Core Commitments and Practices

The following commitments and practices name behaviors that bring this framework to life. They are how our values show up in everyday interactions, decisions, and relationships across campus.Core commitments and practices: Engaging Dialogue as a Core Practice We commit to ongoing, honest, and inclusive dialogue as the foundation of our community. This means creating and protecting space for every voice, engaging across difference with wonder and respect, and practicing the patience and vulnerability that genuine dialogue requires. Dialogue is not only for moments of conflict. It is how we build the relationships and shared understanding that make everything else in this framework possible. Taking Shared Responsibility for Inclusive Excellence We commit to showing up for this work collectively. Inclusive excellence does not happen through the efforts of one office, one initiative, or one group of people. It is sustained by the daily choices of every member of our community. We support one another in this work, we name when we miss the mark, and we hold ourselves and each other accountable with honesty and care. Taking Action Toward Accountability We commit to engaging critical feedback with openness and appreciation, to aligning our systems, decisions, and daily practices with the principles in this framework, and to being honest when we fall short. More on Taking Action Toward Accountability: 

As a community, we commit to engaging in corrective action grounded in transformative learning, community repair, and human dignity when our practices contradict our values. 

Accountability applies across the full UMBC community, including those in positions of institutional authority, who carry particular responsibility for modeling these commitments. This means conducting and sharing regular assessments of how well our practices align with our values, responding when they do not, and creating clear channels through which community members can raise concerns without fear of retaliation.