Racial injustice statement
We are deeply saddened by the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery, as well as the countless tragic deaths of Black people that have occurred because of racism and bias. We stand with the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement.
Like our leaders in the Dartmouth community, UGAR acknowledges the need to continue questioning and addressing the ways systemic racism continues to prevail within our own institution and negatively affect members of our campus community. This includes working to understand the impact racism has on the Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) community on a day-to-day basis, and the inequities inherent in systemic barriers, and the role such disparities have played in too many tragic deaths. We stand in solidarity with those advocating for racial and social justice, because racism should have no place in our society.
We affirm that all discrimination, whether it is based on sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality or whether it takes any other form, profoundly affects the lives of many in our society, and that such discrimination cannot be tolerated.
We all have a role to play in dismantling systemic racism and other forms of bias. As educators, we hope to bring other voices into the conversation and to provide resources for those that want to learn more about how to support the BLM movement through action.
UGAR has carefully examined internal practices for places where we can act in support of the BIPOC community. Together with the staff, educators, and other professionals with whom we work, we are committed to learning, to listening, and to bringing about positive change. We are committed to the following actions to begin dismantling our own biases and to better support our students and staff:
Action Items for Office of Undergraduate Advising and Research (UGAR)
Recruitment and hiring
We will request that senior leadership bolster the collaboration between IDE and HR to ensure that our recruitment and hiring processes are inclusive and that implicit bias is not influencing perceptions of candidate competency. Actionable improvement in this area necessitates
- Assessing position descriptions and recruitment strategies to ensure diversity of the applicant pool
- Meeting with the search committee to review policies, best practices, and potential pitfalls in evaluating and interviewing applicants
- Evaluating the interview questions and the plan for candidate interviews
We will ensure that candidates have the opportunity to meet with a diverse group of campus partners during the interview process.
Onboarding of new employees
We will provide candidates with contact information for the Employee Resources Networks and other relevant campus offices and organizations.
In collaboration with IDE we will set up weekly lunches with campus partners for the first 6-8 weeks to introduce the new employee to others in the College community.
We will select a UGAR or IDE staff member to mentor the new employee, checking in regularly to ensure that the transition to the position, the institution, and the local community is going smoothly
Staff training
We will continue to require staff to attend annual trainings in diversity and implicit bias.
We will continue to encourage staff to participate in campus offerings and attend campus events focused on issues of bias and racial justice.
We will invite campus partners (IDE, Title IX, OPAL and others) to staff meetings on a regular basis to provide training and help in facilitating meaningful discussion.
Action Items for Undergraduate Research
We will track undergraduate research programs by race, gender, and first-generation status to ensure that all students have equal access
We will monitor undergraduate research program assessments submitted by students to determine whether changes should be made to increase accessibility and inclusivity
We will continue to reach out to offices that support student diversity to provide information about undergraduate research programs and to offer information sessions for students
We will reach out to diversity-focused Council on Student Organization (COSO) groups to ensure that they are aware of UGAR programs.
We will work with the student group DURA (Dartmouth Undergraduate Research Association) to increase awareness, accessibility, and inclusivity of undergraduate research programs
The Mellon Mays Fellowship and E.E. Just Program will continue to support UGAR's goals for supporting underrepresented students. Additional action items specific to each program are currently in development.
Action Items for Fellowship Advising