By Phillip Brooks
NAIS Research Analyst
January 2024
Executive Summary
The responses and written comments to the 2023 Diversity Practitioner Survey suggest that diversity practice is a role that is still in the process of growth, formalization, and professionalization at many schools. However, there have been some significant signs of growth. For example, in 2019, 54% of diversity practitioners were full time; in 2023, the percentage had risen to 75%. There has also been improvement in the definition of the position. Forty percent of participants say that their job responsibilities are extremely well-defined or very well-defined, with 30% of these saying that their job responsibilities are very well-defined. In 2019, 29% said their job responsibilities were extremely or very well-defined.
More than half (52%) of practitioners hold another role in addition to diversity practitioner. Fifty percent of these practitioners also serve as a teacher.
Since 2019, there has been a considerable increase in the percentage of practitioners who report to their head of school (86% compared to 57% in 2019). A much smaller percentage (11%) report to the assistant/associate head.
When asked about budgets, the largest percentage of respondents (21%) reported that their annual budget for diversity initiatives was over $50,000. However, a troubling percentage of diversity practitioners said that either there was no annual budget (12%) or that the budget was “unknown” (10%).
Diversity practitioners reported a long list of duties and responsibilities. Ninety-three percent engage in planning/overseeing diversity programs; 86% spend time presenting/conducting workshops on diversity topics. Eighty-nine percent consult with faculty/administrators on diversity-related problems, and 88% interact with other administrators on diversity initiatives. Other duties that take up diversity practitioners’ time include supporting teacher-led DEI and multicultural education (83%), developing and monitoring strategic diversity/inclusion plans (82%), and supporting school groups that fall within the diversity umbrella (80%).
Slightly less than half of the respondents (49%) said that their school had a formal strategic diversity plan in place. Sixty-one percent reported that they are the only person responsible for implementing diversity policies and programs at their school.
The most common diversity events that practitioners held were celebrations of different cultures and heritage, such as Black History Month and Hispanic Heritage (94%). Other common events included affinity groups (79%), assemblies (78%), and guest speakers (72%).
Although most practitioners believe that their school does a good job of creating a caring community environment (71% of practitioners gave their school a score of 8 to 10 with 10 being the highest) and being committed to ethical values and character development (63%), they view their school as less successful in terms of other expressions of diversity and inclusiveness, such as being committed to positive change relating to diversity (47%).
Sixty-eight percent of diversity practitioners participating in this survey are women, 28% are men, and 3% identify as nonbinary. Forty-two percent of practitioners were 40 or under, and 36% were between 41 and 50. Sixty-six percent are African American. Eighty-one percent hold an advanced degree (58% have a master’s degree; 23% have a Ph.D.). More than a quarter (27%) of respondents have worked as a diversity practitioner for 10 or more years, and 41% have worked in this role for four to nine years.
Only 10% of practitioners did not have any kind of formal training in diversity work. The most popular NAIS-led training was the People of Color Conference (PoCC) Leadership Institute for People of Color (54%) and the NAIS Diversity Leadership Institute (37%).
Background
This report presents the results of the 2023 Diversity Practitioner Survey. NAIS conducted this study as part of a strategic initiative with the long-term goal of creating a comprehensive body of knowledge on diversity practice within independent schools.
This study had three key objectives:
- Identify and understand the roles, functions, demographic characteristics, and backgrounds of diversity practitioners
- Define the roles played by diversity practitioners within independent schools and the support received from the schools (resources, budget, time, curriculum, etc.)
- Identify the challenges, successes, and needs of diversity practitioners within independent schools
Methodology
Diversity practitioners were given the opportunity to take an online survey via email. The survey was hosted on the SurveyMonkey platform in fall 2023 and was distributed to 658 participants. A total of 220 practitioners responded to the survey, a participation rate of 33%.
Throughout the report, comparisons are made to the results in the “2019 State of the Diversity Practice.” Percentages may not equal 100 because of rounding.
This report was written by Phillip Brooks, research analyst at NAIS.
Downloadable Content
- NAIS Research: 2023-2024 State of Independent School Diversity Practice (PDF; member login required)
This report includes the following sections:
- Diversity Position at Independent Schools
- Diversity Practitioner Role at Independent Schools
- Diversity Implementation at Independent Schools
- Demographic Characteristics of Diversity Practitioners
- Diversity Practitioner's Professional Background
- School Demographics