{"id":147651,"date":"2022-12-05T16:03:36","date_gmt":"2022-12-05T15:03:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=147651"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:26:33","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:26:33","slug":"figureheads-of-diversity-policy-need-to-be-thick-skinned","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2022\/12\/05\/figureheads-of-diversity-policy-need-to-be-thick-skinned\/","title":{"rendered":"Figureheads of diversity policy need to be thick-skinned"},"content":{"rendered":"

Diversity officers are keen to turn their organisation into somewhere where nobody feels that they face additional barriers due to factors such as skin colour or gender. Nearly all of them find themselves on the end of negative reactions or harassment. Some are even threatened.<\/p>\n

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\u201cYou\u2019re damned if you do, you\u2019re damned if you don\u2019t<\/em>.\u201d That\u2019s how Machiel Keestra, Diversity Officer at the University of Amsterdam (UvA) sums up the tension that he and his colleagues at other higher education institutions experience when it comes to diversity and inclusion. Progressive staff and students feel that not enough is being done, whereas a conservative contingent finds any attempt to promote diversity and inclusion to be excessive.<\/p>\n

All Dutch universities and universities of applied sciences that participated in this study* have appointed dedicated diversity and inclusion staff. The job titles and definition of the roles vary from institution to institution. Ten universities and one university of applied sciences have a diversity officer or similar role. Seven universities have a diversity office \u2013 a separate department that reports directly to the Executive Board. Universities of applied sciences don\u2019t have such an office but promote diversity and inclusion through temporary programmes instead. For the most part, these matters are dealt with by policy officers from departments such as HR or Student Wellbeing.<\/p>\n

The Erasmus University has a central diversity office, which falls under the Executive Board. The Rotterdam diversity office is permanent, has its own budget and an office in the Erasmus building. In addition, all faculties have their own diversity officer.<\/p>\n\t

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The first diversity officers in higher education in the Netherlands were appointed at Leiden University and VU University Amsterdam in 2014. As of 2022, every university and university of applied sciences that participated in the study had a form of diversity policy in place. These focus on all kinds of topics, such as policy on equal opportunities for women, integration of international students, LGBTI+ acceptance, guidance for first-generation students, attention to people from a migrant background and accessibility for disabled people.<\/p>\n\n\t<\/div>\n

Cultural change<\/h2>
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No unequivocal job description exists for the position of diversity officer. \u201cThere\u2019s considerable variety between institutions in terms of the way in which the role is defined and it continues to evolve\u201d, says Aya Ezawa, Diversity Officer and Assistant Professor at Leiden University. Ezawa is Chair of the National Dialogue Network of Diversity Officers, which encompasses Ezawa and her colleagues. \u201cWe share knowledge and collectively work towards professionalisation. We also provide a safe space for the discussion of case studies.\u201d<\/p>\n

Most diversity officers consider their primary task to be one of bringing about cultural change. They want the organisation to be somewhere where nobody feels that they face additional barriers due to factors such as skin colour or gender.<\/p>\n

Neither policymaker nor activist<\/h2>

Higher education institutions are trying to effect that cultural change through their diversity policies. The survey shows that while most diversity officers endorse this approach, they regard policy as a necessary evil. \u201cA policy document sets out what the organisation stands for, its aims and the intended methods of accomplishing those aims. That\u2019s tremendously important, yet I definitely don\u2019t see myself as being just a policymaker. More than anything, I see myself as a builder of bridges, a catalyst and someone who raises awareness\u201d, says Sterre Mkatini, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer at the University of Twente.<\/p>\n

Nor do they view themselves as activists. \u201cI try to be diplomatic, to make strategic decisions and to keep the dialogue going with the leaders that I influence with a view to coming up with shared objectives\u201d, says Semiha Denkta\u015f, Chief Diversity Officer at Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR).<\/p>\n

