Principles

Vision

Faculty and staff in the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering are dedicated to creating a welcoming environment. We aim to recruit and retain a high-quality community of students, faculty, and staff from a wide range of backgrounds.

Mission

The Department will collaborate with the College of Engineering and the University to develop and implement activities and policies aimed at supporting the recruitment and success of faculty, staff, and students from all backgrounds, fostering their personal development and academic/professional achievements.

Overarching Goals:

Increase the representation of individuals from all backgrounds within the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering by:

Promoting educational and professional opportunities, as well as enrichment activities, to create a welcoming environment and support fair practices for students, faculty, and staff through organized events and collaborative efforts.

Creating programs that provide access and establish connections departmentally and across campus for students, faculty, and staff, in traditionally underrepresented groups.

Mentoring students, faculty, and staff, from traditionally underrepresented groups/at-risk individuals, to provide guidance needed to help ensure their environment for work, research and/or study is welcoming and positive, to identify university resources when needed for retention, and to serve as transformative role models for those who may not yet understand their real potential in a university environment.

Enrich the departmental environment through exposure to new perspectives on cultures, beliefs, practices, tolerance, acceptance, and a welcoming climate.

Provide leadership in any capacity that actively promotes an environment where differences are embraced and a sense of belonging is celebrated.

Please feel free to contact any committee members about departmental initiatives fostering a welcoming and equitable environment. 

Gerardo Flintsch – Chair, flintsch@vt.edu