From diversity and cultural competence to inclusive excellence: Ideas and insight from the dialogue in higher education for eliminating inequities and health disparities

Eliminating health disparities and their underlying social inequities requires a transformative shift in conceptualizing diversity. New dialogue in higher education, stimulated by the concept of “inclusive excellence” introduced by the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U), has tremendous relevance for public health education and promotion policies and programs. Inclusive excellence moves an organization or program from valuing diversity – with access and cultural competence as its primary goals – to ensuring through structural interventions that all groups are achieving the desired outcomes at equitable rates. Inclusive excellence further requires that the diversity of the group – racial/ethnic, cultural, religious, gender, sexual orientation, age, ability – be proactively engaged in the service of learning. Drawing from Paulo Freire, WEB DuBois, and contemporary scholars and practitioners, inclusive excellence provides a sharper lens through which to view system, organization, and program processes and outcomes. This presentation explores the efforts, outcomes, politics, and policies of a public health education graduate program and its shift from access and diversity to inclusive excellence. Examples will be drawn from program planning, curriculum design, pedagogy, and celebration to showcase the transformative power of this next generation definition of diversity and cultural competence.