Climate survey results 2021
The 2021 geoscience community climate survey was conducted in January and February 2022 in order to receive feedback on our community climate for calendar year 2021. The survey consisted of both multiple choice and free response questions. Below we summarize the free response comments and provide detailed data on responses to the multiple choice questions.
Summary of comments
There was a wide range of individual, write-in comments given as part of our geoscience climate survey. Comments included:
- Several individuals commented about the existence of an ableist culture in the University of Nevada, Reno geoscience community. This included a feeling of being unwelcome for students with physical disabilities, a lack of appropriate support and curriculum to let students with physical disability succeed in courses/degree programs (especially the geology major), and a sense of erasure for students with disabilities and erasure of the achievements of disabled geoscientists. One suggestion as a starting point to improve this situation was to recognize in lectures that not all geoscientists need to do fieldwork and to highlight geoscience skills and careers that individuals can do without fieldwork.
- Several individuals made comments about issues of ongoing or past harassment, discrimination and a general sense of feeling unwelcome. Comments included acknowledgement of misogynic behavior, sexual harassment, anti-Semitic behavior, racial profiling, discrimination based on style of dress, and micro-aggressions occurring within our geoscience community. This has led some individuals to hide aspects of their identity and individuals expressed concern that the geoscience Code of Conduct is not being upheld. Other individuals commented about feeling uncomfortable expressing interests outside of mining and expressing views that do not support the mining industry for fear of harassment and exclusion.
- Several individuals made comments about how our program is run. These included:
- Requests for more courses and better communication with students about when courses will be offered. Students expressed a sense of frustration with the level of advising available.
- Comments about a lack of social events that is leading to increased isolation among our different geoscience units and between undergraduate students, graduate students, postdocs, faculty and staff.
- Concerns that 400/600 level classes are not graded fairly because undergraduate students are graded on the same curve as graduate students.
- Concerns about the power structure between faculty and students, and the lack of ways for students to seek recourse in cases of unfair behavior or harassment from faculty to students.
- Concerns that the achievement and hard work of grad students are not well recognized.
- Concerns about a lack of support for faculty.
- Requests for gender-neutral bathrooms in our buildings.
- Some individuals made comments that surveys such as these are not appropriate as they mix science and politics.
- Some individuals made positive comments about identifying as part of a historically-excluded group and feeling welcome in our geoscience community.
Tabulated responses of individual questions
Below are tabulated results from individual questions from our community climate survey. We are presenting all data in text format to increase accessibility. All numbers refer to number of individuals (numbers are not percentages).
Faculty: 14
Graduate students: 24
Undergraduates: 27
Prefer not to answer: 1
Total respondents: 66
For reference, we have approximately 50 graduate faculty members combined in the Department of Geological Sciences and Engineering (DGSE), Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology (NBMG), the Nevada Seismo Lab (NSL) and the Desert Research Institute (DRI). We have 41 DGSE graduate students, with an additional 9 graduate students in the Graduate Program in Hydrologic Sciences (GPHS) who are advised by DGSE faculty. We have approximately 110 undergraduate students. NBMG and NSL also employ several non-academic staff.
Question 1: Do you identify as a member of a group which has been historically excluded from the geosciences?
No: 39
Yes: 25
Prefer not to answer: 2
Responses to Question 1 sorted by affiliation
No: 13 faculty, 12 graduate students, 13 undergraduate students
Yes: 1 faculty, 11 graduate students, 13 undergraduate students
Responses to Question 1 sorted by identification as a first-generation student
No: 14 first-generation, 25 non-first generation students
Yes: 11 first-generation, 14 non-first generation students
Responses to Question 1 sorted by sense of being valued within our community
No: 2 'I don't know'; 9 'not at all or not so much'; 28 'somewhat or very much'
Yes: 3 'I don't know'; 4 'not at all or not so much'; 18 'somewhat or very much'
Responses to Question 1 sorted by presence/absence of a negative experience related to our community climate
No: 5 who have had a negative experience, 22 who have not had a negative experience
Yes: 13 who have had a negative experience, 8 who have not had a negative experience
Question 2: Do you identify as a first-generation student?
No: 40
Yes: 26
Responses to Question 2 sorted by affiliation
No: 11 faculty, 16 graduate students, 12 undergraduate students
Yes: 3 faculty, 8 graduate students, 15 undergraduate students
Responses to Question 2 sorted by identification as a member of a group historically excluded from the geosciences
No: 14 historically excluded group members, 20 non-historically excluded group members
Yes: 11 historically excluded group members, 14 non-historically excluded group members
Responses to Question 2 sorted by sense of being valued within our community
No: 2 'I don't know'; 8 'not at all or not so much'; 30 'somewhat or very much'
Yes: 4 'I don't know'; 5 'not at all or not so much'; 17 'somewhat or very much'
Responses to Question 2 sorted by presence/absence of a negative experience related to our community climate
No: 11 who have had a negative experience, 24 who have not had a negative experience
Yes: 7 who have had a negative experience, 17 who have not had a negative experience
Question 3: Do you feel like you are valued for who you are by the University of Nevada, Reno geosciences community?
