The Office of University Scholars and Fellows has released a new strategic plan for excellence, diversity, inclusion and equity.
The EDIE plan, which was sent in an Oct. 19 email to all merit scholars, details the OUSF’s commitment to “actively promoting excellence, diversity, inclusion and equity for the entire scholar community in ways that are consistent with the Office’s core mission.” The plan then details student participation goals regarding equity and inclusion.
“We developed this plan to enhance and promote a spirit and culture of inclusivity. We want to be sure that all our programs provide welcoming spaces to foster deep engagement and rich intellectual inquiry, without barriers: There should be no barriers to excellence,” OUSF Executive Director Karen Weber wrote in an email to The Chronicle. “We are inviting the OUSF community to work with us on this effort, and we appreciate everyone’s contributions.”
The plan states that the office’s mission will be to “promote awareness of systems of privilege and exclusivity and support students, faculty and staff in reforming and improving these systems” as part of a commitment to “empower extraordinary students."
This includes supporting students in both scholarly and civic endeavors as well as preparing them to “address the world’s most pressing challenges.” The plan notes that action will be required both internally and externally to achieve said goals.
“The OUSF staff has and will continue to work to expand our knowledge of structural and institutional barriers and review our recruitment and selection processes and materials,” the plan reads.
These efforts will be led by OUSF, with the plan explicitly highlighting that people of color will not be expected to lead or guide such discussions.
Internal actions to support reform within the OUSF community are also delineated in the report. These include sociodemographic analysis of accepted merit scholarship awards and offers for the past 10 years, working with campus identity and cultural centers, increasing the awareness of scholarship deadlines and increasing the number of OSUF-affiliated scholars with financial need. Programs to promote racial and social equity will be expanded as well.
Students can be engaged with the EDIE plan. The Office is asking for students to participate in a review of the office’s promotional materials; assist in the selection of speakers for a February lecture series on race, history and America with the Mary Lou Williams Center for Black Culture; propose EDIE-related topics for each scholarship group to discuss; and participate in an advisory committee to support the EDIE plan.
The OUSF makes a commitment in the plan to “ensure accountability and transparency and to support evidence-based decision making” by conducting evaluations to measure progress towards these goals.
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Preetha Ramachandran is a Trinity senior and diversity, equity and inclusion coordinator for The Chronicle's 118th volume. She was previously senior editor for Volume 117.