James Madison University
PAE-6: Diversity and Equity Coordination

Yes, Diversity Councils. The Diversity Councils provide a vehicle for the dissemination and creation of university, divisional and departmental diversity initiatives. Each college and division has its own council from which a representative attends the university council meetings. The Diversity Council Chairs meet monthly during the Academic School year. A list of current chairs can be found at http://www.jmu.edu/diversity/2010DiversityCouncils.htm. An example of a council is the Student Affairs and University Planning Division’s Diversity Council. The council is composed of representatives from every department in the division and meets monthly. The SAUP Diversity Council was instrumental in developing the divisional Strategic Plan. This plan provides the division with recommendations for creating an environment where recruitment and retention of a critical mass of underrepresented student, faculty/staff and administrator exist. The council is directly responsible for the implementation of specific recommendations within the plan. One recommendation that was implemented was the SAUP Diversity Training that was developed during the summer of 2010. The training was for all divisional employees and was offered in three learning modules. The training was implemented in the 2011-2012 academic year and a divisional participation rate of ninety-two percent will exceeded expectations. The SAUP Diversity Council generally meets once a month for one and a half hours. Some sub-committee and special project work occurs throughout the year and the time commitment for that varies depending on the project. Members of the SAUP Diversity Council change but at the time of development of this credit included: Chris Campbell (Advisor, Career & Academic Planning) , Peter De Michele (Assistant Director, Office of Institutional Research), Walt Ghant (Assistant Director, Community-Service Learning), Brian Keilson (Area Director, Residence Life), Tenea Lowery (Assistant Director, Center for Multicultural Student Services), Marsha Mays-Bernard -Chair (AVP, Student Affairs and Multicultural Services), Michael McCleve (Associate Director, Madison Union), Dawn Miller (Student Affairs and Multicultural Services), Amy Sirocky-Meck (Associate Director, Substance Abuse Prevention), Matt Trybus (Assistant Director, Office of Disability Services), Carolyn Wallace (Housekeeping Manager, University Recreation).

In December 2012, President Alger created the Diversity Task Force to research the recruitment and retention efforts relative to faculty, staff and students. The Diversity Task Force was chaired by Dr. David Owusu-Ansah (Special Assistant to the President, Faculty Diversity), Dr. Robert Kolvoord (Dean, College of Integrated Science and Engineering), Ms. Casey Carter (Academic Counseling), Mr. James Robinson (Director of the Office of Equal Opportunity) and Mr. Arthur Dean (Special Assistant to the President, Staff and Student Diversity). The purpose of the task force is to research information/data on programs, ideas, research, and efforts relative to diversity.

At the time of this credit the members of the Diversity Task Force are as follows: Jennifer Campfield, Director, Training and Development; Towana Moore, Associate Vice President of Business Services; Jeff Bourne, Director, Intercollegiate Athletics; Kevin White, Associate Athletics Director; Susan Ghiaciuc, Associate Professor, Writing, Rhetoric, and Technical Communication; Daphyne Thomas, Professor, College of Business; Ruthie Bosch, Assistant Professor, Education Programs; Diane Foucar-Szocki, Professor, College of Education; Audrey Burnett, Assistant Professor, Health Sciences; Elizabeth Theta-Brown, Associate Professor, Mathematics and Statistics; Amadi Azikiwe, Associate Professor, School of Music; Meg Mulrooney, Associate Vice Provost, University Programs; Reg Foucar-Szocki, Professor, Education Programs; Michael Mungin, Psychology Librarian, University Libraries; Thomas Lavenir, International Assistant Director, International Studies Services; Carol Fleming, Director, Outreach and Engagement; Marsha Mays-Bernard, Associate Vice President, Student Affairs and Multicultural Services; Kathy Thompson, Assistant Dean, Graduate School; Laura Ryman, Director of Student Support, Graduate School; Lisa Ha, Assistant Director, University Marketing; James Carter, University Marketing; Maria Papadakis, Professor, College of Integrated Science and Engineering; Nathan Sprague, Assistant Professor, Computer Science; Jacquelyn Nagel, Assistant Professor, School of Engineering; Michael Walsh, Director, Admissions; Andreas Broscheid, Associate Professor, Political Science; James Robinson, Director, Office of Equal Opportunity; Nick Langridge, Senior Vice President, University Advancement; George Sparks, Dean, College of Visual and Performing Arts; and Ralph Alberico, Dean, Libraries and Educational Technologies.

Mission of the Office of Diversity: To assist and lead in creating an inclusive environment for Faculty, Staff and Students.

The Diversity Coordinators are to develop internal partnerships, introduce new ideas and opportunities, and create strategic external relationships for all members and departments of JMU. While each coordinator focuses on their specific area, the overall purpose is to bring best practices to JMU and assist in the implementation of those ideas in the JMU community.

This information was entered by Melissa Altman.