The Campus Climate Study final report, which is now available to the public, indicates that work still needs to be done to achieve campus equality.

Results were not surprising, said Sarah Walter, director of student diversity for the Government of the Student Body. At a predominantly white campus, unwelcoming characteristics are going to exist, she said.

“Everybody realizes that there are campus climate issues,” she said.

“Once people truly want to recognize that, we can start taking steps forward to make Iowa State a more welcoming place.”

The campus climate study looked at accessibility on campus for students with disabilities and discrimination in residence halls, classrooms and the workplace.

Students, faculty and staff members reported name-calling and feelings of being ignored or excluded from discussions or other activities. Others reported rooms being ransacked and flags burned.

The study focused on comfort levels and the negative experiences of faculty, staff members and students from campus communities.

Respondents included people of color, people with disabilities, members of the LGBT community and those from other countries. Gender issues were also included.

According to the report, the majority of respondents felt welcome at Iowa State, and many believed the university is making efforts to create a diverse and welcoming atmosphere. Some respondents suggested that further promoting diversity and understanding would benefit the campus.

In her report, Rankin wrote that two chief issues were evident in the results: gender inequality, which exists in a variety of ways on campus, and ethnicity and race.

In the report, respondents indicated both subtle and institutionalized discrimination of minorities.

“According to the comments, many individuals who are U.S.-born citizens and native English speakers believe persons of other races and ethnicities should speak English and behave like white (non-Hispanic), middle-class persons,” the report said.

Some respondents also found personal safety an important issue on campus. More than half of the participants identified as female or as lesbian, gay or bisexual reported a fear for their personal safety based on their association with either group.

The study is one step toward creating strategies that will make the campus more accepting of all students, Walter said.

Such strategies will most likely come from a planning committee. The report suggested the President’s Advisory Committee on Diversity, along with other campus groups, work together to form a strategic plan for improving equality on campus.

Sharon McGuire, program coordinator for the Dean of Student’s Office, said she believes the message of equality needs to be shared campus-wide.

“Sometimes there are people that may tend not to choose to get more info about ways to be inclusive so we need to find ways to make sure we bring the message to them and they can’t opt out,” she said.

One area of the survey did surprise her, Walter said. Women reported a higher level of discomfort than she had expected, she said. Even though she is a minority in her major of mechanical engineering, she said she hasn’t personally experienced discrimination.

Of the 48 percent of participants who reported observing offensive campus conduct, nearly half of the participants observed hostility, mainly because of gender.

Though problems exist, 59 percent of respondents indicated they thought the president’s office visibly fostered diversity.

Both Walter and McGuire said the study is one way Iowa State is trying to improve the campus climate.

A major strength of the study has been the process of sharing the information, McGuire said. The information has been made openly available through a Web site, open forums, presentations in classes as well as other ways.

“It’s not a report that is going to sit on a shelf,” she said. “It’s going to have life.”

Changing the campus climate isn’t going to happen overnight or even in a few months. Creating a campus that welcomes everyone equally will take much time and effort.

“I think its always going to be a process,” she said. “It’s not something you arrive at and your done.”

Campus Climate Study includes:

• 1001 students, 582 faculty, 265 staff members and 52 administrators.

Personal Experiences with Campus Climate:

• 77 percent comfortable with the overall diversity climate at Iowa State

• 22 percent personally experienced offensive, hostile or intimidating conduct that interfered with ability to work or learn on campus.

• The conduct was based 49 percent on gender, 28 percent on race and 26 percent on ISU position.

• 49 percent was intimidation, 48 percent was feeling ignored, 40 percent was feeling excluded and 40 percent was being subjected to derogatory remarks.

• 43 percent experienced this conduct while working at an on-campus job.

For the full Campus Climate Survey please visit the ISU Equal Opportunity and Diversity Web site.