings, committees, and special events provide opportunities for members to share their work and learn from the experiences of others dedicated to improving their DEI work.

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