January 29, 2021
School of Nursing Climate Survey Results
Dear Faculty, Staff and Students,
We are honored to share with you the climate survey results for the School of Nursing, which come from a university-wide survey administered in the fall of 2019. It is our honor for several reasons. First, because it offers us the opportunity to comprehensively examine where we stand with respect to the learning, working, and living experiences of our most important stakeholders: you. Second, because as part of our school’s commitment to transparency, inclusivity, and improving our culture and climate, we can share the full results of the report with you and plan future spaces for dialogue and discussion. Lastly, but more importantly, it provides data that will help our school continue to refine and solidify our shared roadmap towards ensuring the School of Nursing as part of the Seattle health sciences campus is an inclusive, equitable, and safe community to be a part of. We whole-heartedly thank all of you who participated in the survey.
We do not have previous data this comprehensive to measure our successes or shortcomings, but when compared to other campus units, results indicate more positive conditions in some key areas. We had the highest response rate among all of the health sciences schools (45.8% compared to 17.8% across all health sciences schools) and 77.5% of School of Nursing participants responded that they are “comfortable or very comfortable with the climate at UW.” We had the lowest percentage of those reporting having experienced or witnessed exclusionary, intimidating, offensive, and/or hostile conduct directed toward our students, staff and faculty (15.3% compared to 19.4% across all health sciences schools). Our undergraduate students rated their perceived academic success at 3.88 (on a five-point scale), compared to 3.75 across all health sciences schools, while graduate students rated their perceived academic success at 4.18, compared to 3.98 for graduate students from the larger Seattle health sciences campus sample.
We believe these indicators reflect our school’s commitment to fostering a climate that is welcoming of all groups. The work done by our Office of DEI, the Diversity Committee, student groups, workgroups, and all the various spaces throughout our school have laid the foundation to improving the wellbeing of our community.
That said, continued work remains. That anyone in our school is the recipient or witness of discrimination or harassment is unacceptable, especially when it is related to racial identity. That our faculty continue to feel that there is a hierarchy within our school that does not value their voice and just 58.6% would recommend UW as a good place to work underscores just one of the many areas we must attend to.
Part of the work ahead includes providing opportunities for your input and involvement. Discussions about the results of the climate survey and how we can improve will be part of upcoming faculty, student and staff meetings. We invite you to explore the results (posted along with other important inclusivity statistics and data on our DEI website) and join us for these conversations. This is just the beginning and we look forward to you being part of the effort to move us forward.
Respectfully,
Azita Emami, PhD, MSN, RNT, RN, FAAN
Robert G. and Jean A. Reid Dean
Executive Dean, UW School of Nursing