Name
“What’s My Bias?” Using Anti-Bias Training for Admissions Reading Committees to Mitigate Bias and Bolster Equity in the Admissions Process.
Date & Time
Thursday, September 23, 2021, 4:15 PM - 5:00 PM
Description

As an Admissions Director who identifies as a woman of color, and also teaches science, "What’s My Bias?" is a question I’ve asked myself following every reading committee meeting. We carry our own innate biases based on our identifiers, interests, and what we deem important academically. Reading Committees often unknowingly make decisions based on affiliations and preferences. This can manifest in acceptances for students who were, either strong mathematicians, athletes, test takers, etc. A standard in the Admissions process to read files based on “the whole child”, must be set. Using the resources of Kira Tenant’s article “9 forms of Bias in Admissions”, and the book "Blindspot”, by Dr. Mahzarin Banaji and Anthony Greenwald as resources, and developing a reading rubric that paid full attention to all aspects of the applicant’s file, a more equitable reading process was established. During this session, we hope to help other admission teams by modeling anti-bias training sessions and implement or revamp admissions rubrics for their reading committees. Attendees will engage in a group activity that will help them reflect on their reading protocols, conduct an equity audit, participate in difficult conversations surrounding bias, and name their biases in the Admission process. This session is the second part of two workshops establishing anti-bias protocols in admissions! We encourage you to attend our colleagues' prologue session “Anti-Bias in Practice: Interviews, Observations, and Write-Ups - oh my!” which will address deciphering bias in written application documents.

Vanessa C. Prescott, The Berkeley Carroll School, NY

Renée M. Chung, The Spence School, NY

In-Person