New York Tech Climate Survey

New York Tech is consistently recognized for having one of the most diverse student bodies in the region. With this recognition comes a responsibility to create equity and sustain a culture of inclusion. We believe facilitating access to a meaningful teaching, learning, and working environment is a core promise to our community. New York Tech strives for a student-centered culture of care, inclusivity, and respect for all community members. As a result, we are committed to a data-informed culture infused with a mindset of continuous program improvement. .

Climate Survey 2024

Beginning November 4, 2024, New York Tech will administer a follow-up HEDS Diversity and Equity Campus Climate survey, which will allow us to measure our progress and inform updated goals and priorities for New York Tech and the Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging.

About the Survey

Your personalized link to the survey arrived the morning of November 4 via email from “Brian L. Harper. M.D., M.P.H.” NewYorkTech@hedsconsortium.org:

All survey responses must be completed by December 6.
The survey has been created by the Higher Education Data Sharing Consortium (HEDS).
The survey consists of short, multiple-choice questions and should take no longer than 15 to 20 minutes to complete.
All survey responses will be anonymous.
Everyone who completes the survey will have the opportunity to be entered into a raffle to win and staff can win one of approximately 150 New York Tech branded items. Students can also win one of 75 $25 gift cards.
Results will be shared with the community once they have been reviewed and analyzed.

Goals

The HEDS Climate Survey will allow us to achieve the following important goals and objectives:

Gain a better understanding of the experiences and perceptions of students, faculty, and staff with regards to diversity, equity, and inclusion both in aggregate across the university and individually on each of our campuses and locations.
Measure DEI perceptions and progress against our previous 2021 climate survey.
Identify the areas where improvements need to be made and where they can have the greatest impact.
Compare ourselves to other higher ed institutions to better understand what issues are unique to New York Tech and which are shared across other colleges and universities and how they are being successfully addressed.
Inform the priorities of New York Tech and the Office of Equity and Inclusion.

If you have questions about the survey, please feel free to contact us at dei@nyit.edu.

About Our 2021 Climate Survey

In October 2021, New York Tech undertook its first HEDS Diversity and Equity Campus Climate Survey. The purpose was to help assess and improve our community's culture and environment as it relates to diversity, equity, and inclusion. The survey was selected because it allowed New York Tech to:

Compare ourselves to other institutions.
Be methodologically rigorous and supported by robust research.
Address our primary areas of interest, asking most of the questions we wanted answered, while providing the flexibility to make any necessary changes.

New York Tech's community-wide participation in this survey was crucial in identifying our strengths as a university and campus community. Overall, New York Tech's community reported higher levels of satisfaction with the campus climate and a higher sense of institutional support compared to other institutions that completed the survey.

Outcomes

The survey added value by identifying areas that needed to be strengthened to make New York Tech a more inclusive, innovative institute of higher education. We gained a better understanding of the experiences and perceptions of students, faculty, and staff regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion across the university and individually on each campus. The results informed the initial priorities of New York Tech's Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging, established in October 2022 and led by Vice President of Equity and Inclusion, Brian M. Harper, M.D., MPH. In response to the survey results, New York Tech has:

Created the critical role of Assistant Dean of DEIB, centered on the Jonesboro, Arkansas campus, and serving all New York Tech campuses.
Conducted Safe Zone initiative trainings and programs related to LGBTQ+ advocacy
Conducted multiple DEIB training sessions throughout the year for faculty, staff, and students related to race/ethnicity, ability status, gender, nationality, socioeconomic status, and more.
Held an Annual Diversity Conference that moves participants through deeper conversations on topics related to DEIB, focusing on tools for everyday DEIB implementation.
Mentored and collaborated with several student groups and collaborated with other offices and units within the New York Tech community to develop programming, fundraising and other initiatives to facilitate greater inclusion.
Launched three employee Affinity Resource Groups (ARGs) to cultivate a sense of belonging.

See Our Survey Results (PDF)

If you have questions about the survey, please feel free to contact us at dei@nyit.edu.