A PLACE TO THRIVE

When Evan Fossen first applied for a job at Georgetown McDonough as assistant director of events, he felt a little hesitation. He had no experience with the university or school. And because he would be moving from a public university to a private Jesuit institution, he wondered what support would be like for the LGBTQ+ community.

Some online research put his hesitation to rest. He found information about the university’s much-lauded LGBTQ Resource Center. He also found a number of speakers and events both featuring and supporting the community. Now, he’s in a position to bolster that kind of work — particularly for other prospective and current employees. Fossen helped launch and now leads the university’s LGBTQ+ employee resource group (ERG), one of the first such affinity groups on campus.

“The LGBTQ Resource Center has done a lot of great work with students, but they don’t always have capacity to help faculty and staff on campus,” Fossen says. “Plus, faculty and staff have a different set of needs.”

One of those needs is simply a place to network and support each other. So the brand-new ERG began organizing in spring and launched officially in fall 2022. For Fossen and colleagues, shortterm goals include hosting regular meetings for the LGBTQ+ community to connect across campus units, in addition to providing elected leadership and development opportunities. The group also intends to develop a speakers series and events relevant to LGBTQ+ and intersectional issues, something Fossen has expertise in and brings to his new role as McDonough’s director of events and brand experience.

Longer-term, Fossen sees the group as a way to raise the profile and support for the community on campus — and even allay the kind of fears or hesitation he experienced when applying for a job at McDonough.

“We want to spread the visibility of this community and highlight people within the larger university, to show we can thrive on a Jesuit campus,” Fossen says. “There is space to do well at Georgetown.”

Curriculum

Long-term review: Led by Michael O’Leary, teaching professor and senior associate dean for graduate and executive degree programs, a committee on curriculum is reviewing ways to better integrate the mindset of DEI into not only special courses but also coursework more broadly.

DEI across programs: Master’s in Management courses on statistics, machine learning, fintech, and more include discussions about bias. A lecture series on DEI is woven into the EMBA curriculum. Students in our MSBA program take focused coursework on diversity, ethics, and governance mechanisms in data and analytics in relation to DEI, as well as participating in a capstone project focused specifically on addressing bias.

CO-CURRICULUM

Beyond the curriculum: Patricia Grant, senior associate dean for the undergraduate program, led a committee exploring everything from increasing the diversity of speakers on campus to improving the student experience in student organizations.

Democratizing student organizations: Grant and team are piloting a possible new student club structure to ensure access and inclusivity regardless of students identity, background, or school affiliation. The structure is still under development, but it will heavily emphasize student leadership, involvement, and accountability.

Strong speakers: The Stanton Distinguished Leaders Series and other signature events have an increasing focus on diverse representation. Highlights from 2021–2022 include Thasunda Duckett, president and CEO of TIAA; Kevin Warren (B’94), EVP and chief marketing officer at UPS; Stacey Cunningham, former president of the New York Stock Exchange; and many more.

Expanded support: The Business Undergraduates Invested in Leadership Development (BUILD) program continues to support first-year underrepresented minority students with mentoring and early exposure to business concepts and the business community around Georgetown before orientation. Now it’s bolstered by the ongoing Business Scholars program (see page 13).

Careers

Conference support: The Career Center provided advance preparation and real-time support for four major diversity career conferences in fall 2021: National Black MBA, Reaching Out MBA (ROMBA), Prospanica, and MBA Veterans.

Follow-through on careers: Student members and fellows of the Consortium for Graduate Study in Management participated in enhanced one-on-one coaching and mentoring with staff and second-year MBA students. And 100% of Consortium graduates who were seeking employment obtained jobs.

A New Model For Hiring

For businesses that want to expand their efforts in DEI, hiring practices are often a smart place to start. For instance, they can examine both the implicit biases of hiring managers (we all have them) and the processes by which employees are recruited, onboarded, and promoted. This is what drives Trinity Johnson (B’23) as people operations manager at the MSB Tech Center (MSBTC). Johnson, a management major and sociology minor, is in her fourth year working for MSBTC, one of the largest student employers on campus. Johnson applied for — and did not get — a manager position in 2022. Instead of bemoaning the missed opportunity, she became proactive.

“I noted some concerns and reservations about the process, and historical patterns around the Tech Center,” Johnson says. “Historically, we’ve been the highest-paying job on campus, so it needs to be an equitable opportunity and better aligned with how businesses approach DEI.”

She proposed her new role, and with the support of key leadership, started the job in 2022. Now she’s helping improve the hiring side of the interview process by educating on hiring bias and focusing on core competencies, as well as DEI. On the employee side, she has partnered with affinity groups across campus to help broaden the future talent pool. She also created an interview prep guide for students who have limited interview experience in their past.

“We want to figure out a way to set an example at the Tech Center for what a student organization can look like with inclusive hiring practices,” Johnson says.

Community

Making a pivot: The Georgetown Pivot Program serves formerly incarcerated individuals with empowerment via education. The certificate program in business and entrepreneurship has a heavy emphasis on practicality and advocacy for second-chance hiring. The program celebrated its fourth cohort of graduates in 2022.

Ongoing celebrations: The Office of Marketing and Communications started a series to celebrate heritage months throughout the year through Q&A features on the McDonough website with accompanying content on social media featuring members of the community.

Culture

Resources for faculty: Informed by the work of Baker Trust Fellows, McDonough developed DEI Teaching Resources, an internal site with information on key DEI terms and concepts, ideas on incorporating a DEI mindset into coursework, and best practices for everything from building teams in the classroom to fostering inclusive participation.

Sharing best practices: Georgetown McDonough and DEI leaders at other business schools—specifically signatories to the CEO Action pledge, such as University of Virginia Darden School of Business, University of Michigan Ross School of Business, and NYU Stern School of Business—developed a collaborative group for sharing best practices and coordinating with AACSB.