Most universities and colleges seek to place diversity at the center of the academy’s educational and societal mission. This is challenging task, so much so that it is one of the central pillars of the Center for the Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning (CIRTL), an NSF-supported collaboration of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) faculty at six universities.

Scott E. Page, a professor of complex systems, political science and economics at the University of Michigan recently published a book, “The Difference: How the Power of Diversity Creates Better Groups, Firms, Schools and Societies” (Princeton University Press), that uses mathematical modeling and case studies to show how variety in staffing produces organizational strength.

As outlined in the New York Times review of the book, the author makes an interesting case that diversity improves the function of an organization that is structured to take advantage of this diversity. I wonder if this could be one of the major way universities and colleges separate themselves from the pack.

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