The Academy will curate rather than control the process of awardees engaging with one another through the Community of Practice and make sure that the programme meets the needs of the awardees. We will consult with awardees about the frequency, methods of engagement and focus of our Community of Practice sessions.
Our aim is that the Community of Practice will help awardees:
- Connect with one another
- Develop their understanding of EDI
- Gain valuable knowledge and resources
- Strengthen the shared vision of improving the experiences during university of those from underrepresented backgrounds
- Share experiences of the programme, including monitoring or capturing impact, and engaging with the sector
- Secure support with topics such as collecting EDI monitoring data, staff training and the provision of EDI resources
- Create a knowledge exchange – sharing learning and good practice, adding to the overall evidence base of the programme
- Encourage dissemination of learning – among awardees and among the wider HEI community (within and beyond engineering departments)
How can the Academy help? For example:
- Helping award holders ‘bridge’ their projects with other initiatives at their universities
- Support with identifying and collecting relevant and proportionate EDI monitoring data
- Training for staff from members of the Academy D&I team on issues related to EDI
- Provision of relevant EDI resources (such as evidence of ‘what works’, resources that would support the collection of EDI monitoring data, or other resources that could support university staff to deliver and/or scale up their projects).
What are the key features of DIP projects? We’d like to build a typology of interventions and get your feedback on ‘what works’, to share with the awardee community.
What are your best case studies? Please share examples of where your projects have been successful – and where you’ve faced challenges.
You can read this project success story from Imperial College London.