University of North Carolina, Greensboro
PA-4: Diversity and Equity Coordination

The Chancellor's Advisory Committee for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion was formed in 2009, transitioning from acting as The Inclusive Community Task Force begun in 2008 to investigate diversity issues at UNCG. In 2009, the committee was asked to identify two to three initiatives based on the data collected from two years of panels and open forums. The Chancellor requested that this group submit recommendations in the form of a proposal with a budget for her review and approval. In addition, the Chancellor requested this group to consider carefully the title for a senior position that would provide leadership for the Office of Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion. Finally, this group was requested to determine what current programs on campus might be ideally placed under the administration of this office.

The 2012-13 committee was charged to work on completing a more comprehensive Inclusive Excellence/Diversity statement that could be supported by the university. It was agreed upon that the statement would include the following: request that diversity/inclusive excellence be infused into class syllabi through diverse scholarly materials, diversity workshops, scholarly projects engaging inclusive excellence linked to the university mission and QEP initiative, and learning communities. Chancellor Brady reaffirmed her full support and commitment to the inclusive excellence /diversity initiative for the entire campus. She proposed three additional items to the committee for consideration in the 2012-13 academic year:

1. Consider town hall conversations clustered around disciplines about why diversity and inclusion is important in recruiting, the nature of climate, etc. One approach would be to conduct four (4) town hall sessions (one area each session) social sciences, sciences, arts and humanities and the processional schools – talk through challenges and opportunities with faculty. The critical topic is infusing diversity and inclusion in to the classroom and across disciplines to ultimately weave inclusiveness into the fabric of the university;
2. Invite someone well known in the area of diversity and inclusion to do workshops with faculty, particularly, someone with experience and success in this area; and
3. Climate/Customer Service – figure out a way to present a more welcoming approach when engaging with students and visitors to our campus. Implement the “rule of two”, students and visitors should not engage with more than two people to get an answer. Customer service should not vary based upon color, age, etc.

The Chancellor closed with two important statements: “We must address the curriculum piece…imbedding diversity/inclusive excellence in the academic structure, in order to see change. Anything short of this and we will continue to chip away at the edges and never advance the initiative." Her closing comment sums up her commitment to this initiative “…inclusive excellence is not an add-on, it is important for the future (of the university). We have to work with faculty and help everyone understand why this is important, and bring them to the table for serious discussion related to this topic.”

Beginning with the 2013-14 academic year, the Chancellor’s Advisory Committee for Equity, Diversity and Inclusive Excellence established their own goals and objectives for the year. This was a shift from the standard process in which the Chancellor charged the committee to review and report on different matters with recommendations for implementation. A major initiative developed and implemented in 2013-14 by the committee was the “Campus Community Dialogues” the first of which was focused on “Hate Speech”. This dialogue was the result of an incident that occurred in the library and the subsequent campus community concerns and desire to come together to openly address this issue and create two annual forums one per semester to engage the campus in dialogue. The goal of the committee was to provide a safe venue where faculty, staff, students and the surrounding community could gather to voice their opinions and reactions in a positive manner in hopes of creating change on our campus. This forum proved to be very successful as it not only garnered support from the campus community, we also had community leaders and other institution’s staff and students in attendance.

Sub-committees Research Objectives 2013-2014

The 2013-14 committee was also divided into three sub-committees charged to conduct a final review and provide recommendations on the following areas:

1) Employee Recruitment and Hiring Process;
2) Faculty Recruitment, Retention, and Promotion and Tenure; and
3) Undergraduate and Graduate Student Recruitment, Retention and Graduation.

Each of these objectives were completed by a committed group of faculty, staff & students making up sub-committees to research each area and make final recommendations back to the Chancellor and her senior leadership team.

UNCG Campus Training Opportunities for Diversity Issues:

Shades of Color Conference: An annual event that aims to create a safe, empowering, inclusive space for all community members of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro to discuss, reflect on and mobilize around issues of multiculturalism. A sense of awareness about intersecting social identities and the relationship between campus and other communities are both central to the goals of the event. We strive to proactively create change through motivating, informing, and challenging individuals to address social justice issues, both personally and within their communities.

Contemporary Issues Forums: These provide an avenue to participate in discussions around "hot topics" in a multicultural society. Discussions are led by faculty and staff from across the university and serve to introduce people to a particular topic as well as engage in in-depth analysis of its most important issues. Past topics include: "Is This a Post-Racial America?", "Post-Feminist America?", "American Indian Mascots: Why All the Hype?", and "Conservative Blacks and Black Conservatives: There are Differences."

Human Rights Week: This event is an opportunity for the UNCG community to focus on human rights issues domestically and abroad. The week is organized by the Office of Multicultural Affairs in partnership with various student organizations, academic departments and community organizations. The most recent week of events addressed issues of immigrant health outcomes, tribal sovereignty, human trafficking, and LGBT equality.

Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration: The legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is celebrated every year with a week of events offered to inspire and challenge the university community to continue to strive towards the ideals of peace and justice. The highlight of the week is the annual MLK Celebration in which an invited speaker delivers a keynote address in the spirit of Dr. King’s legacy. Past speakers include Rev. Al Sharpton, Angela Davis, and Dr. Mae Jemison, the first woman of color to travel in space. During the same event the MLK service award is presented to a member of the UNCG community who has gone above and beyond their role at UNCG and has truly lived Dr. King’s vision.

UNCG's Human Resources Department also offers workshops and training opportunities (please see: http://workshops.uncg.edu/). Examples of cultural competence topics include "Intercultural Sensitivity: Looking Through Other Eyes" and "Ouch! That Stereotype Hurt."

CASE Conference sponsored by African American, African Diaspora Studies Department, Coalition of Diverse Language Communities programs, Native American History Month; Asian History Month; Hispanic/Latino History Month (Alianza and SALSA ); Black History Month and MLK Celebration now a joint venture between NC A&T State University (HBCU) and University of North Carolina at Greensboro; Human Rights Week; various projects, seminars, and community outreach of our Greek organizations. Also need to add URLs for Multicultural Affairs, Coalition of Diverse Language Communities and others if available.

Information for this credit was obtained from James "Rod" Wyatt, Director of Human Relations & Chair of the Chancellor's Advisory Committee for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion