Diversity and Planning in Virginia

A survey of the current context in partnership with APA Virginia’s Ethnic and Cultural Diversity Committee

Presented by Mackenzie Jarvis, Judd Ullom and Professor Margaret CowellJuly 20, 2015

APA Virginia Annual Conference – Norfolk, VA

How important is it to planners that their organization reflect the diversity of the population they serve?

Prior efforts to understand diversity in planning

2001: Lagging Behind: Ethnic Diversity in the Planning Profession in the APA New York Metro Chapter Area

2005: Increasing Diversity in the Planning Profession: A Report on the 2004 Minority Planning Summit and Recommendation for Future Action (APA Diversity Task Force)

2014: APA Wisconsin Chapter’s Diversity Initiative: Survey Results and Draft Report

The Survey

Commissioned by the Ethnic and Cultural Diversity Committee of the Virginia Chapter of the American Planning Association

Conducted by a graduate-level planning studio at Virginia Tech

Completed by 320 planners (based on 1270 in state, de-facto response rate of 25%)

Demographics of Respondents; Age (20+)

• 56% of respondents are between the ages of 25 and 44• 28% of people in the Commonwealth fall into the same range – anticipated

overrepresentation of working-age adults, and underrepresentation of older Americans

Virginia

Respondents

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

26%

4%

7%

30%

14%

25%

14%

19%

15%

10%

6%

9%

18%

1%

20-2425-3435-4445-5455-5960 and aboveI prefer not to answer

Demographics of Respondents; Gender

• Respondents are nearly equal parts male and female• This closely mirrors the population of the State

RespondentsOther; 0%

Virginia Population

Female; 48%

Male; 51%

I prefer not to answer; 1%

Male; 49%

Female; 51%

Demographics of Respondents; Sexual Orientation

• 7% of the respondents identify as LGBTQ• Despite an overrepresentation of this minority, most respondents do not

consider LGBTQ issues in planning endeavors

Response Virginia General Population

Survey Respondents

Yes 3%* 7%

No 97%* 92%

I prefer not to answer N/A 1%

*The Movement Advancement Project reports this number as 2.9%

Demographics of Respondents; Disabilities

• Although only 2% of respondents identify as disabled, 65% of respondents believe we should incorporate the needs of this minority into planning decisions.

Response Virginia General Population

Survey Respondents

Yes 11%* 2%

No 89%* 97%

I prefer not to answer N/A 1%

*American Community Survey Census data reports this number as 11%

Demographics of Respondents; Education

• 65% of respondents hold a Masters degree• Respondents are 8 times more likely to hold a Masters degree than the

general population

Virginia

Respondents

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% 120%

12%

7%

56%

2%

22%

20%

9%

65%

2%

5%

Post secondary DegreeNo post secondary degree(s)Bachelor’s degreeMaster’s degreePh.D.

Demographics of Respondents; Ethnicity

• 76% of respondents are single ethnicity, Caucasian • Ethnic Minorities are underrepresented

Virginia

Respondents

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% 120%

69%

76%

29%

18%

3%

4%

Majority (Caucasian)Minority (single ethnicity)Multiple Ethnicities

Demographics of Respondents; Ethnic Minorities

Virginia

Respondents

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% 120%

69%

76%

9%

3%

20%

9%

6%

5%

CaucasianHispanic /LatinoAfrican AmericanAsian/ Pacific IslanderNative AmericanOther

Demographics of Respondents; Organization Type

• Over 70% of respondents work in the public sector

Public

Private

Non-profit

I am a student in a planning program

I am currently neither working in or pursuing a degree in the planning field

I prefer not to answer

I am currently unemployed

0% 20% 40% 60% 80%

Demographics of Respondents; Experience and Credentials

Less than 5

5 to 10 11 to 15 16 to 25 26 to 35 Greater than 35

I prefer not to

answer

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

82% of respondents are members of an APA chapter

58% of respondents are AICP Certified

Perceptions: What should we do and what do we do?

• For every characteristic of diversity, the survey documented that respondents thought that organizations had a greater responsibility to address the issue than they believed was currently in practice

Race/ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Income level

Age

Education level

Disability status

51.1

42.7

33.0

58.6

60.5

56.0

65.4

38.8

47.2

56.3

32.4

29.8

34.3

25.6

Organization Should Organization Should Not

39.2

24.9

12.9

47.2

46.6

34.0

48.2

38.5

52.4

62.8

30.7

32.0

43.7

29.8

Organization Does Organization Does not

The importance of representativeness

NOT IMPORTANT

NEITHER IMPORTANT NOR UNIMPORTANT

SOMEWHAT IMPORTANT

VERY IMPORTANT

I PREFER NOT TO ANSWER

0 10 20 30 40 50

1%

4%

38%

41%

14%

• 80% of respondents feel it is somewhat or very important that the diversity of a planning organization reflects the diversity of the population it serves.

• 19% are either ambivalent or do not think it’s important

• Respondents reported engagement and outreach efforts as the most prevalent method of addressing diversity; communications a close second

53%

52%

67%

50%

61%

42%

6%

7% I PREFER NOT TO ANSWER

OTHER

HIRING DECISIONS

COMMUNICATION STRATEGIES

ENGAGEMENT/OUTREACH EFFORTS

WORKPLACE POLICIES

COMPREHENSIVE/MASTER PLANS

ACCOMODATIONS AT COMMUNITY MEETINGS

How our organizations incorporate diversity

Less talk, more action

• 57.6% of respondents reported adequate discussion of diversity in the profession

• However, this percentage fell by 14.8 points when asked whether the profession adequately addresses diversity

Address

Discuss

46%

28%

43%

58%

3%

9%

9%

6%

Insufficiently Adequately Excessively I prefer not to answer

APA Virginia and the profession as a whole; addressing diversity

• 45% of respondents think APA Virginia is doing enough to address diversity; 43% think the profession as a whole does enough

• However, more respondents chose “I prefer not to answer” for this question than any other

The Planning Profession

APA Virginia

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

46%

18%

43%

45%

3%

3%

9%

34%

Insufficiently Adequately Excessively I prefer not to answer

Key Conclusions, Perceptions

The largest discrepancies between perceived organization responsibility and practice occur in: Sexual orientation, Gender and Disability. However, in every characteristic, planners believe their

organizations should do more to address the issues at hand

Planners perceive their organizations to most often use engagement and outreach efforts to incorporate diversity

Most Planners believe the profession discusses diversity adequately but addresses it insufficiently

More Planners find that APA Virginia address diversity adequately than does the profession as a whole