Rutgers School of Nursing Magazine - Summer 2024

“We really strive to make our school a safe and welcoming space where everyone feels respected, valued, and included.” R U T G E R S N U R S I N G / S U M M E R 2 0 2 4 1 8 / 1 9 Led by Dean Linda Flynn, PhD, RN, FAAN, the school created a Dean’s Committee on Anti-Racism and Anti- Bias. Among other things, the school implemented “Impact Dialogue Circles”—a series of listening workshops with faculty, staff, and students designed to seek feedback from the community and act upon it. Additionally, the school created an anonymous digital hotline to report incidents of racism and bias directly to the dean. “The dean requested a five-year plan to organize our efforts and we brought in speakers and two external partners to aid us in achieving our goals,” Warren says. The school leadership launched two types of Power of Difference groups or PODs, aiming to create a safe and inclusive environment for everyone. One POD, Voices of Color, offers faculty and staff who identify as people of color an opportunity to share and discuss their experiences. “The Voices of Color POD is about creating safe spaces for people to be their authentic selves, and to talk about the totality of their experience within the school and university,” says Rosario Reyes-Urbina, MA, who co-chairs the POD, along with Wilson W.B. Ng, PhD, EMT, senior student program coordinator; and Mamilda Robinson, DNP, APN, PMHNP-BC, clinical assistant professor and specialty director. Reyes-Urbina, who serves as senior executive assistant to the dean, is also an inclusion and belonging officer. “The essence of Voices of Color is to get together and create a space where we can build community and respect dignity and equality,” she says. The second POD, called the Rainbow Advocacy Coalition, consists of members and allies of the LGBTQIA+ community who advocate for procedural and curricular changes to make the school and the learning process more inclusive. “They have made outstanding recommendations,” says Warren. “For example, one of their many efforts was to examine where there could be bathrooms for all genders. This POD is chaired by Clinical Assistant Professor Dawn Slowinski, PhD, MSN, RN, PHCNS-CNEc. Students are actively involved in these efforts. Satya Thakor, who graduated in May, served in the senior vice dean’s office as one of two inclusion and belonging student interns. “We did a train-the-trainer program to help teach us how to navigate, guide, and lead difficult conversations regarding equity and belonging,” he says. These skills are particularly important in nursing, he emphasized: “Nursing goes beyond administering IVs— much of our role involves therapeutic communication. It’s important that we build our skills as nurses and that we are prepared for these important conversations. When there’s diversity you get different perspectives, and you learn from different people, and from different cultures and experiences.” The school also strives to attract and retain a diverse faculty and staff. “We’re using a multi-pronged approach, looking at the school as a whole as far as our faculty, our staff, and our students are concerned,” says Johanna Stephenson, MPA, MLER, assistant dean for faculty and staff resources, who is a co-chair for the Dean’s Committee on Anti-Racism and Anti-Bias. “For example, we recently added equity and belonging questions to exit interviews to learn what people’s experiences have been.” These efforts help create opportunities for professional development and growth for everyone, notes Stephenson. “We really strive to make our school a safe and welcoming space where everyone feels respected, valued, and included.” n —JOHANNA STEPHENSON, MPH, MLER