The University of Toronto has committed to continuous data collection about the racial identities of its students and staff.
Details have yet to be fully hashed out, but administrators at U of T say the plan is to collect this demographic information through a voluntary online survey beginning next fall. This data will be used to make university policies and procedures more reflective of the diverse community they are designed to serve.
Many post-secondary institutions in North America ask students to self-identify gender, disabilities, and membership in Aboriginal groups or visible minorities, but fewer collect specific data about race. The U of T is the first school in Ontario to do so.
George Dei, a professor at U of T who has done extensive research in anti-racism education, said failure to collect racial data may be due to confusion around the appropriate way to talk about race in learning communities.
“I think we have some discomfort with the question of race because of the history,” Dei said. “But I think we need to have honest conversations about it. We cannot sweep it away—we cannot put it under the carpet.”
The decision to collect race-related data at U of T was announced in a meeting between university administrators and members of the school’s Black Liberation Collective (BLC) chapter on Dec. 7, 2015.
According to the organization’s website, the BLC is “a collective consisting of Black students who are dedicated to transforming institutions of higher education through coalition building, direct action, and political education,” with chapters across Canada and the United States.
The BLC published a list of demands they have for U of T, which include addressing the under-representation of Black students and faculty and establishing mandatory equity training for university staff.
Racial data collection may help individuals and groups such as the BLC feel that university administrators are recognizing their diversity, but simply gathering this information isn’t enough, Dei explained.
“This is about addressing questions of access and equity, but it’s also about institutional responsibility and accountability. And it’s not just collecting the statistics—it’s what we do with it,” he said.
But, he added, “it’s a step in the right direction. I would like to see other universities follow suit.”
Dayna Gill, a Carleton University student of Guyanese-Japanese descent, said while she thinks the U of T initiative to collect race data could be beneficial, it’s not something that is urgently needed at Carleton.
“I do think Carleton does a good job [accommodating diversity],” she said. “I see enough diverse groups and clubs throughout the school on a daily basis.”
Gill did stress that data about race can’t be collected by asking students to simply check a box that describes their ethnicity.
“I always fall into an “other” category when I fill in that question. Realistically, that doesn’t give anyone any information,” she said.
The U of T will collect their race data by allowing students to identify with one or multiple ethnic backgrounds from a list used by Statistics Canada. If students don’t find their racial identity represented in the dozen or so options available, they can describe it themselves.
—With files from Julia Anderson
