Equity is everyone’s business

A message from the Equity Pathways Unit

Equity and widening participation are at the core of ACU’s mission and commitment to the dignity of the human person, the common good and a flourishing society.

Equity Pathways invites you to join the Equity and Inclusion Community of Practice to share and deepen your knowledge and understanding of widening participation.

Inequality in Australia and around the globe has increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. Equitable access to higher education is more important now than ever before.

Equity in higher education relates to educational opportunities, experiences, and outcomes. Lower access, participation, and attainment rates among students from low socio-economic backgrounds, regional and remote areas, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students, reflects complex historical, structural, financial, and socio-cultural constraints rather than a lack of academic ability.

Ensuring equity in higher education is central to our work at ACU and there is widespread good will to achieve this goal across the university. However, ACU continues to underperform in relation to Federal Government equity performance goals.

The Vice-Chancellor recently announced an ambitious plan to make ACU a sector and community leader in equity and inclusion. This is an exciting new phase for widening participation at ACU that will see every area of the university take responsibility for equity and enact practices and processes that will enable widening participation, with the outcome being tangible, actionable, and impactful work.

In 2022, an institution-wide Widening Participation Implementation Plan will be developed, supported by the Equity Pathways Unit, Global and Education Pathways. This whole-of-university approach will ensure equity is embedded within and across all functions of the university.

At ACU, equity is everyone’s business.

Watch a short message from the Equity Pathways Unit