Bard College
PA-6: Support for Underrepresented Groups

"Bard College is committed to ensuring equal access to its educational programs and equal employment without regard to an individual's sex, gender, race, color, national origin, religion, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, predisposing genetic characteristics, marital status, veteran status, military status, domestic violence victim status, ex-offender status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law. Students, employees, applicants, and other members of Bard College community (including, but not limited to, vendors, visitors, and guests) shall not be subject to discrimination or harassment prohibited by law or otherwise treated adversely based upon a protected characteristic. Similarly, the College will not tolerate harassing, violent, intimidating, or discriminatory conduct by its students, employees, or any other member of, or visitor to, the College community. This includes, without limitation, sexual harassment, sexual assault, sexual violence, dating violence, and domestic violence." http://www.bard.edu/dosa/handbook/index.php?aid=1258

excerpt from Policy: The Bard Community Response Team (BCRT): The Bard Community Response Team is a group of faculty, administrators, and students who work to assess, communicate and create a comprehensive institutional response to incidents involving Hate Crimes, Bias Incidents, and Chilly Climate Behaviors. Bard Community Response Team is responsible for: • Supporting affected person(s) through appropriate referrals • Determining an appropriate plan of action to the incident, in consultation with the affected person(s) and necessary college officials and/or departments • Communicating accurate information to the affected person(s), and the larger campus community, as appropriate • Coordination of a community response of various levels based on the nature of the incident, in consultation with the affected person(s) and necessary college officials and/or departments An initial response to a reported incident will occur within 24 hours of a report being received. A core group of The Bard Community Response Team will then convene as soon as possible to discuss the incident and determine appropriate action. This group will identify additional offices or members of the campus community who should assist with the response. In addition to addressing particular incidents, core members of the BCRT will meet on a monthly basis to review campus incidents and/or identify proactive measures for educational programming on issues of bias, hate crimes, hate groups, discrimination, and chilly climate behaviors. The Bard Community Response Team may include any number of representatives from the following offices/departments, as well as other members of the Bard community depending on the reported incident: • Athletics • Bard Educational Opportunity Program • Center for Student Life & Advising • Chaplaincy • Dean of Student Affairs • Dean of the College • Difference and Media Project • Faculty Diversity Committee • Health and Counseling Services • Human Resources • International Student Advisor • Peer Counselor Staff • Residence Life and Housing • Safety and Security • Student Activities • Student Government • Title IX • Vice President for Administration

Students: BEOP (Bard Educational Opportunity Programs) The philosophy of Bard Educational Opportunity Programs remains consistent with the College's desire for diversity to be part of the learning experience of all students, regardless of race, creed, class, gender identity, sexual orientation, or religion. Bard Educational Opportunity Programs recognizes that students from a variety of backgrounds seek to attain a rigorous liberal arts education and often need support to realize this aim. Such students bring to the College a wealth of knowledge and insight not necessarily gained in the classroom. Our scholars benefit from the Bard experience, just as Bard benefits from their presence. The BEOP Office works closely with HEOP, BOP, and Posse Scholars (from Atlanta and New Orleans) on campus. Faculty The recruitment programs for faculty are specific to the group underrepresented in a variety of disciplines. Such as partnerships with professional organizations for groups underrepresented in the professoriate like SACNAS.

•Academic Support Programs o Bard Academic Resource Center: The Bard Academic Resources Center provides tutoring and other forms of academic assistance to all Bard students in all subject areas taught at the college. In addition to offering academic skills workshops, we have provided assistance to hundreds of students in more than forty subjects, including writing, moderation papers, senior projects and Masters theses; calculus, pre-calculus, chemistry, economics, biology, physics, Q-exam preparation; anthropology, art history, psychology, sociology, philosophy; First Year Seminar; languages; computer science; political studies and literature. Academic support is provided to all Bard students in the Academic Resources Center. The faculty and staff associated with the Center provide assistance to students who need help with writing and mathematics; students who possess basic academic skills, but experience difficulties with the demands of college level work, including such issues as time management, study skills, and the writing of research papers; and students who need subject-specific tutoring in any of the many disciplines offered at Bard. Additional support can be found in a variety of modalities, including professional tutorials and credit-bearing courses in writing; regular seminars and workshops (particularly on grammar, time management, academic paper writing, and research papers), workshops especially targeted for students working on moderation papers and senior projects; and peer tutoring in writing, mathematics, and specific subjects taught at the College. Peer tutors are students who have been recommended by faculty and trained in the principles of tutoring pedagogy by the Director of College Writing or the Director of Quantitative Support. o Bard Educational Opportunity Programs: The program allows Bard to accept a limited number of first-year students from historically economically disadvantaged groups. One objective of the program is to assist students who, by reason of inadequate early educational preparation, do not compete with the average Bard applicant in high school grades, class rank, and College Board scores, but who do possess the ability and motivation for successful study at Bard. Opportunity Program scholars do well academically at Bard because of the outstanding academic, financial, and social support services provided through the Opportunity Programs Office and the College. The school's philosophy is geared toward retaining and graduating students, not simply admitting them. Peer Mentor program. Ten students from the BEOP scholarship program are trained to support their peers with academic, social and personal issues. The peer mentors hold office hours and plan events held in the office to connect with BEOP scholars and support them during their transition to and time in college. • Affinity Clubs Clubs at Bard College are student run and student initiated. The following are a list of the currently existing clubs that provide support for under represented groups: o Anti-Racist Discourse o Asian Student Organization o Black Student Organization o Caribbean Student Organization o Gender Queer Discussion Group o Hindu Student Organization o Jewish Student Organization o Latin American Student Organization o Multiracial Student Colloquium o Muslim Student Organization o Queer Straight Alliance o Racial Identity Politics Initiative o Trans-Action Initiative o West Indian Club For descriptions of these clubs and their particular mission statements please see: http://student.bard.edu/clubs/ The following programs are offered under the umbrella of the Student Affairs Office; Kosher/Halal Neighborhood, Social Justice Neighborhood, TransAction, Muslim Student Organization, Black Student Organization, Hindu Student Organization, Latin American Student Organization, ISO, ASO, Queer Student Alliance, Anti-Racist Discourse, Active Minds (Mental Health), Bard International Solidarity Movement, Bard Palestinian Connection, Bard Spoken Word (Urban Poetry), Ballywood Dance Organization, China Experience Club, Christian Student Fellowship, Jewish Student Organization, Identity Politics Organization, Students for a Free Tibet, Students for Just Peace in Israel and Palestine, Students for Women's Education, Awareness and Rights; International Student Services, Chaplaincy Academic supports includes: Institute for Media and Difference; Bard Educational Opportunity & Higher Educational Opportunities Office; POSSE

• http://inside.bard.edu/academicresources/ • http://inside.bard.edu/beop/ • http://student.bard.edu/clubs/ • http://inside.bard.edu/cfcd/ Discrimination Response Policy in Student Handbook