Mission statement
VIA University College strives to be an inclusive working environment for all staff and students.
As a UNESCO Development Goal School, we have agreed to work toward the UN Sustainability Development Goals through a “whole school approach”. Part of this effort is our dedication to achieve gender equality (SDG 5) and build an effective, accountable and inclusive institution at all levels (SDG 16).
At the core of VIA University College’s GEP is a plan to continuously collect and monitor data across all staff categories, to ensure that any gender-based inequalities in staff composition and salaries are presented to decision makers with an institutional mandate to address the issue.
Gender Advisory Board
To facilitate an institutional environment with equal opportunity between genders, the Executive Board at VIA University College has appointed a Gender Advisory Board with representation from Human Resources, the Heads of Research Committee, the Committee of Deans, the department for Educational Development and Project Support and two staff representatives appointed by the General Committee.
The Gender Advisory Board attends regular meetings to monitor and evaluate quantitative and qualitative data collected by the HR department, and delivers a yearly report to the Executive Board.
The Gender Advisory Board has an annual budget to initiate training- and capacity building initiatives, and administrative support from HR and the department for Educational Development and Project Support to implement them. The Gender Advisory Board are tasked with mitigating any minor- or potential inequalities through their own initiatives, but are also mandated to address the Executive Board through the Main Committee, if any major- or systematic issues are detected, that cannot be directly mitigated through their own means.
The Gender Advisory Board can be contacted through their direct email at genderequality@via.dk.
Internal resources
Gender in research
If you are working on a research project, and need guidance on how to address gender perspectives in your research, or help with strengthening the gender diversity when recruiting for a research project, please contact the Project Support Office to connect to a local Research Support Officer who can assist you.
The Project Support Office can also help with compliance with EU directives on gender and diversity in research.
For more info on the European Commission’s gender equality strategy, visit this link, or follow the EU funded initiative SPEAR, that offers help and training on gender initiatives in research projects.
Measures against abusive behaviour and sexual harassment
If you experience abusive behaviour or sexual harassment, you can visit this page for relevant contact information and a guide for what to do in such circumstances.
If you are not a victim of abusive behaviour or sexual harassment, but want to learn more about how to prevent- or handle such behaviour, you can read VIA’s guide on the topic here (pdf).