Diversity

Embracing Diversity

UMFK has made a commitment to celebrate and embrace diversity on our campus and in the community. Not only will you experience the sights and sounds of diverse cultures but at many events, you will also be able to taste food from all over the world.

The statements found below express the views of our global campus and the educational cultures that we all participate in.

If you are interested in participating in diversity initiatives and supporting diversity issues on campus please contact the Student Affairs office at (207) 834-7513.

Diversity Statements from Departments

Student Affairs

The Student Affairs Department at UMFK, through the provision of services and multi-faceted programming, serves to provide a diverse living and learning community for all students.

Living

• Residence Life staff at UMFK enhances the heterogeneous atmosphere of the two campus residence halls by paying close attention to diversity in room assignments, staff hiring, and the co-educational placement of students. The varied backgrounds of the Residence Life staff foster an interesting blend of dorm activities and events.
• Residence Life staff responds quickly and efficiently to incidents of bias and hate and uses these incidents as learning tools to enhance the education of its residents.
• The Student Activities program at UMFK takes into account the fact that our student body is representative of different backgrounds and has varied ideas and interests.
• UMFK’s Campus Dining Services, Bookstore / Mailroom Services, and Health Clinic serve to support student life and diversity initiatives and provide the amenities needed for successful campus living and learning for all students.
• Diversity Programming, in conjunction with other Student Service entities, provides civility and diversity training workshops to a variety of classes and organizations on campus.
• Diversity Programming, Student Activities, International Performer Series, Student Senate, and student organizations often collaborate to sponsor campus-wide and community events that focus participants on the diversity of our country and of our world.

Learning

• The Hum 102 (FYE Program), has, inherent to its core curriculum, the inclusion of diversity-related exploration and exercises.
• Student Activities programming provides extra and co-curricular functions allowing students to have the opportunity to explore new ideas and new activities.
• The Student Activities and International Performer Series sponsor a variety of cultural activities that bring performers and artists representing various backgrounds to the campus and to its surrounding communities.
• The Student Issue Awareness Program at UMFK takes to account all aspects of diversity including health and wellness, sexual orientation, gender, and sex. It accomplishes this by facilitating activities, workshops, discussions, and programming meant to educate students about issues that are relevant to their lives.

Academic Affairs

The Office of Vice President for Academic Affairs at the University of Maine at Fort Kent’s position on diversity stems from the mission and value statements of the institution, as well as statements and broader philosophies contained in the University of Maine at Fort Kent Strategic Plan 2003-2008.

The Office of Vice President for Academic Affairs appreciates the value and enrichment that a diverse student body, faculty, and staff provide the institution. It is the position of the Office that an educational community possessing members of varied races, religions, creeds, ethnicities, socioeconomic classes, sexual orientations, and the like enriches the educational experience based upon the diversity of perspectives in the classroom. Outside of the classroom, this same diversity allows students, staff, and faculty to grow socially based upon interactions between members of the educational community.

Beyond simply adhering to federal and state regulations regarding diversity, it is the hope and expectation of the Office of Vice President for Academic Affairs that the institution will proactively seek to recruit students, staff, and faculty that add to the diversity of the campus community.

Division of Nursing

The University of Maine at Fort Kent (UMFK), Division of Nursing’s (DON) position on diversity stems from its mission. Faculty and staff are committed to promoting a learning environment that reflects a global view of society. The faculty philosophy statements also support and reflect a holistic view of health, person, nursing, and environment. Furthermore, the DON’s commitment to diversity is congruent with the American Association of the Colleges of Nursing Statement on Diversity and Equal Opportunity (1997), which states: “Diversity includes consideration of socioeconomic class, gender, age, religious belief, sexual orientation, and physical disabilities, as well as race and ethnicity. Diversity and equality of opportunity recognize that individuals learn from exposure to and interaction with others who have backgrounds and characteristics different from their own.” (p. 1).

To this end, the UMFK DON will:

• Emphasize a multicultural focus in the curriculum, thereby enabling students to provide care for persons in diverse settings;
• Provide a supportive learning environment in which students, staff, and faculty from the entire spectrum of society are full participants in the educational process;
• Develop creative and innovative educational methodologies that serve a diverse student population;
• Foster and facilitate the development of professional nurses prepared to meet the health care needs of a multicultural society;
• Create an educational community and a professional practice environment that incorporate the diverse perspectives of the many constituencies whom they serve;
• Require an admission and employment process that fully encompasses the principles of equal opportunity;
• Recruit and retain student applicants from diverse backgrounds, including but not limited to, those from socially or economically disadvantaged communities, diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds, rural communities, and men interested in nursing; and
• Recruit and retain faculty and staff from diverse backgrounds.

