Equity, community, and accountability: Leveraging a department-level climate survey as a tool for action

Organizational climate is a key determinant of diverse aspects of success in work settings, including in academia. Power dynamics in higher education can result in inequitable experiences of workplace climate, potentially harming the well-being and productivity of employees. Quantifying experiences of climate across employment categories can help identify changes necessary to create a more equitable workplace for all. We developed and administered a climate survey within our academic workplace—the Department of Zoology and Physiology at the University of Wyoming—to evaluate experiences of climate across three employment categories: faculty, graduate students, and staff. Our survey included a combination of closed-response (e.g., Likert-scale) and open-ended questions. Most department members (82%) completed the survey, which was administered in fall 2021. Faculty generally reported more positive experiences than staff. Graduate students often fell between these two groups, though in som..., All methodological information can be found in the attached metadata file entitled \"README_PONE-D-23-00732_ClimateSurveyResponses\". , No special programs and/or software are required to open our data files. We used Program R to format and analyze data in the manuscript. All R packages and functions needed to interpret the data are cited in the manuscript.