Task Force on Diversity and Inclusion
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Final Report
The HMS Task Force on Diversity and Inclusion has released its final report, which highlights four key themes: develop people and infrastructure, build community and belonging, address culture and communication, and hold accountable and generate knowledge. Within each theme, the Task Force summarized what is working, noted areas for improvement and made recommendations.
This work serves as a springboard for an ambitious, long-term effort entitled Better Together. The goal of this effort is to implement the Task Force’s recommendations, with the priority of establishing HMS as the institution of preference for diverse candidates. As such, we strive to increase representation of historically marginalized individuals—those underrepresented in medicine (URM), those with disabilities, those who identify as LGBTQ and women—at all academic levels, particularly senior faculty and department administrators and leaders, both at HMS and at its affiliated hospitals and research institutions. Better Together also acknowledges a shared responsibility and potential to address issues of health disparities, equity and social justice. Convened by Dean George Q. Daley and chaired by Dean for Diversity and Community Partnership Joan Y. Reede, the Task Force included 36 administrators, faculty, staff and students. Their community-wide assessment included input gathered through town meetings, focus groups, site visits, website portals and surveys.
“It is critical for us to celebrate our diversity and to chart a course for improvement so that our community can nurture the best science, education and service; remedy the pipeline problem in the biomedical sciences; interface better with our patients and communities; and reduce health disparities.”
– HMS Dean George Q. Daley
“In this increasingly diverse and changing society, we must prepare a workforce that both represents and is sensitive to all people in our community. Diversity is not just about race and ethnicity—it includes gender, sexual orientation, class, age, language, disability and ability, and the intersectionality of these attributes. The richness of our diversity contributes to our strength in teaching, research and clinical care.”
-Joan Y. Reede, Dean for Diversity and Community Partnership
The mission of the Office for Diversity Inclusion and Community Partnership is to advance diversity inclusion in health, biomedical, behavioral and STEM fields.
