Arcadia University President Dr. Ajay Nair, Provost Dr. Jeff Rutebbeck, and Assistant Vice President for Access, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Dr. Angela McNeil were featured in the latest installment of The Chronicle of Higher Education’s “Race on Campus,” a newsletter that engages in conversations about racial equity and inclusion in higher education.

In the article, they outline Arcadia’s Anti-Black Racism Initiatives, the community feedback they’ve received, and what steps they’ll be taking next. They then discussed the importance of the initiatives that are already in place and detailed the role of the Office of Access, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion on campus.

Below is a brief excerpt from the article:

Instead, driven by the societal outrage over police officers’ mistreatment of Black people, the university would start by specifically addressing inequity affecting its Black students, faculty, and staff members.

“Ultimately, our goal must be nothing less than radical change at Arcadia and beyond,” Nair wrote in a June 2020 letter to the campus community.

That same month, Nair outlined Arcadia’s Anti-Black Racism Initiatives, incorporating feedback from the campus community. The plan described more than three-dozen action steps, each of which had a senior administrator responsible for it. The steps included establishing a center devoted to studying race, diversifying the faculty, improving institutional support for Black students, and reviewing policies “that may be a root cause of discrimination and racism.

You can read the full article on The Chronicle of Higher Education website, which may require creating a free account.