Ideological debate<\/h2>

Diversity and inclusion officers sincerely aim to improve the opportunities of marginalised groups, but a lot of issues are political hot potatoes. Separating practical matters from ideology is one way of channelling resistance. Ruard Ganzevoort, Diversity Officer at VU University Amsterdam, explains: \u201cIf I were to cry racism just because our institution has too few professors from ethnic minority backgrounds, people would be up in arms, and rightly so.\u201d In such cases, he believes that it\u2019s better to place the emphasis on quality. \u201cThe more diverse your team, the better.\u201d<\/p>\n

In Ganzevoort\u2019s eyes, this doesn\u2019t detract from the fact that the ideological debate about racism is still one that needs to be had. \u201cWhenever tension arises, as was the case during Black Lives Matter, we organise sessions where groups engage with one another on sensitive topics.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Spurred on by social movements like Black Lives Matter and MeToo, students of a more activist bent maintain pressure on higher education institutions across the country to work on diversity and inclusion. In addition, both the Netherlands Association of Universities of Applied Sciences<\/a> and the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science<\/a> have issued guidelines for diversity and inclusion at research universities and universities of applied sciences. Yielding to the pressure exerted by this nationwide trend, the Executive Boards of the individual higher education institutions have taken it upon themselves to do something about diversity. Unsurprisingly, then, most diversity officers we spoke with say they feel supported by their Executive Board, even if this doesn\u2019t always result in them being given sufficient time and resources or enough of a mandate.<\/p>\n

The present survey reveals that the total FTE freed up centrally varies between 0.6 and 7.
\nWith about seven FTE at central level, the diversity office in Rotterdam is the largest in the Netherlands.<\/p>\n

Some institutions have a central office. These are often backed up by staff engaged in the topic within various departments and faculties. This fragmentation makes it hard to ascertain the total amount of time, financial resources and human resources freed up for this topic.<\/p>\n

Ambassador<\/h2>

Institutions are going all out to achieve equality of opportunity: organising events and debates, moderating talks, coming up with toolkits for education and recruitment, amassing expertise, advising, writing speeches and networking at all levels of the institution and beyond. A diversity officer who has to do all this by himself or herself, as is the case in some places, has to be a real jack-of-all-trades.<\/p>\n

Whether they like it or not, and in contrast to policy officers whose remit includes diversity, diversity officers also serve as ambassadors and contacts for students who face difficulties. Consequently, diversity officers occasionally find themselves embroiled in controversy in the media. Ezawa: \u201cWe\u2019re much more visible than other policy officers. The diversity officer\u2019s role calls for different qualities. You need to be thick-skinned and tactful and know your subject in order to win over the community.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hateful comments<\/h2>

It\u2019s true that virtually all diversity officers say they\u2019ve been on the end of negative and sometimes even hateful comments on social media, in comment sections, columns and op-eds in newspapers and magazines. Three of them claim to have felt threatened personally. They didn\u2019t wish to elaborate. One officer we spoke with was willing to add some detail on the condition of anonymity, in view of the negative comments.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe anti-woke brigade is sharing personal details on social media and using derogatory language for people of colour, disabled people, women and homosexuals.\u201d She preferred not to go into the specifics of the harassment, though she does add that things escalate from time to time. \u201cBecause our names are in the public domain, our families are the targets of online hate as well. Sometimes the comments are even shared by MPs who object to our work.\u201d<\/p>\n

The officer points out that such comments are tantamount to harassment, in part because diversity officers themselves tend to be from minority groups. \u201cSome diversity officers feel a need to go public about this, but this actually leaves them exposed to targeting by the anti-woke brigade.\u201d<\/p>\n

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While the officer hasn\u2019t reported any harassment, she has taken other precautionary measures. \u201cI omit student assistants\u2019 surnames in public communications on diversity policy to shield them from such comments, and I\u2019ve stopped reading my social media. A communications officer does this on my behalf.\u201d<\/p>\n

Institutions often underestimate how much diversity officers have to put up with, she believes. For example, there\u2019s no guidance for diversity officers who are threatened, despite there being guidance for academics<\/a> subjected to threats. \u201cI do draw on that guidance, as it applies to us too. We get the same flak as epidemiologists, for example.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t

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Lees meer<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t