I don't know: 6
No, not at all: 4
No, not so much: 9
Yes, somewhat: 29
Yes, very much: 18
Responses to Question 3 sorted by affiliation
I don't know: 1 faculty, 1 graduate student, 4 undergraduate students
No, not at all: 0 faculty, 3 graduate students, 1 undergraduate student
No, not so much: 0 faculty, 3 graduate students, 5 undergraduate students
Yes, somewhat: 7 faculty, 13 graduate students, 9 undergraduate students
Yes, very much: 6 faculty, 4 graduate students, 8 undergraduate students
Responses to Question 3 sorted by identification as a member of a group historically excluded from the geosciences
I don't know: 3 historically excluded group members, 2 non-historically excluded group members
No, not at all and No, not so much: 4 historically excluded group members, 9 non-historically excluded group members
Yes, somewhat and Yes, very much: 18 historically excluded group members, 28 non-historically excluded group members
Responses to Question 3 sorted by identification as a first-generation student
I don't know: 4 first-generation, 2 non-first generation students
No, not at all and No, not so much: 5 first-generation, 8 non-first generation students
Yes, somewhat and Yes, very much: 17 first-generation, 30 non-first generation students
Responses to Question 3 sorted by presence/absence of a negative experience related to our community climate
I don't know: 2 who have had a negative experience, 2 who have not had a negative experience
No, not at all and No, not so much: 7 who have had a negative experience, 6 who have not had a negative experience
Yes, somewhat and Yes, very much: 9 who have had a negative experience, 33 who have not had a negative experience
Question 4: Within our University of Nevada, Reno geoscience community (e.g., on campus, in classes or on field trips, or otherwise interacting with members of our geosciences community), have you had a negative experience* related to our community climate?
*Negative experiences could include harassment, discrimination, exclusion, creating feelings of being unwelcome, being the victim of microaggressions, etc.
I'm not sure: 5
No: 41
Yes: 18
Prefer not to answer: 2
Responses to Question 4 sorted by affiliation
I'm not sure: 2 faculty, 2 graduate students, 1 undergraduate student
No: 12 faculty, 13 graduate students, 16 undergraduate students
Yes: 0 faculty, 9 graduate students, 8 undergraduate students
Responses to Question 4 sorted by identification as a member of a group historically excluded from the geosciences
I'm not sure: 2 historically excluded group members, 3 non-historically excluded group members
No: 8 historically excluded group members, 31 non-historically excluded group members
Yes: 13 historically excluded group members, 5 non-historically excluded group members
Responses to Question 4 sorted by identification as a first-generation student
I'm not sure: 1 first-generation, 4 non-first generation students
No: 17 first-generation, 24 non-first generation students
Yes: 7 first-generation, 11 non-first generation students
Responses to Question 4 sorted by sense of being valued within our community
I'm not sure: 1 'I don't know'; 0 'not at all or not so much'; 4 'somewhat or very much'
No: 2 'I don't know'; 6 'not at all or not so much'; 33 'somewhat or very much'
Yes: 2 'I don't know'; 7 'not at all or not so much'; 9 'somewhat or very much'
Question 5: Are you aware of the efforts that have been made to improve our University of Nevada, Reno geosciences community climate since fall 2020?
No: 18
Yes: 47
Prefer not to answer: 1
Responses to Question 5 sorted by affiliation
No: 1 faculty, 6 graduate students, 11 undergraduate students
Yes: 13 faculty, 17 graduate students, 16 undergraduate students
Responses to Question 5 sorted by identification as a member of a group historically excluded from the geosciences
No: 5 historically excluded group members, 11 non-historically excluded group members
Yes: 19 historically excluded group members, 28 non-historically excluded group members
Responses to Question 5 sorted by identification as a first-generation student
No: 9 first-generation, 9 non-first generation students
Yes: 17 first-generation, 31 non-first generation students
Responses to Question 5 sorted by sense of being valued within our community
No: 3 'I don't know'; 8 'not at all or not so much'; 7 'somewhat or very much'
Yes: 3 'I don't know'; 5 'not at all or not so much'; 39 'somewhat or very much'
Responses to Question 5 sorted by presence/absence of a negative experience related to our community climate
No: 4 who have had a negative experience, 13 who have not had a negative experience
Yes: 13 who have had a negative experience, 28 who have not had a negative experience