Hampshire College
PA-6: Support for Underrepresented Groups

Mission:
The mission of the chief diversity officer is to provide leadership and advocacy in developing partnerships across divisions to promote inclusion, equity and diversity as central themes to the mission of the College. The chief diversity officer is responsible for coordinating and guiding all efforts to define, understand, assess, foster, and cultivate diversity as a fundamental institutional and educational resource. The chief diversity officer ensures that the College community understands and is in compliance with both federal and state laws and College policies with respect to equal opportunity, accessibility, and educational programs.

The main goal is to develop a climate that cultivates diversity as fundamental to the development of the educational and professional experience at the College. To achieve this I have three major areas or responsibilities: diversity and inclusion, equity of services, and programming and compliance.

Diversity Statement:
Hampshire College values diversity because it enriches our campus community and advances our intellectual and creative endeavors. Diversity encompasses multiple and intersecting identities including but not limited to race, class, ethnicity, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, religious expression, physical and mental abilities, military/veteran status, and political expression.

Hampshire aspires to foster a welcoming community inclusive of individuals from an array of backgrounds and perspectives who share a commitment to all forms of anti-oppression, social justice, respectful discourse and engagement. We believe that diversity is central to the academic and work experience and campus culture and therefore, we recognize that recruitment, retention, and support of a diverse community are fundamental responsibilities related to the sustainability of the College.

Diversity is at the core of our collaborative, creative, inquiry-based model of education. Our pedagogy depends upon the free and open exchange of ideas informed by different perspectives, fields, and methodologies. We offer an interdisciplinary education that is inclusive of the knowledge and experiences of groups who have been historically underrepresented in academy. Together, we strive to be a community of scholars and artists engaged in respectful exchange of different perspectives and ways of being, and critical and analytical thought: essential factors for transformative learning.

https://www.hampshire.edu/offices/diversity-equity-and-inclusion

Notice of Non-Discrimination:
Hampshire College reaffirms its commitment to a policy of equal opportunity in education and employment.

Hampshire College does not discriminate on the basis of race, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information, religion, national origin, disability, previous military service or any other protected category in the admission of students, employment, access or treatment in its programs and activities or the administration of its educational and employment policies. Discrimination or harassment on the basis of these factors is in direct conflict with the mission of the College and strictly prohibited.

Hampshire College is strongly committed to building an inclusive environment and will not tolerate any actions of any individual or group that violate this policy.

Hampshire College is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All applicable federal and state laws and guidelines are followed, including Title VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; Executive Order 11246 of 1965, as amended by Executive Order 11357 of 1967; Title IX of the Educational Amendments Act of 1972; Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended; and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.

https://www.hampshire.edu/offices/notice-of-non-discrimination
https://www.hampshire.edu/offices/policies

Hampshire College has a comprehensive and multi-tiered response team that is comprised of three distinct categories: On-Campus Resources, Confidential Reporting and Counseling, and Confidential Medical Services. These resources are honed to serve the institution and all members of its community, directed by the Title IX Coordinator, Dianna Williams.

https://www.hampshire.edu/student-life/sexual-respect-and-title-ix

The institution’s response team works closely with campus police, who provide services and protection to all members of the College community, including its visitors and guests, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. All officers attend a training session on civil rights and diversity, and several officers have been certified by the state as sexual assault investigators.

https://www.hampshire.edu/campus-police/campus-police

Additionally, each residential area has an area coordinator who provides the principal leadership for that area. These persons live within the residence halls for which they are responsible and, as part of a campus-wide rotation, provide 24-hour response for after-hour concerns and crises.

https://www.hampshire.edu/housing/residence-life-and-housing-staff

The James Baldwin Scholars Program provides a full scholarship year of college courses to talented students from under-served communities who would benefit from a year-long program of a modified course schedule, close academic support, and intense advising.

https://www.hampshire.edu/james-baldwin-scholars/james-baldwin-scholars-program

The Office of Community Advocacy includes the following:

-The Center for Feminism
The Center for Feminism (CFF) strives to work towards an actively anti-sexist campus. The CFF prioritizes anti-sexist programming on campus, in accordance with our mission, and also provides programs that deal with other forms of oppression. The CFF strongly supports student-initiated programming. The CFF is a part of the department of Community Advocacy in the division of Student Life.

