Administrators are preparing to make public next week the report of the Campus Culture Initiative, which officially concluded this week, University officials confirmed Thursday.
According to a copy of the CCI report obtained by The Chronicle, the committee has proposed a number of recommendations, varying in scale, to improve the undergraduate experience in six major areas: curriculum and experiential learning; faculty-student interaction; residential life, social life and dining; alcohol; athletics; and admissions.
"The Campus Culture Initiative Steering Committee has looked at many aspects of undergraduate campus life," John Burness, senior vice president for public affairs and government relations, said in a statement to The Chronicle. "Some of the recommendations are consistent with actions that already are underway; others will clearly require further consideration before we decide if and how best to proceed."
The report was submitted to President Richard Brodhead last week, and administrators said it is likely final.
"I do not expect it to change," said Robert Thompson, chair of the CCI committee, dean of Trinity College of Arts and Sciences and provost of undergraduate education.
In the report, the committee frames its recommendations around the overarching conclusion that "Duke must do better in learning how to engage difference constructively."
"Clearly, to improve campus culture, Duke must achieve a more inclusive academic community," the report states.
The CCI Steering Committee was composed of about two dozen members, including faculty, administrators, students and alumni.
Last spring, in the wake of allegations involving the men's lacrosse team, Brodhead proposed five multilateral committees, including the CCI-which was charged with the task of assessing campus culture and releasing recommendations for how it can be improved.
Thompson and Larry Moneta, CCI vice chair and vice president for student affairs, said the primary purpose of the document is to promote campus discussion on the issues-not necessarily to implement its ideas.
"All along our committee was well cognizant of the fact that we were not an implementation group," Thompson said. "We were a group that was called on to think deeply and carefully about campus culture and come up with some understanding about what's working well and where there are opportunities for improvement."
Thompson said he expects the report to be released officially next week, pending review by Brodhead.
Brodhead could not be reached for comment Thursday.
"The committee recognizes that it has outlined an ambitious array of recommendations that will need to be further discussed and implemented through the University's regular administrative processes," the report stated. "Some recommendations, such as how to promote civic engagement, support initiatives that are already under consideration, while others, such as changing the dining model, have significant budgetary implications."
Among several academic suggestions, the report recommends that the Cross Cultural Inquiry curricular requirement be modified to include one required course that has a primary focus on racial, ethnic, class, religious or sexual/gender differences in the United States.
The committee also suggests discontinuing the practice of assigning housing to selective living groups and social/affinity/interest groups, along with the creation of additional social spaces for students on West Campus.
In addition, the report asks for a change in the dining services model in order to establish a greater focus on community building.
The committee proposes a number of recommendations relating to alcohol policy, which include reducing the centrality of alcohol in social life and establishing more attractive outlets for legal alcohol consumption.
In athletics, the report calls for a reduction in the time student-athletes spend on practice and travel in order to better integrate them into campus life.
A number of recommendations were also made with regard to admissions, such as raising the "low end of the admissions standards" to ensure that all students are prepared and committed to engage actively in the intellectual life of campus.
Although he said the overall opinions of the committee were presented in the report, junior Elliott Wolf, president of Duke Student Government and a member of the CCI committee, said he did not personally endorse all of the report's findings.
"I think the CCI has come to a premature conclusion on the matter," he said, referring to some of the report's recommendations. "I also think that anything that is implemented in an academic setting has to be backed with legitimate arguments and data and different alternatives, and that just hasn't been done."
Wolf added, however, that the report contained a number of recommendations that, if implemented, could greatly benefit the Duke community.
"I do think there's a lot of positive stuff in the report," he said, citing recommendations for increased social space on West Campus and additional dining options to promote community.
This weekend, Thompson and Moneta will present the report to the Board of Trustees to get general feedback, Thompson said, adding that he was not expecting any single reaction from the trustees.
"I'm not anticipating one monolithic response," he said. "I think there will be a diversity of opinions and that's good."
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