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Below are terms used in the Climate Assessment Survey. Here are the definitions for purposes of the survey.

Ablest: Refers to a form of discrimination or social prejudice against people with disabilities.

American Indian (Native American): A person having origin in any of the original tribes of North America who maintains cultural identification through tribal affiliation or community recognition.

Asexual: A person who does not experience sexual attraction. Unlike celibacy, which people choose, asexuality is an intrinsic part of an individual.

Assigned Birth Sex: Refers to the assigning (naming) of the biological sex of a baby at birth.

Bullied: Unwanted offensive and malicious behavior which undermines, patronizes, intimidates or demeans the recipient or target.

Classist: A bias based on social or economic class.

Climate: Current attitudes, behaviors, and standards of employees and students concerning the access for, inclusion of, and level of respect for individual and group needs, abilities, and potential.

Core Values: A set of shared beliefs, practices, and behaviors. They lay the foundation for which we operate. They describe who we are and who we aspire to be. Drake’s core values include – Joyful Accountability, Generosity of Spirit, All in this Together, and Commitment to Mission (see

Disability: A physical or mental impairment that limits one or more major life activities.

Discrimination: Discrimination refers to the treatment or consideration of, or making a distinction in favor of or against, a person based on the group, class, or category to which that person belongs rather than on individual merit. Discrimination can be the effect of some law or established practice that confers privileges based on of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender, gender expression, gender identity, pregnancy, physical or mental disability, medical condition (cancer-related or genetic characteristics), genetic information (including family medical  history), ancestry, marital status, parental status, age, sexual identity, citizenship, or service in the uniformed services.

Equitable: Having the character of fairness or being reasonable and just.

Ethnicity: A determination of whether a person is of Hispanic origin.

Experiential Learning: Experiential learning refers to a pedagogical philosophy and methodology concerned with learning activities outside of the traditional classroom environment, with objectives which are planned and articulated prior to the experience, and often including a reflective component (internships, service-learning, co‐ operative education, research experience, field experience, practicum, cross‐cultural experiences, apprenticeships, etc.).

Family Leave: The Family Medical Leave Act is a labor law requiring employers with 50 or more employees to provide certain employees with job-protected unpaid leave due to one of the following situations: a serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform his or her job; caring for a sick family member; caring for a new child (including birth, adoption or foster care).

First Generation Student: Undergraduate student whose parents never enrolled in postsecondary education.

Gender Identity: A person’s inner sense of being man, woman, both, or neither. The internal identity may or may not be expressed outwardly, and may or may not correspond to one’s physical characteristics.

Gender Expression: The manner in which a person outwardly represents gender, regardless of the physical characteristics that might typically define the individual as male or female.

Harassment: Harassment is unwelcomed behavior that demeans, threatens or offends another person or group of people and results in a hostile environment for the targeted person/group.

Historic Injustices: A past moral wrong committed by previously living people that has a lasting impact on the well-being of currently living people.

Homophobia: The irrational fear and disdain of homosexuals or homosexuality. Homophobia includes prejudice, discrimination, harassment, and acts of violence brought on by fear and hatred.

Inclusion: Involvement and empowerment, where the inherent worth and dignity of all people are recognized. An inclusive university promotes and sustains a sense of belonging; it values and practices respect for the talents, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of living of its members.


Marginalization: The process of pushing a particular group or groups of people to the edge of society by not allowing them an active voice, identity, or place in it.

Non-Native English Speakers: People for whom English is not their first language.

Oppression: The state of being subject to unjust treatment or control.

People of Color: People who self-identify as other than White.

Physical Characteristics: Term that refers to one’s appearance.

Political: Identity or affiliation with a political party or ideal.

Position: The status one holds by virtue of their position/status within the institution (e.g., staff, full-time faculty, part-time faculty, administrator, etc.)

Racial Identity: A socially constructed category about a group of people based on generalized physical features such as skin color, hair type, shape of eyes, physique, etc.

Sexual Identity: Term that refers to the sex of the people one tends to be emotionally, physically and sexually attracted to; this is inclusive of, but not limited to, lesbians, gay men, bisexual people, heterosexual people, and those who identify as queer.

Social Justice: A concept of fair and just relations between the individual and society. A situation when some unfair practices are being carried out in the society.

Socioeconomic Status: The status one holds in society based on one’s level of income, wealth, education, and familial background.

Transgender: An umbrella term referring to those whose gender identity or gender expression [previously defined] is different from that traditionally associated with their sex assigned at birth [previously defined].

Unwanted Sexual Contact: Unwanted physical sexual contact includes fondling, sexual assault, rape, use of drugs to incapacitate, forcible sodomy, gang rape, and sexual assault with an object.

Welcoming: a sense of friendliness, affirmation, support, and belonging.

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