Projects

Best Practices in Diversity: Environmental Scans for the Academic and Philanthropic Sectors

In a project commissioned by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, CAPD partnered with MP Associates, Inc. and OpenSource Leadership Strategies, Inc. to review promising practices for diversifying Fellowship, Leadership and Scholars programs. We reviewed practices in academia and among philanthropies related to outreach, recruitment, inclusion and retention of groups of people traditionally underrepresented in those spheres. Information was obtained via a scan of available literature, interviews with experts, attendance at relevant conferences and site visits or series of in-depth telephone interviews with exemplar foundations and universities. The project identified key themes, common promising practices with evidence of effectiveness, and innovations that, while rare, appeared particularly useful. Findings were summarized as recommendations that could be applied to the kinds of fellowship, leadership and scholars programs often supported by national foundations. Levels of evidence for each recommendation were documented in a detailed appendix.