President Discusses EDI at Convocation

The president's virtual presentation on August 20, 2020, included recognition of the largest social justice movement of our time, proclaiming black lives matter, and acknowledging the University and our community's role in building a better world.

While Chico State has been focused on equity, diversity, and inclusion work for decades, we can and should do more. The lived experiences of our students of color challenge and compel us to dig even deeper into changes we can make to end institutional racism and bring about equity.

That is why equity, diversity, and inclusion is the top priority in the University’s Strategic Plan released last fall; and, today, we want to share some of the key actions we will take this academic year. Several build upon work already happening within the University Diversity Council, the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, the Academic Senate, and the University Police Department.

• Establish a presidential task force to ensure University Police policies and practices are inclusive and representative of our community, are without bias or racism, and align with the University’s strategic priorities. We will work with an external consultant and the campus community to complete this initiative by May 2021.
• Facilitate a survey of students, faculty, and staff to identify critical issues related to racial discrimination and institutional racism on our campus, and report findings and provide recommendations to the President by May 2021
• Strive to increase faculty diversity by 1% per year to better reflect student demographics by 2030. We have already secured grant funds to jumpstart our investment in improving our processes for hiring and retention of diverse faculty.
• Evaluate options for increased, mandatory anti-racism training for students, faculty, and staff and provide recommendations to the President by December 2020
• Review University policies to identify racist policies and propose modifications for review and consideration by the Academic Senate in the 2020–21 and 2021–22 academic years.
• Implement a rubric for our General Education program to evaluate how courses and programs support equity, diversity, and inclusion learning outcomes.
• Use this year’s Book in Common, How to be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi, to deepen the campus and community conversation. Join us for events this month.
• Catalog our campus efforts focused on equity, diversity, and inclusion to share our work, progress, and resources while holding ourselves accountable to the community—this includes a new website to launch later this month.

Following Assembly Bill 1460, which was signed into law this summer, we are also preparing to implement a new three-unit ethnic studies course requirement for students who enter as freshmen in 2021–22. These students must take a course in Native American studies, African American studies, Asian American studies, or Latinx studies.

While this list underscores the University’s commitment to this work, it represents only a fraction of many activities and countless faculty and staff across our campus who are working to challenge and change the status quo in ways large and small. President Hutchinson spoke about some of this work in conversation with Krystle Tonga, associate director of the Cross-Cultural Leadership Center, during Convocation.

In her speech, President Hutchinson underscored that it will take actions by all of us individually and collectively to eliminate structural racism and other prejudices from Chico State.

Watch the full Convocation speech with transcript (equity, diversity, and inclusion segment begins at 33:13).