Ivy Banks observes the increase primarily relates to students with disabilities

Clare McKinley, Staff writer

Since students returned to campus this semester, there has been an increase in reported bias incidents, causing the Center for Diversity and Inclusion (CDI) to look for new ways to foster a welcoming environment for Xavier students

Vice President of Institutional Diversity and Inclusion Ivy Banks has seen an increased number of bias incidents reported this year, specifically highlighting that between Aug. 25 and Sept. 11, there were 10 reported bias incidents compared to last semester’s total of eight.

Banks further recognized that many of these incidents involved hostility towards someone motivated by biases against race, gender identity, sexual orientation or disability. A noted increase has been observed with respect to the number of reports from students with disabilities, specifically regarding accommodations.

One of the ways in which the CDI is looking to improve diversity, equity and inclusion on campus is by launching a campus climate survey sometime in late October. This survey will welcome students, faculty and staff to share their input on how they feel the climate is at Xavier. 

There has not been a climate survey done at Xavier since 2016, so it will give the CDI a chance to reassess how accepted students feel on campus, according to Banks.

“This will give us an opportunity to truly assess the climate. One of the things that we look at when talking about climate is bias incidents, and these are incidents that impact whether or not someone feels like they belong here. We are trying to look at any impact to our inclusive environment and what we mean by our mission and values here at Xavier,” Banks said.

Another resource available to students at Xavier are support groups. In conversation with the Student Government Association, Director of the CDI Sam Terry spoke to them about the resource. 

Sophomore Philosophy, Politics and the Public major and Student Rights and Identity Committee Chair Emma Schwarz highlighted the role of support groups on campus.

“I think there’s certain experiences that obviously aren’t relevant to everyone at Xavier. And I think that by having these specific support groups of people that you know and  have those shared experiences with is something that can be very beneficial to creating solidarity on campus,” Schwarz said.

Another way in which the CDI is trying to foster a more supportive environment is by eliminating some of the stress that comes with filing a bias incident report. 

Banks has found that by offering a more personal response and proactively connecting students with other resources, she has been able to assist students more effectively.

In the past, students would end up having to submit concerns to multiple committees. However, Banks found that this meant it could be weeks before students ever heard a reply. Now, she receives the information firsthand and is able to contact students within 24 hours.

“They have an opportunity to meet with me or a member of our team. We’ll walk them over to counseling services and support if they need,” she said. “Bias incidents, depending upon the incident and which part of your identity it impacts, can have devastating impacts on the person that’s been involved. So we try to make sure that we’re listening to that person and really responding to what they need,” Banks said.

Overall, Banks believes that by eliminating the bystander effect and actively working to cultivate a welcoming environment, the Xavier community will be one step closer to cutting down on bias incidents.

“Whenever someone has been invited into our Xavier community, we want them to know that we’ve all invited them, so every student, every faculty, every staff member that’s been invited here to our community knows that they are special to us,” she emphasized. 

“It can be really difficult when you have to deal with the external world, but here  where we call home, we want everybody to make sure that they can find a place where they fit in,” Banks said.