Rethinking Cultural Competence in Higher Education: An Ecological Framework for Student Development: ASHE Higher Education Report, Volume 42, Number 4

Book excerpt: Take a holistic look at an intentional educational ecosystem that builds cultural competence, a critical skill college graduates need for careers and citizenship in a diverse global society. This monograph unpacks the multilayered meanings of cultural competence and offers a term, “diversity competence,” that is more consistent with the broad spectrum of diversity learning outcomes that occur on campus. Drawing on the findings of a survey of recent college graduates now working as professionals, the monograph offers: leading-edge, integrative models that bring together the multidimensional components of the learning environment including curricular, co-curricular, and service learning, research-based factors contributing to a campus environment that encourages cultural competence, in-depth assessment and analysis of best practices, and concrete recommendations that offer a transformative pathway to the attainment of diversity competence in the undergraduate experience. This is the fourth issue of the 42nd volume of the Jossey-Bass series ASHE Higher Education Report. Each monograph is the definitive analysis of a tough higher education issue, based on thorough research of pertinent literature and institutional experiences. Topics are identified by a national survey. Noted practitioners and scholars are then commissioned to write the reports, with experts providing critical reviews of each manuscript before publication.