University of Mississippi
PA-6: Support for Underrepresented Groups

"The University of Mississippi does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, gender, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, religion, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or genetic information. Employees, students, applicants for admission or employment, or other participants in the University of Mississippi programs or activities who believe they have been discriminated against are entitled to seek relief through the EORC Office or Title IX Coordinator. Please note that any references to the “Director” in this policy is referring to the Director of the Office of Equal Opportunity and Regulatory Compliance, or any individuals designated by the Director to act on the Director’s behalf, which may include the Title IX Coordinator” -https://policies.olemiss.edu/ShowDetails.jsp?istatPara=1&policyObjidPara=10848182

The Bias Incident Response Team (BIRT) at the University of Mississippi provides support and a process for effective advocacy on behalf of the student, faculty, or staff member who is a recipient of bias. They also promote educationally driven outcomes to enable students, faculty, and staff to learn about discriminatory behavior and language and track bias data to share with campus partners for monitoring campus climate. BIRT received 31 incident reports in academic year 2017-18. BIRT evaluates each report and determines a course of action within two days. A BIRT member works with the affected parties to reach a resolution, which may include education, outreach and training, within five days. BIRT tracks the progress of each reported incident.-http://birt.olemiss.edu/

Students: During the summer, the University hosts the MOST Conference for rising high school seniors. The goal of the summer conference is to expose prospective African American students to leadership activities, academic offerings, campus resources, faculty, staff, and student leaders. Following the conference, mentors will help to guide and support students through the admission process into the University of Mississippi and throughout their freshmen year. Participants are also invited back to campus to participate in a reunion event. https://inclusion.olemiss.edu/services/ Staff/Faculty: Departments are required to include diversity recruitment advertisements when recruiting for a position.

Student Support: M-Pride and Allies program: These programs develop and maintain a network of informed students, faculty, and staff who are trained to respond knowledgeably and sensitively to LGBTQ+ students’ needs and who are willing to be visibly supportive of students who identify themselves as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer. A variety of counseling groups focusing on supporting underrepresented groups are also available through the counseling center including Women Supporting Women, Bridging Across Cultures and TRANS*formations, UNITAS (LGBTQ+). The Women Supporting Women group is geared toward female students in order to provide a safe, supportive, and empowering environment to process what it is like to be a woman in the world today. The Bridging Across Cultures group is for international students, and provides an opportunity to see that they are not alone and offers a chance to work on making changes toward a better experience as an international student. TRANS*formations is a group for students self-identifying as transgender, gender-variant, non-cisgender or for those who may be struggling with their sexual/gender identity or expression. Transformations provides a safe space to discuss issues related to coming out, transphobia, beginning or continuing a process of transformation (passing, dysphoria, hormonal treatment, seeking official name/gender change, etc), and peer/romantic relationship issues. UNITAS (LGBTQ+) is a support group for any student who identifies as a member of the LGBTQ+ community. The group serves as a safe place to voice concerns, share struggles and triumphs, and gain support from peers and counselors. Student Disability Services recognizes disability as a valued aspect of diversity and strives to provide access as a matter of social justice and to create more welcoming and inclusive environments. The Office of Veteran and Military Services’ Veterans Treatment Team provides services to student veterans attending UM. They can receive treatment at the university for anything they may need while in school. Student veterans can receive comprehensive treatment through a team of trained psychologists, psychiatrists, physicians, nurse practitioners, a social worker, and case manager available on campus and locally. Through this, veterans can explore other treatment options outside the typical VA prescription of medications. Additionally, the MOST Conference UM hosts in the summer for rising high school seniors provides resources for student alumni of the program who enroll at UM. The goal of the MOST conference is to expose prospective African American students to leadership activities, academic offerings, campus resources, faculty, staff, and student leaders. After the conference, mentors help to guide and support students through the admission process and throughout their freshmen year. Staff and Faculty: The Office of International Programs (OIP) advises on immigration-related matters and works closely with campus and community partners to provide comprehensive assistance and support for international faculty, scholars, employees and their families. Areas of assistance include applying for a VISA; financial matters; health care and insurance; and taking classes as a faculty member or scholar. https://international.olemiss.edu/faculty/ The Working Mother’s Support Network was formed in April 2016 with support from the Sarah Isom Center for Women and Gender Studies. The network’s mission is to make the University of Mississippi a more family friendly environment by providing support to its working mothers. The group meets several times a semester and has an active private Facebook group. Working mothers with a question or who need support and wish to remain anonymous can contact the founder of group via e-mail, who has signed a confidentiality agreement with the Career-Life connector program so communications will remain private. http://workingmothers.olemiss.edu/ The University Ombuds provide UM faculty, staff and graduate students with assistance and counseling related to discrimination, harassment, cultural misunderstandings, unprofessional conduct, retaliation or threats of retaliation and departmental conflict. The Ombuds advocate for fairness, equity, inclusion and a healthy campus environment, providing a confident and comfortable setting to talk about an issue. The Ombuds assist faculty, staff and graduate students by listening carefully in a confidential setting, and the helping to identify options and strategy for reporting or finding a resolution to your issue. The Ombuds meets employees at times that are convenient for the employee, including weekends and during shifts that take place outside of UM’s operating hours. http://ombuds.olemiss.edu/

The Bridge to the Doctorate Program (BDP) is a National Science Foundation (NSF) initiative within the Louis Stokes Mississippi Alliance for Minority Participation Program (LSAMP) at UM to provide former LSAMP baccalaureate degree graduates with a fellowship for graduate STEM studies. The ultimate goal is to increase the number of minority students that obtain PhD degrees in STEM fields. The program provides support for eligible students from schools in the MS-LSAMP alliance. The University of Mississippi's Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program is one of 120+ funded by the U.S. Department of Education. Through this program, first-generation, low-income students (and students from underrepresented groups in graduate studies) engage in scholastic undertakings that increase their chances for success in graduate school. Twenty-nine students are selected each year for this unique opportunity. Of that group, sixteen will be chosen to attend an intense, six-week research internship at The University of Mississippi. This component of the program provides a stipend of $2,700 to students. Its purpose is to prepare eligible participants for doctoral studies through involvement in research and other scholarly activities with the goal of increasing the attainment of Ph.D. degrees by students from underrepresented segments of society.