Information Services

The Information Services Department includes the library, web services, audio-visual services, academic/administrative computing, distance education, and the Acadian Archives/Archives acadiennes. The mission of the department is to support the curriculum. It understands the need for diversity in many areas. Staff members are willing to work with a diverse clientele, creatively finding ways to help them achieve their goals. They also provide one-on-one instruction and give workshops to help staff, faculty, students, and the public of all ages and economic backgrounds, particularly involving computing.

Blake Library

• Collection: In order to support the curriculum, the library collects materials that cover a broad range of subjects, presenting students with an opportunity to explore different cultures, views, attitudes, and perspectives.
• Services: Materials and services are offered in a variety of formats to meet the needs of our diverse student body and community patrons. For example, reference services are provided both in the library, over the telephone, and online so that users have multiple opportunities to access the collection.

Media Services

• Web Site: Information Services staff members participate in the systemwide initiative to address accessibility on University websites, including academic information posted on the web. UMFK’s website is routinely checked through a software package that reports accessibility problems which are reviewed in order to correct the issue.
• Courseware: Online software packages, such as Brightspace, are supported to meet the needs of students who are on campus or away. Faculty are encouraged to post documents that will be readily accessible in many different formats. These online packages are beneficial to the nontraditional student in that they allow these students to work around their family and work schedules while maintaining their academic pursuits.
• Video Streaming and Audio Engineering: These systems allow faculty to use different methods to meet the needs of different types of learners, especially those that learn best visually or through sound. They also provide the opportunity for persons not on campus to view events, such as graduation and athletic events.
• Classroom Technologies: Classrooms are equipped with a variety of technologies that give the faculty the ability to accommodate a variety of students who have different learning styles. The faculty are also served in meeting their own diverse needs. The classrooms can bring more diversity into the classroom through film, television, and the internet.

Academic/Administrative Computing

• Access to Computers: The university provides computing access 24/7 for students who have various schedules.
• Access to the Internet: The university provides a bank of modems for students, staff, and faculty to access systems (including the library) from home.
• Support: Information Services staff work to provide good working conditions for faculty and staff, helping to assure workstations are ergonomically correct.

Distance Education

• Access: The University provides the ability for students to take classes from a distance. Some are asynchronous which helps students who work as well as get an education.

Acadian Archives/Archives acadiennes

• This department is dedicated to supporting and studying the heritage of the St. John Valley in all its diversity, including those of the Acadian and Franco-American, Native American, English, Irish, and Swedish heritages which reside here.

Arts and Sciences

The diversity of the student body is a key requirement of our diversity plan. A diverse faculty and welcoming classroom climate are crucial to the success of these efforts. Every effort will be made at the divisional level to insure that all hiring practices follow EEO procedures developed by the UMS to insure a diverse faculty.

Academic programs and class content in the Division of Arts and Sciences will advance knowledge and understanding of the challenging issues associated with diversity.

Welcoming differences among faculty and students in the Division will depend upon the ability of each individual to respect the diversity of others.

Listening, as well as speaking, is essential when discussing issues that promote diversity.

Our division acknowledges the importance of the continual effort to promote diversity.

Human Resources

The University of Maine at Fort Kent Human Resources Office is not only committed to the principles and ideals of pluralism but is also responsible for assisting in the education of our workforce regarding these ideals and ensuring compliance with applicable UMS Board of Trustee policies and procedures and state and federal regulations. We value diversity in all aspects of work, education, and recreation and celebrate the benefit to the campus, community, and society-at-large of a supportive and inclusive environment.

To this end, the Human Resources Office:

• Seeks to recruit a diverse workforce through the broad placement of position advertisements which include an indication of our adherence to Affirmative Action and Equal Employment Opportunity principles.
• Monitors the effectiveness of advertising for a diverse applicant pool by encouraging all applicants to complete a convenient, confidential online Affirmative Action Survey.
• Provides reasonable accommodations to qualified applicants and employees at all stages of pre-employment and employment.
• Instructs search committees on the University’s commitment to increasing the representation of qualified women and minorities at the beginning of every search.
• Oversees all stages of the search process and ensures compliance with AA/EEO principles.
• Assists in the retention of a diverse workforce by incorporating diversity sensitivity awareness (Creating a Positive Learning and Working Environment) into all new employee orientations, supporting and participating in system and campus diversity initiatives to build a culture of acceptance and tolerance, and providing counsel and support as appropriate to individuals struggling with related issues.
• Investigates and responds as appropriate to allegations or informal reports of intolerant or inappropriate behavior involving University faculty or staff and assists in the filing, investigation, and response to formal complaints investigated by the UMS Investigations Coordinator.
• Ensures that the UMS Non-Discrimination policy is widely distributed to faculty, staff, and students and is easily accessible from the University’s homepage on the world wide web.