Diversity, Inclusivity, and Accessibility in MLA Education

In November 2021, The Education Steering Committee (ESC) formed a Diversity, Inclusion, and Access working group to address MLA’s Strategic Plan goals related to diversity, inclusion, and accessibility. The members of the group, Jodi Philbrick, Emily Vardell, and I, mark the completion of our work with this account of what we have accomplished.

The working group focused on addressing that (1) diversity is reflected in the pool of instructors, content, and perspectives, (2) MLA members are valued, respected, supported and feel included by the educational offerings, (3) digital education content follows gold standards for accessibility, and (4) instructors are supported in achieving these goals. We accomplished the following:

• Identified courses in MEDLIB-ED with DEIA content. To make education content that addresses diversity, inclusion and access easier to locate, the working group members searched MEDLIB-ED for diversity-related terminology, developed criteria for tagging DEIA content in MEDLIB-ED, and identified and tagged all relevant offerings with “DEIA.” Staff now review courses and tag them following the group’s criteria. Tagged courses are listed in a MEDLIB-Ed catalog.
• Included a field in the [Link removed (CE and CNE Credit Approval Form)] requiring a statement of how a course will address diversity content and perspectives or explain why they are not relevant.
• Included a statement describing the MLA Education commitment to diversity, accessibility, and inclusiveness to the MEDLIB-ED home page and course purchase confirmation emails.
• Worked with Andy Hickner of the Accessibility and Disabilities Caucus, Education Steering Committee members, Accessibility and Disabilities Caucus members, and others to develop accessibility guidelines and practices for MLA education offerings. These are included in How MLA Works with Instructors to Turn Proposals into MLA Offerings and shared with all instructors. Beginning in early February, MLA will implement these guidelines with all new instructors.
• Included a diversity statement in calls for instructors.
• Advised curriculum committees to search for instructors who have, in publications, teaching, or awards and recognitions, brought diverse perspectives to a topic and to collaborate with caucuses and other MLA groups to identify diverse instructors.
• Advised curriculum committees to solicit courses in the competency area that address DEIA topics.
• Asked staff to point to the MLA Statement of Appropriate Conduct in all in- person and live online education sessions. Being intentional about the inclusion of this conduct statement will be part of MLA’s approach to making sure that the members are valued, respected, supported and feel included by the educational offerings.

Addressing diversity, inclusivity, and accessibility in MLA education is an ongoing endeavor. We will revise and supplement our efforts based on what we learn from our initial efforts and feedback from members.