After traveling thousands of miles and coaching hundreds of individuals and teams, Dr. Damon A. Williams decided it was time to kick diversity and inclusion training up a few notches.
Less than a year later, 80 higher education leaders from across the nation have graduated from his National Inclusion Excellence Leadership Academy (NIXLA), an intensive five-week program that equips diversity officers, deans, presidents, human resource officers, administrators and faculty with knowledge and skills to make real progress in promoting access and equity on their college campuses.
The academy is a result of his “feeling as if there’s not a space for leaders to go to really level up their leadership abilities and sharpen their abilities as it relates to diversity and inclusion matters,” said Williams, who is “chief catalyst” of the academy and the Center for Strategic Diversity Leadership and Social Innovation (CSDLSI).
“Tier-1 development and coaching and support is what they needed, and I wanted to fill that vacuum,” he said.
So he came up with NIXLA, an initiative of the CSDLSI, as is the National Inclusive Excellence Tour, which has visited dozens of campuses for specialized on-the-ground diversity training and development. At the same time, CSDLSI provides free webinars on various diversity topics that reached more than 15,000 people last year, while many campuses use two of Williams’ seminal books as resources, Strategic Diversity Leadership: Activating Change and Transformation in Higher Education and The Chief Diversity Officer: Strategy, Structure and Change Management.
“This is a different type of reach to go broad and comprehensive in support of individuals and institutions trying to get to the next level,” said Williams, a renowned expert in the field. “It’s for people experienced with diversity and those just starting with the work, individuals that are really serious about their leadership development and putting in the work to engage in the work as a high priority. We want people to see diversity not so much as a challenge but as an opportunity. Positivity, upliftment and empowerment is what we’re all about.”
Academy fellows could apply as individuals or as part of a team of five from the same institution. Of more than 140 applicants, 80 were accepted for the first cohort this year based on their backgrounds, experiences, potential to make an impact on diversity at their institutions, and willingness to commit the time to complete the content-rich program as part of a learning community. A range of schools participated, from community colleges to research institutions.
