As an external member of the USDA Forest Service Northern Research Station’s Diversity and Inclusion Science Team, Forest Resources Assistant Professor Mike Dockry helped develop an authoritative set of studies investigating demographic diversity across the agency, encompassing all deputy areas, job series, grades and locations.
Earlier this week, the team was awarded a 2023 Chief's Honor Award for Advancing Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility in Program and Service Delivery for this work. This prestigious award is one of the highest honors presented by the USDA Forest Service.
The team's assessment of Forest Service employee diversity trends and trajectories over a 22-year period has provided leadership with objective, peer-reviewed, scientifically sound information that provides unequivocal support for the agency’s Equity Action Plan and the scientific basis for focused action. Significant findings inform agency hiring efforts, recruitment and retention strategies, employee data improvements, and other policies and practices to achieve a representative, inclusive and thriving workforce that serves the needs and interests of a diverse society. Read a summary of their research or explore an interactive timeline of forest service diversity in the context of coinciding laws, orders, actions, and events.
This text is adapted from descriptions on the 2023 Chief's Awards web page.