Articles/Reports
Tweaking Standard 3: Accrediting Council moves to strengthen language in diversity standard again
By George L. Daniels
Nearly 30 years after diversity became
one of the standards by which journalism
and mass communication units
are evaluated, proposed changes to
accreditation standards would require
schools to focus on “domestic” minority
groups and explicitly state how
they define diversity.
The changes to Standard 3 “Diversity
and Inclusiveness” are among
those contained in an overall revision
of the standards used by the Accrediting
Council on Education and Journalism
and Mass Communication. A vote
on the changes is set for August 24.
If approved, the revised standards
would take effect in 2013.
In the meantime, the Council is inviting
comments about the proposed
revisions. Comments can be directed
to Cindy Reinardy at the ACEJMC office
at creinardy@ku.edu or during
an open session 8:15 to 9:45 a.m. on
Thursday, Aug. 9, at our upcoming
AEJMC convention in Chicago.
Focusing on domestic minority
groups is yet another step in an ongoing
effort to ensure diversity in the pipeline from our classrooms to
mass media industries.
What was then Standard 12 was
first created in 1984 to address “Minorities
and Female Representation.”
It was squarely focused on recruiting
and retaining minority students and
faculty.
Then in 1992, the standard was
revised to add a component that
stressed the need of diversity in a
journalism and mass communication
curriculum. In 2003, ACEJMC revised
all of its standards and the 12th Standard
became Standard 3 “Diversity
and Inclusiveness.