Patterson School of Accountancy

Patterson School of Accountancy
Five-Year Equity-in-Action Plan
INTRODUCTION

PATTERSON SCHOOL DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION STATEMENT AND MESSAGE FROM DEAN MARK WILDER

The Patterson School of Accountancy affirms the University of Mississippi Diversity Statement and embraces its role in the university’s public flagship mission of inspiring and educating our diverse and vibrant community.

As dean of the Patterson School, I am strongly committed to furthering the school’s advancement of our diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives outlined in this action plan.   We in the Patterson School are dedicated to increasing and recognizing diversity within our school, providing a learning environment where all members of the school can thrive, and fostering a welcoming and inclusive climate.

MESSAGE FROM DIVERSITY LIAISON

Our Equity-in-Action plan builds on the existing strengths of the Patterson School to increase diversity within the school at the student, faculty and staff levels, to enhance the inclusivity of our climate, and to equip all of our students to meet the high standards of the school. The Patterson School has a long-standing tradition of engagement with the accounting profession, and the school has a unique opportunity to answer the calls for increased diversity in the profession by the AICPA and industry-leading firms. Our culture of student-faculty engagement supports students’ learning and progress toward graduation for students of all backgrounds and identities. As the diversity, equity and inclusion liaison, I am deeply committed to supporting the Patterson School’s progress in DEI and to the success of all members of the Patterson School community.

VISION AND MISSION

The vision of the Patterson School of Accountancy at the University of Mississippi is to be one of the leading institutions in accounting education and scholarship in the nation.

To realize that vision, the Patterson School has the following mission:

The mission of the Patterson School of Accountancy is to (i) offer intellectually challenging education at the bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral levels that will facilitate the development of students as accountancy professionals and scholars; (ii) support and produce nationally and internationally relevant accounting research; and (iii) engage meaningfully with the academic and professional communities.

In support of our vision and mission, the Patterson School of Accountancy is committed to continuous improvement in all areas, further developing the national image of the programs, leading and participating in changes in accounting education, adopting innovations that further our goals as a professional school of accountancy, providing funding and other resources necessary for the production of accounting research, and promoting a culture of professional certification (with emphasis on the CPA) among our students and faculty.

By recruiting and retaining quality faculty and outstanding students from diverse populations, the school maintains its excellence, autonomy and financial integrity.

OVERVIEW OF PATTERSON SCHOOL EQUITY-IN-ACTION PLAN

The Patterson School of Accountancy formed the school’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee in 2019 to aid in setting goals and developing strategic actions to increase the diversity, equity and inclusivity of the school. Given the long-standing and well-documented lack of diversity, particularly racial diversity, within the accounting profession in the U.S., the committee recognizes the unique challenges that underrepresented minorities face in entering the profession and the challenge the school faces in recruiting those students, faculty and staff. However, the committee also recognizes the unique opportunity the school possesses both as a leader in accounting education and as an institution in a state with a large underrepresented minority population. Our Equity-in-Action plan focuses on building on the existing strengths of the school to increase diversity within the school at the student, faculty and staff levels, to enhance the inclusivity of our climate, and to equip all of our students to meet the high standards of the school. 

PATTERSON SCHOOL OF ACCOUNTANCY DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION COMMITTEE

• Brett Cantrell, associate professor, DEI liaison
• Tami Barger, staff
• Nicole Barnes, alumnus (BAccy 15, MAccy 16)
• Brandon McClendon, student
• Birajit Nepal, graduate student
• Christy Nielson, assistant professor
• Rachna Prakash, associate professor
• Emani Walton, graduate student

PATTERSON SCHOOL STRATEGIC ACTIVITIES

A. Targeted Recruitment of Underrepresented Faculty, Staff and Doctoral Students:

The Patterson School of Accountancy will target efforts to recruit underrepresented faculty, staff and doctoral students, particularly those that reflect our student population. Efforts will include best practices from academic research and the corporate sector. To help understand best practices in this area, members of search committees will be encouraged to complete the UM diversity and inclusion search committee training. Efforts will also include a presence in networks for underrepresented groups such as the PhD Project for doctoral students and the American Accounting Association Diversity Section for faculty. The school will ensure that job postings express our school’s commitment to staff, faculty and doctoral student success across all demographics. We will evaluate our progress both by measuring the tangible institutional actions and the desired outcomes.

