Campus News

New 3-Part Unconscious Bias Initiative Launched for UK Faculty and Staff

LEXINGTON, Ky. (March 25, 2021) — Inclusive Excellence and Diversity Education (IEDE) is pleased to announce the recent launch of the newly expanded three-part Unconscious Bias Initiative. 

Building on IEDE’s core pillars of language, history, and practice, this three-part training provides attendees with a shared language for understanding unconscious bias, as well as an elaborated context around and deeper awareness of the systemic and interconnected roots of bias. Through a tiered, practice-based learning approach, participants will find an accountable and supportive environment to more deeply engage with topics of bias and discrimination. 

Sessions must be taken sequentially but attendance can be spread out over the course of a month (or a semester): 

  • Unconscious Bias Part I: Developing a Language for Unlearning. This session introduces language as a tool for identifying and responding to acts of bias. (Tuesdays, noon–1 p.m.)
  • Unconscious Bias Part II: Using Language to Investigate Structural Bias. This session builds on the examples explored in Part I in order to connect types of coded language to the roots of structural bias. (Wednesdays, noon–1:30 p.m.)
  • Unconscious Bias Part III: Doing Allyship: The Work of Unconscious Bias. The final part of the series guides participants on how to practice responding to or intervening with acts of bias that they witness. (Thursdays, noon–1:30 p.m.)

Each part of the initiative is offered every second and fourth week of the month. Offerings are currently scheduled through May 2021 and can be accessed through myUK Learning. Sessions are held over Zoom and are capped at 50 participants. For more information, including how to register, please visit the IEDE FAQ page

To stay connected with IEDE, sign up for their newsletter or follow on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook (@ukyiede).

As the state’s flagship, land-grant institution, the University of Kentucky exists to advance the Commonwealth. We do that by preparing the next generation of leaders — placing students at the heart of everything we do — and transforming the lives of Kentuckians through education, research and creative work, service and health care. We pride ourselves on being a catalyst for breakthroughs and a force for healing, a place where ingenuity unfolds. It's all made possible by our people — visionaries, disruptors and pioneers — who make up 200 academic programs, a $476.5 million research and development enterprise and a world-class medical center, all on one campus.   

In 2022, UK was ranked by Forbes as one of the “Best Employers for New Grads” and named a “Diversity Champion” by INSIGHT into Diversity, a testament to our commitment to advance Kentucky and create a community of belonging for everyone. While our mission looks different in many ways than it did in 1865, the vision of service to our Commonwealth and the world remains the same. We are the University for Kentucky.