Division of Diversity and Community Engagement
The Division of Diversity and Community Engagement (DDCE) works with a broad range of student, faculty, staff, and community constituents to make the University of Texas at Austin a national model for diversity and community engagement in higher education. The division strives to create an inclusive community on campus that fosters an open and robust learning environment that supports all students, faculty, and staff. It also works to help the University meet its mission of service and create pathways for success for underserved students throughout the state.
The DDCE includes more than fifty units, programs, projects, and initiatives and works in four strategic areas: campus culture, community engagement, pre-K-16 education pipeline, and research.
The Campus Climate Response Team, which features an online campus climate reporting system, is one of the key initiatives in the area of campus culture and is a collaboration between DDCE and the Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs. The DDCE also provides diversity education training through its Diversity Education Initiatives.
The Community Engagement Center in East Austin serves as a center for community activities and houses the Regional Foundation Library, which offers services helping students, faculty members, and the public find funding for research projects and nonprofit activities. The center also houses the Social Justice Institute, which facilitates collaboration around social justice issues, events, and projects. The Community Engagement Center serves as a hub for the division's community engagement activities which include 300 community partners.
The Gender and Sexuality Center provide opportunities for all members of the UT Austin community to explore, organize, and promote learning around issues of gender and sexuality. The center also facilitates a greater responsiveness to the needs of women and the LGBTQ communities through education, outreach, and advocacy.
The Hogg Foundation for Mental Health funds and advocates for programs in mental health service research and public policy analysis.
The Intellectual Entrepreneurship Consortium uses entrepreneurship as a method for promoting student success on campus, collaboration among disciplines, and student impact on community issues through internship and mentoring opportunities.
The Longhorn Center for Academic Excellence offers a variety of programs and services to assist University students, including the Gateway Scholars, McNair Scholars Program, Longhorn Link, and Study Abroad programs. It also features a new program for sophomores and juniors interested in a law career, DiscoverLaw.org Prelaw Undergraduate Studies Plus and a research and mentoring initiative, the African American Male Research Intiative.
The Longhorn Center for Community Engagement fosters and supports the development of academic service learning classes on campus and connects students, faculty, and staff to service projects on campus and throughout the greater Austin area.
The Longhorn Center for School Partnerships works with public schools throughout the state to help students from under-represented groups across the state prepare for college. The Longhorn Center for School Partnership programs include the Neighborhood Longhorns Program which works with more than 6,000 Title I students in Austin Independent School District; three dual-credit programs for high school students (SPURS, Mathmasters, and ChemBridge); and five University Outreach Centers in Austin, Dallas, Houston, the Rio Grande Valley, and San Antonio.
The Multicultural Engagement Center hosts six student agencies and provides leadership development and student support services for students from from a variety of backgrounds.
The Office for Inclusion and Equity aids the University in fulfilling the intent and spirit of equal opportunity laws by providing equitable resolutions to complaints and striving for an environment free of discrimination.
Services for Students with Disabilities works to ensure that all students have equal access to the University’s programs and services. Eligibility and specific accommodations are based on appropriate documentation and individual student needs.
Student Diversity Initiatives works with students to create safe environments through two centers: the Gender and Sexuality Center, which provides resources for all members of the campus community to explore and organize around issues of gender and sexuality through education and outreach, and the Multicultural Engagement Center, which develops leaders and provides training to students on the multicultural and diverse society in which we live.
Through Thematic Faculty Hiring Initiatives, DDCE collaborates with colleges and departments across campus to identify under-represented areas of scholarship and then to find faculty members to fill them. Thematic Faculty Hiring Initiatives also includes a faculty fellows program that provides funding to faculty members conducting research that is linked to the community.
The University Interscholastic League (UIL), created to provide leadership and guidance to public school debate and athletics teachers, has grown into the largest organization of its kind in the world, sponsoring regional and state-wide academic and athletic competitions. UIL reaches every school district in the state and has played a large role in developing young leaders and in providing avenues for success of public school students.
The University of Texas Elementary School is a research-based demonstration school located in East Austin that serves as a training and development site for future teachers, school nurses, speech therapists, social workers, counselors, and psychologists. The University of Texas-University Charter School includes 22 campuses serving more than 700 K-12 students with special needs, including a number of students in foster care settings.
For a more complete listing of DDCE programs initiatives, please see the bottom of the DDCE home page.