Area(s) Responsible: search committees and the dean

Resources Statement: as future hiring needs and opportunities permit

Institutional Capacity

• Representation/recruiting presence at the PhD Project conference(Baseline: N/A)
• Percentage of search committee members who have completed UM diversity and inclusion search committee training (Baseline: N/A)

Diverse and Equitable Community

• Diversity of faculty, staff and doctoral student applicant pools (Baseline: N/A)
• Faculty Demographics – gender and ethnicity (Baseline: 2019-20 faculty demographics; benchmark: universitywide faculty demographics)
• Staff Demographics – gender and ethnicity (Baseline: 2019-20 staff demographics; benchmark: universitywide staff demographics)
• Doctoral Student Demographics – gender and ethnicity (Baseline: 2019-20 doctoral student demographics; benchmark: universitywide doctoral student demographics)

B. Implement Targeted Recruitment Strategies for Underrepresented Minority Students:

The Patterson School will implement targeted recruitment strategies for underrepresented minority students that leverage the school’s existing strengths and resources. Efforts will include a presence in networks for underrepresented groups such as the National Association of Black Accountants’ Accounting Careers Awareness Program and the Association of Latino Professionals for America, and marketing in materials directed at first-generation college students and minorities, such as the AICPA’s ThisWaytoCPA.com. The school will target contact with underrepresented minority applicants to express our school’s commitment to minority student success. The school will use all appropriate university recruiting venues/programs targeting underrepresented students, including international students already admitted to the university.

Area(s) Responsible: coordinator of communications/student recruitment, Dean’s Office, DEI liaison

Resources Statement: The school and Dean’s Office will provide resources to enable us to effectively pursue these strategies.

Diverse and Equitable Community

• Student Enrollment Demographics – gender and ethnicity (Baseline: 2019-20 student demographics; benchmark: universitywide student demographics and national averages in the annual supply-and-demand publication AICPA Trends)
• Percentage of minority student applicants receiving targeted recruiting materials (Baseline: N/A)

C. Expanded Offerings of Bridge Course for Transfer Students:

The Patterson School of Accountancy will expand the offerings of our “bridge course” specifically designed for junior and community college transfer students. The rigor of our junior-level intermediate accounting classes benefits and challenges our students but can create a difficult transition for transfer students without experience in our program. The Patterson School already offers a bridge course, ACCY 300 – Fundamentals of Financial Accounting, at the DeSoto and Tupelo campuses. The Patterson School will expand the use of this course to the Oxford campus. This course will ease transfer students’ transition by providing an adequate foundation to proceed to intermediate accounting and by acclimating students to the expectations of our program. Our metrics for evaluating this action will include both the existence and number of course offerings as well as the number of students enrolled in the courses. Additionally, the school will be able to track student success metrics such as GPA and pass/fail rates for students in the course and subsequent courses to determine and refine the efficacy of this course in supporting and preparing students for the transition into our school.

Area(s) Responsible: Dean’s Office

Resources Statement: The school and Dean’s Office will provide resources to enable us to offer this course on the Oxford campus each August intersession. The course was taught on a trial basis in August 2020.

Institutional Capacity

• Availability/number of ACCY 300 offerings on each campus (Baseline: course offerings in 2019)

Diverse and Equitable Community

• Number of students enrolled in ACCY 300 on each campus (Baseline: course enrollment in 2019)
• Student pass/fail rate in intermediate accounting for ACCY 300 students (Baseline: transfer students 2019 pass/fail rate; transfer students pass/fail rate that do not take ACCY 300)

D. Pursue and Obtain External Resources to Support DEI Initiatives, including Scholarship Funding:

The Patterson School will pursue and obtain external resources to support DEI initiatives. These efforts will include identifying appropriate government grants, foundations and alumni that represent likely avenues for support. Fundraising will target resources to be dedicated to programs for supporting the recruitment, retention and graduation of underrepresented minority students and the hiring, promotion and retention of faculty and staff. Our metrics for measuring success will include the dollars raised to support initiatives and the number of scholarships and scholarship dollars devoted to minority students. In addition, professor Morris Stocks has written a grant pre-proposal of approximately $2 million to support diversity and first-generation college students pursuing degrees in the Patterson School. We plan to submit this grant proposal to a foundation in calendar year 2021.

Area(s) Responsible: DEI liaison, dean, and director of development

Institutional Capacity

• Dollars of external fundraising pledged and received for DEI initiatives (Baseline: 2019)

Diverse and Equitable Community

• Number of underrepresented minority scholarship recipients (Baseline: 2019 and 2020 minority scholarship recipients)
• Dollar amount of scholarships awarded to underrepresented minorities (Baseline: 2019 and 2020 minority scholarship dollars)

E. Continue and Expand Support for Student Interest Groups:

The Patterson School will continue to support our National Association of Black Accountants chapter to meet the needs of its members. The school also will seek opportunities to extend support to new student interest groups that will serve the professional development and networking interests and needs of students, particularly underrepresented minority students. This support aims to assist in maintaining a vibrant NABA chapter and creating other vibrant student organizations. This support will be responsive to the needs of the student organizations.

