The interactive “Check Your Blind Spots” mobile bus tour came to Lehigh on April 18, aiming to make students and faculty aware of their unconscious biases and provide information about companies that are doing the same.
The event was organized in partnership with CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion which, according to the national organization’s website, is the largest CEO-driven business committed to the advancement of diversity and inclusion in the workplace. More than 400 CEOs and presidents support the cause, including about 30 university presidents.
Henry Odi, the deputy vice president for equity and community and associate provost for academic diversity at Lehigh, oversaw the event and said he strongly believes in its message.
“I think this is one of many initiatives that Lehigh is offering to educate everyone about unconscious bias,” Odi said. “We’re all guilty of biases and we have the responsibility to help people understand the biases that they may not realize they have.”
Odi said the tour is just one of the many ways Lehigh is trying to get students and faculty to strip themselves of their biases.
“By educating the entire community, identifying the unconscious biases that people have, and taking more proactive steps to stop these biases through education, this institution will be a better place,” Odi said.
The bus tour took about 10 to 15 minutes to complete and consisted of short videos and quizzes about unconscious bias. At the end of the tour, participants were shown steps they can take to eliminate their bias, as well as companies that took the pledge to erase bias in the workplace.
Written on one of the walls of the bus was the definition of a blind spot: “the patterns our brains create based on experiences that influence how we make decisions and understand the world.”
Gracie Tatem, one of the CEO brand ambassadors guiding the tour, admitted she has blind spots.
“We all have blind spots and unconscious bias,” Tatem said. “What’s important is that we acknowledge the biases that we have and take steps to diminish them in our everyday lives in order to foster a sense of diversity and inclusion within our communities.”
Jillian Wolfson, ’21, participated in the tour and said it was an eye-opening experience.
“Before going on the tour, I wasn’t really aware of what unconscious bias was and how much it can dictate someone’s decisions and actions in their life,” Wolfson said. “I’m really glad I had this opportunity to become aware of what my unconscious biases were so I can take steps to eliminate them in my daily life.”
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