-The Lebrón-Wiggins-Pran Cultural Center provides a range of programs and resources to support and promote the success of students of color and international students at Hampshire College. Additionally, the center provides programs and resources to the larger campus community, including faculty and staff from underrepresented groups, for engagement in issues related to race, culture, and under-representation, with the underlying goal of effecting social change. http://www.hampshire.edu/studentlife/index_culturalcenter.htm

-The Queer Community Alliance Center
The Queer Community Alliance Center (QCAC), located in Greenwich Donut 4, began as a student group, and in 1992 became an institutionalized part of the College, including faculty and staff. The QCAC is a part of the department of Community Advocacy in the division of Student Life. The QCAC is overseen by Hampshire College Queer Services, and strives to support a vibrant and intentional LGBTQ+ community by offering support and affirmation around gender, sexuality, and intersecting identities.

-Spiritual Life Center
The Spiritual Life Program at Hampshire College encourages healthy community life, interaction, and reconciliation across boundaries of ideas, possibilities, and faith. We offer support and practice so that students, staff, and faculty can balance, flourish, and experience the connections between mind, body, and spirit. We provide resources and guidance for spiritual exploration, development, and appreciation. We provide education and programming that engages in issues of identity and conflict around the world, modeling compassionate communication and challenging ourselves and the campus as a whole to make this a place where we can become fully ourselves even as we lift up and celebrate our diverse community.

-The Wellness Center Peer Mentorship Program
The Peer Mentorship Program matches new multicultural students with returning multicultural students to provide support to students of color and international students.
The office for diversity and multicultural representation is responsible for the general advancement of diversity in the life of the College. This includes racial, ethnic, gender, disability, and class diversity, as well as diversity based on sexual orientation. The primary mission is to safeguard campus well-being as it relates to diversity issues. http://www.hampshire.edu/dof/office-for-diversity-and-multicultural-education.htm

SOURCE (Students of Under-Represented Cultures and Ethnicity)
This student group has developed and grown over the years into an umbrella coalition of currently nine student groups that support students of color and international students at Hampshire College:
*DIG: Supports students who identify as indigenous. (People who have been living in an aboriginal life style until the relatively near present and/or a first peoples.)
*FISH: Forum of International Students at Hampshire supports students representing a range of nationalities.
*Mixed Heritage: Supports students who identify as mixed heritage.
*PASA: Pan Asian Students Association supports students of Pan Asian descent.
*Raíces: Supports students of Latino/a descent.
*Sisters: Supports women of color and international women.
*Umoja: Supports students of the African Diaspora.
MOCA: Men of Color Alliance supports men of color and international students.
*James Baldwin Scholars: Supports current students and alumni of the James Baldwin Scholars program - which provides scholarships to talented students from underserved communities who would benefit from a transition year before college in which to improve general academic skills and prepare for the rigor of college studies.

In addition to the resources above, Faculty, Staff, and Students have access to support through Hampshire College Health and Counseling Services.

Counseling Services is staffed with a diverse group of clinicians, and augmented by resources and support through the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.

We participate in the Five College Fellowship Program. We provide an academic year of funding for a doctoral student completing their dissertation. The program supports scholars from under-represented groups and/or scholars with unique interests and histories whose engagement in the Academy will enrich scholarship and teaching.Fellows are asked to teach one course at a host institution.

Quote from the Five College Fellowship Program Website:
"The program supports scholars from under-represented groups and/or scholars with unique interests and histories whose engagement in the Academy will enrich scholarship and teaching."

https://www.fivecolleges.edu/faculty/fellowships

Identity Based Housing at Hampshire College includes various group living situations with a common identity such as race, culture, or sexual orientation. Current identity-based spaces include: International Students, Kosher, Latino/a, Queer, Students of Color, and Women of Color. Many of these spaces exist within the mods and may be limited. We're always open to creating new identity-based halls if enough interest exists.

The majority of on campus restrooms are gender neutral with options ranging between multi-stall restrooms and single or double stall units with privacy locks. In the case of multi-stall restrooms, signage indicates whether or not the space is equipped with urinals instead of labeling as Men/Women. Single and double stall bathrooms are labeled as Gender Neutral and have privacy locks.