Area(s) Responsible: Dean’s Office, NABA faculty adviser, faculty and staff broadly

Inclusive Campus Climate

• Number of NABA meetings and events (Baseline: 2019 NABA meetings)
• Number of active NABA members (Baseline: 2019 NABA members)
• Inception of additional student interest organization (Baseline: N/A)

F. Create and Implement Initiatives Designed to Assist in Academic Success:

The Patterson School will implement a student-alumni mentoring program to provide students with insight into navigating our program and entering the accounting profession from recent graduates. The school will pay particular attention to the mentoring needs of underrepresented minority students and first-generation students during the selection and matching process. The school’s long-term plan is to hire a DEI staff position to implement an internal retention program using best practices in mentoring, cohorts and tutoring. The school’s target date is to have this DEI staff person in place for fall 2024.

Area(s) Responsible: Dean’s Office

Resources Statement: hiring to be made from DEI grants/funds raised

Institutional Capacity

• Position of DEI staff filled (Baseline: N/A)

Diverse and Equitable Community

• Number/percentage of underrepresented minority students with alumni mentors (Baseline: N/A)
• Number/percentage of first-generation students with alumni mentors (Baseline: N/A)
• Freshman four- and six-year graduation rates by ethnicity and for first-generation students (Baseline: recent applicable graduation rates; universitywide graduation rates)
• Junior two- and four-year graduation rates by ethnicity and for first-generation students (Baseline: recent applicable graduation rates; universitywide graduation rates)

Inclusive Campus Climate

• Percentage of climate study responders who express feeling comfortable in the classroom (Baseline: percentage of 2019 climate study responses for PSoA; percentage of future climate study responses for university)

STRATEGIC ACTIVITIES SUMMARY

Administrative Divisions Equity-in-Action Plans
ACTIVITY	METRICS
	Institutional Capacity	Diverse and Equitable Community	Campus Climate
Targeted Recruitment of Under-represented Faculty, Staff and Doctoral Students	Representation/recruiting presence at the PhD Project conference (Baseline: N/A) Percentage of search committee members who have completed UM diversity and inclusion search committee training (Baseline: N/A)	Diversity of faculty, staff and doctoral student applicant pools (Baseline: N/A) Faculty Demographics – gender & ethnicity (Baseline: 2019-20 faculty demographics; benchmark: universitywide faculty demographics) Staff Demographics – gender & ethnicity (Baseline: 2019-20 staff demographics; benchmark: universitywide staff demographics) Doctoral Student Demographics – gender & ethnicity (Baseline: 2019-20 doctoral student demographics; benchmark: universitywide doctoral student demographics)
Implement Targeted Recruitment Strategies for Under-Represented Minority Students		Student Enrollment Demographics – gender & ethnicity (Baseline: 2019-20 student demographics; benchmark: universitywide student demographics and national averages in the annual supply-and-demand publication AICPA Trends) Percentage of minority student applicants receiving targeted recruiting materials (Baseline: N/A)
Expanded Offerings of Bridge Course for Transfer Students	Availability/number of ACCY 300 offerings on each campus (Baseline: course offerings in 2019)	Number of students enrolled in ACCY 300 on each campus (Baseline: course enrollment 2019)
Pursue and Obtain External Resources to Support DEI Initiatives, including Scholarship Funding	Dollars of external fundraising pledged and received for DEI initiatives (Baseline: 2019)	Number of underrepresented minority scholarship recipients (Baseline: 2019 and 2020 minority scholarship recipients) Dollar amount of scholarships awarded to underrepresented minorities (Baseline: 2019 and 2020 minority scholarship dollars)
Continue and Expand Support for Student Interest Groups			Number of NABA meetings and events (Baseline: 2019 NABA meetings) Number of active NABA members (Baseline: 2019 NABA members) Inception of additional student interest organization (Baseline: N/A)
Create and Implement Initiatives Designed to Assist in Academic Success	Position of DEI staff filled (Baseline: N/A)	Number/percentage of underrepresented minority students with alumni mentors (Baseline: N/A) Number/percentage of first-generation students with alumni mentors (Baseline: N/A) Freshman four- and six-year graduation rates by ethnicity and for first-generation students (Baseline: recent applicable graduation rates; universitywide graduation rates) Junior two- and four-year graduation rates by ethnicity and for first-generation students (Baseline: recent applicable graduation rates; universitywide graduation rates)	Percentage of climate study responders who express feeling comfortable in the classroom (Baseline: % of 2019 climate study responses for PSoA; % of future climate study responses for university)

