How Dartmouth’s Student-Led Next50 Initiative Aims To Diversify Case Studies

THE PROCESS: FINDING DIVERSE PROTAGONISTS

To find diverse case studies, the Next50 folks speak with alumni, asking them if they know anyone with the type of story that fits within the context of inclusive leadership. They also engage with professors to collaborate on case selection using a diversity lens.

Plus, they work to understand what support the teaching faculty need, such as diversifying multimedia materials for faculty members who don’t use as many case studies in their teaching.

“Any time I’m chatting with a new faculty member about course materials, I let them know that diverse case protagonists are top of mind for our students,” says Hall. “And if anyone’s going to write a new case, they should think seriously about incorporating diverse protagonists into that case.”

DIVERSITY BEYOND NEXT50

Beyond Next50, Draper says the school has upped its DEI efforts in a number of ways, such as in their recruiting as well as communications and marketing efforts; this past academic year, 49 percent of the second-year class and 46 percent of the first-year class are women. Tuck has also seen the number of first generation students steadily rise, with 16 percent of the class of 2023 being first generation.

The school will run The Tuck Diversity Conference (DivCo) in-person this year, which is an annual Tuck tradition that brings together alumni and prospective and current students for a weekend of networking, socializing, and mentoring. Plus, the school recently implemented a DEI newsletter — which will help to communicate the school’s DEI-driven culture — and has increased the amount of diverse guest speakers and visiting executives since September 2021. “We want to show people that while we’re not perfect, we’re all in,” Draper continues.

There’s also been work done on promoting a sense of psychological safety on campus by modeling “restoration over cancellation.”

“Students and faculty need to know that if they mess up, they’re still part of this community,” she says. “We’re educators who are going to restore, not cancel. And that looks different in every situation.”

PLANTING SEEDS OF CHANGE

Draper’s hope is that this initiative inspires other schools to make the necessary changes to center gender, racial, and nationality diversity. “I believe a rising tide lifts all ships,” she says. “I love the fact that the Next50 students are so invested, confident, and care deeply about the end goal.”

“I have high hopes that the next generations of Tuckies will take the seeds we’ve planted in the last two years and really push for greater representation in all facets of the academic experience,” adds Cox.

DON’T MISS AT BERKELEY HAAS, THE HARD WORK TO BALANCE B-SCHOOL CASES IS UNDERWAY