Equality, Diversity & Inclusion

The many positive developments during 2023/24 included the appointment of the inaugural Director of EDII, Prof. Lorraine McIlrath, the establishment of the EDII Office, and the EDII team growing to four - including a Sexual Violence Harassment Prevention & Response Manager. The broader MIC staff contributed as EDII Champions and more.

EDII Office Establishment and Growth

The EDII Project Awards for staff, student and community collaborations were developed with over 20 funded. Over 70 staff undertook the EDI Online programme in 2022/23, and more than 30 women availed of the Advance HE Aurora Programme. The EDII Office was involved in over 70 events during the 2022/23 academic year and hosted 48. Pride pedestrian crossings were installed on campus, offering a visible articulation of the importance of EDII at MIC.

EDII worked to embed a college-wide response to social and international challenges, such as the war in Ukraine. The MIC Teaching for Inclusion Seminar Series and English Language programmes for migrant communities continued in this vein. In addition, the EDII Office launched two postgraduate Sanctuary Scholarships in 2023 that were successfully awarded and was accepting applications for four undergraduate and two postgraduate scholarships for 2024/25.

In June 2022, the MIC Faculty of Arts was awarded its first bronze department-level Athena Swan award, and the Faculty of Education commenced its application process in 2024. At the start of 2023, the process of renewing the Bronze institutional Athena Swan award began, and that was submitted in early 2024.

MIC received a second bronze Athena Swan Institution Award on 4 April. MIC became a member of the Athena Swan Charter in 2018 and achieved the initial Bronze Institutional Award in 2019 on the first application, which was a fantastic achievement. Securing a second award and sustaining the success of objectives set out in the four-year action plan from 2019- 2023 represented a huge amount of work by Professor Lorraine McIlrath, Director of Equality, Diversity, Inclusion and Interculturalism (EDII) and the EDII team

Key Achievements

Some of the achievements during the timeframe of the first AS Action Plan included:

• The creation of a central MIC Equality, Diversity, Inclusion and Interculturalism (EDII) Office
• The appointment of the Director of EDII and two newly appointed EDII Faculty Leads in Arts and Education
• The development of the MIC EDII Strategic Plan that aligned with the Athena Swan Action Plan 2019-2023 and Charter 

Governance and management committees all achieved a minimum of 40% female representation, and the MIC Executive Team was restructured, with female representation increasing from 13% to 50%. The MIC Faculty of Arts attained the Athena Swan Bronze Departmental Award in 2022, and the College successfully developed and awarded six annual University of Sanctuary Scholarships.

The 2023-2027 Athena Swan Action Plan focused on existing and new areas to further commit to implementing change across MIC over the next four years.

Faculty of Education Application

The Faculty of Education worked on its Bronze Athena Swan submission during the year. The Self-Assessment Team (SAT) for the Faculty of Education (FE) Athena Swan Bronze Award submission was set up in Semester 2 AY 23/24. The SAT comprised 16 members and was subdivided into six working groups:

The MIC Equality, Diversity, Inclusion and Interculturalism (EDII) Office hosted the EDII Project Awards 2023-2024 Showcase in early September, where attendees gathered to recognise the impacts of the various funded EDII projects from the last academic year.

Over 20 projects were funded over the last two years, and this event also marked the official launch of the 2024-2025 EDII Project Awards. Sums ranging from €500 to €5,000 were awarded over the forthcoming year.

This showcase featured seven presentations—both in-person and via video—that highlighted successful initiatives that took place across the College and the region. Conducted by staff, students, and community partners, featured projects included:

• Neurodiversity and the Academy
• The Citizenship Referendum: 20 Years On
• Trans Inclusion Workshops for Teacher Education
• WOW! The Wonders of Williams: Enabling Children with Williams Syndrome to Create Digital Resources
• EDNIP World Café and Learning Exchange Event
• Brazilian Urban Instrumental Music from the Late 19th Century and its Entanglements with Race and Gender: A Workshop on Choro
• Migrant Parents and Cooking for Cohesion
• Traveller Parent Engagement in Science for Fun
• Diversity and Intercultural Education Network (DIEN)
• Creating Spaces and Events for Learning and Creativity

On a related note, there were several presentations delivered by MIC staff and 2023-24 EDII Project participants, as well as the keynote address by Director of EDII, Prof. Lorraine McIlrath, at the national Equitas Conference in June.

MIC's Equality, Diversity, Inclusion & Interculturalism (EDII) Office was awarded the Excellence in Diversity, Inclusivity and Equality Award at the Education Awards.

Summary Statement of Compliance with Section 42 of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission Act 2014

MIC demonstrated a strong commitment to promoting equality, preventing discrimination, and protecting human rights as required under Section 42 of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission Act 2014. This commitment aligned with the College's historic mission of social justice and was integrated into its strategic framework, particularly through the current and forthcoming strategic plans.

Strategic Alignment and Policy Framework

MIC's approach to equality, diversity, inclusion, and interculturalism (EDII) was embedded within the strategic plan 'A Flourishing Learning Community 2020-2023'. This strategic direction, which emphasised the College's social justice ethos, was further reinforced by various policies and initiatives alongside the development of the EDII Office, overseen by a director and team.

The College planned to integrate Section 42 obligations into the upcoming 2024-2028 strategic plan to ensure continuous alignment with its statutory duties. In addition, a capacitybuilding process for all MIC staff and students, as well as a formal assessment, was under development. This assessment process would involve the development of a Working Group and a whole institutional exercise to inform the college community of duties and responsibilities. This assessment would also inform the strategic development of MIC and the Equality, Diversity, Inclusion, and Interculturalism strategy.

MIC developed a new domestic violence leave policy to support the statutory domestic violence leave introduced by the Government in November 2023, which was currently undergoing wider review and consultation.

Mary Immaculate College (MIC) reinforced its commitment to respecting cultural diversity and promoting equity in society with the signing of the Higher Education Authority (HEA)'s Race Equality Anti-Racism Principles for Irish Higher Education Institutions. This document was also framed and hung in several public spaces on campus.

All of these policies and guidelines were upheld and monitored by the MIC Executive Team, EDII Office, and the Equality Committee that reported into the Governing Authority and were reviewed every 2 years.