 

 

 

PATHWAYS TO EQUITY: University of Mississippi Institutional Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Strategic Plan

The University of Mississippi continues its commitment to excellence and making a positive difference in society through higher education. Pathways to Equity stands as our institutional guidepost for addressing and advancing our institutional mission through centering on diversity, equity and inclusion. Our complex institutional history coupled with our rich culture of students, faculty and staff striving for inclusive change has led us to the solidification of this institutional plan. Pathways to Equity works in concert with the university’s strategic plan to leverage university-wide, college/school-level and departmental transformative initiatives that cultivate a more diverse, equitable and inclusive campus.

With Pathways to Equity, the University of Mississippi aspires to achieve the following statements by the conclusion of this plan.

1. The University of Mississippi consistently and comprehensively articulates diversity, equity and inclusion as essential in fulfilling the mission, vision and values of the institution.
2. The University of Mississippi is organizationally and culturally equipped with the knowledge, skills and awareness to continue advancing diversity, equity and inclusion.
3. A campus climate is fostered that ensures all individuals are valued, supported and feel a sense of belonging at the University of Mississippi.
4. The University of Mississippi has decreases in disparities across underrepresented groups in the enrollment, retention and graduation rate at undergraduate and graduate levels.
5. The number of underrepresented groups employed at the University of Mississippi is increased to reflect a talented and diverse workforce at all organizational levels, especially tenure-track faculty, managerial positions and executive leadership positions.

Guiding Principles

The development of this plan requires us to address individual, social, organizational and systemic factors that create and sustain inequities that prevent all members of our community from fully participating and thriving. We view this as central to the mission of the University of Mississippi. As we embark on this journey together, we must commit to the following shared principles:

1. Equity-mindedness^[1] – We embrace the institutional responsibility and agency to actively address the challenges and disparate outcomes at all levels of our community. This requires us to be data informed and connect best and promising practices to generate high-impact change for underserved groups in our community.
2. Institutional Accountability – We must ensure efforts outlined throughout Pathways to Equity are acknowledged in the established systems of recognition, performance and accountability. It is vital that we work to account for the advancement of these goals in our ideas of success, merit and reward. Further, we must account for, honor and recognize faculty, staff, administrators and students in their commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion.
3. Transparency – In our execution of Pathways to Equity, our success is predicated on a highly accessible and collaborative process that actively involves university stakeholders to work as virtuous partners. To that end, we will consistently, publicly and broadly share our intended actions, goals and measurable impacts of this plan.
4. Innovation – Actualizing diversity, equity and inclusion will require us to deeply examine and rethink our policies, practices and procedures at the University of Mississippi. Each unit and individual across campus is invited to offer new thoughts, ideas and perspectives as we thoughtfully consider ways to make our institution more equitable and inclusive through an intersectional lens. This disposition will create a community of learning, growth and development as we collectively engage in this complex work.
5. Alignment of Critical Resources – During this planning process, we have navigated a global health pandemic that has shown the vulnerabilities in our systems that disparately affect underserved and under-resourced communities. As we continue to navigate these unprecedented times, we must not falter in our commitment to creating a more diverse, equitable and inclusive community. Instead, we must recognize that our commitment to equity is even more important today than ever.

OVERARCHING GOALS

The following goals represent the University of Mississippi’s commitment to the advancement of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). These overarching goals represent interconnected priorities that are applicable to UM broadly, from our comprehensive divisions, down to individual teams. We aim to have all units see meaningful alignment of these goals with their work. We will ensure UM embraces the transformative nature of diversity, equity and inclusion across all levels of the institution, addressing challenges to DEI at every corner of our institution by combining contextual understanding with internal and external expertise.

1. Advance Institutional Capacity for Equity
   Infrastructure, Information, Systems, Education and Processes
2. Cultivate a Diverse and Equitable Community
   Recruiting, Retaining, Advancing and Succeeding
3. Foster an Inclusive Campus Climate
   Support, Value and Belonging

 

 

 

 

[1] Bensimon, E.M., Dowd, A.C., Witham, K. (2016). Five principles for enacting equity by design. Diversity and Democracy, The Equity Imperative. Winter 2016, Volume 19, No. 1.