Inclusion: vision and policy goals
The Mission of Odisee is that we are an open community of students, teaching and work professionals who learn, teach and research together. By definition, this includes our commitment to inclusion.
On this page you can read about why inclusion is important to us and what it means to us. You will also find the policy goals related to inclusion.
Why is inclusion important to us?
- Students, colleagues, and partners can only fully participate in our community if they feel welcomed and valued.
- Research in secondary schools shows that a school's diversity policy can make a real difference in student achievement (Meeussen and Phalet, Multicultural-policy-in-school-shrinks-gap-between-students-with-diverse-backgrounds).
- We see diversity on our campuses as an enrichment and an opportunity to prepare students to function and co-create in an increasingly diverse professional environment and a globalized world.
What does inclusion mean to us?
Everyone welcome and appreciated
Inclusion is one of the four major principles of action for Odisee. Our inclusion policy is our response to diversity in society, among our students and staff. We want to ensure that everyone can feel at home and appreciated in our college. Feeling at home comes when attention is paid to the uniqueness of each person. Through dialogue and encounter, we get to know each other better and strengthen the sense of belonging for colleagues and students.
What is diversity?
We see diversity as all the possible differences that may exist between people living together in our society. These differences include prior education, learning needs, (home) language, age, employment, work and life experience, responsibility for others, family situation, social background, economic status, religion, philosophy of life, gender, sexual orientation, skin color, ethnicity, nationality, possible disability, and brain variants
Inclusion in our education and human resources policies
With our education, we want to provide opportunities for a wide range of learners, and recognize and support their talents. Our goal extends beyond mere intake; we also focus on progression and successful completion, ensuring that no student drops out unnecessarily and that our students achieve as much study success as possible.
Ons institution-wide framework for curriculum development states: "The teaching team develops a curriculum that recognizes diversity and proactively takes into account the needs of students with diverse characteristics. It provides sufficient differentiation so that education (including assignments, information technology, materials, infrastructure, feedback, guidance, service, and evaluation) is inclusively accessible.”
Our inclusion policy focuses not only on our student population, but also already on our (potential) employees and leaders.
An open and safe learning and working environment
We create an open working, learning, and living environment where we treat each other with integrity and respect. We also give each other the space and opportunity to think, speak, and collaborate openly. We firmly reject any form of transgressive behaviour. When necessary, we address it directly and take appropriate action.
Participation, reflection, engagement
We pay close attention to the needs and requirements of our students and staff, involving them in our inclusion policy and the resulting actions. As an educational institution, we aim to promote inclusion, including through our community engagement. We engage in critical reflection on our approach to diversity and the level of inclusivity in our policies.
Policy Objectives
For the academic years '22-'23 through '25-'26, working toward inclusion is one of the two major emphases in Odisee's policies. Below are the overarching policy goals that we are pursuing.
1. We cultivate an inclusion mindset among all Odisee colleagues.
Intended impact: We create an open community where students and staff are valued for who they are.
2. We increase opportunities for student advancement and successful completion of their studies.
Intended impact: We bring as many students as possible to study success and thus to greater opportunities in society.
3. We resolutely remove barriers in access, facilities, infrastructure, services and support.
Intended impact: We have eliminated barriers that make it difficult for students and colleagues to participate in education or be part of our organization.
Targets
Positions
We not only want to have internal policies for inclusion, but also to emphasize its importance to society. Below are the positions we have taken as an institution.
Education needs role models with hijabs.
Students in teacher training who wear a hijab barely get an internship. That problem was raised by Gert Naessens, cluster director of Education, on Nov. 15, '22.
Together with Sofie Landuyt, his colleague from Arteveldehogeschool, he defended their joint position calling for more tolerance.
"Isn't it just now important that schools accept the diversity in our society?" argued Gert. 'By allowing the hijab, we foster a sense of belonging: being appreciated for who you are.' Our student Chaimae Bentouhami brought a powerful testimony on this.
Campaign: #Here’sMyWorkplace
On October 18, '22, the platform ‘Beyond the Headscarf’ launched a campaign that inspires and encourages companies to embrace diversity and inclusion in the workplace.
The campaign emphasizes that talent is what truly matters. It calls on companies and organizations to focus on the strengths and competencies of all employees, recognizing that the quality of work is paramount. By doing so, it aims to normalize the wearing of a headscarf in the workplace.
Odisee actively participated in this initiative as an employer. General Director Ann Verreth, along with three Odisee colleagues, served as one of the faces of the campaign.
