Originally from Dispute Resolution Journal

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In today’s political society, focus on campus climate and its improvement has become increasingly significant. The widely accepted definition of campus climate is “the current attitudes, behaviors, and standards of faculty, staff, administrators and students concerning the level of respect for individual needs, abilities, and potential.”  On a whole, campus climate impacts the learning environment of students, the work conditions of faculty and staff, and the cultural backdrop to the community.  A campus environment that is unfriendly to diversity and inclusion can have negative impacts on student learning and development. Campus programing that increases community engagement is proven to have a positive effect on perceptions of inclusiveness and diversity, as well as empowers students to have an active role in their education.  Intergroup dialogue projects and restorative justice programs, such as student- centric mediation, have both been shown to improve campus climate, and together could create a cohesive strategy that would enhance the campus experience as a whole. 

Colleges, as institutions of higher learning, have a duty to society to lead social progress, which was affirmed by a U.S. Supreme Court opinion (Grutter v. Bollinger, 2003).  In addition, increased engagement and inclusion of students at a social level has been linked to increased engagement and inclusion at the education level.