October 15, 2021

I want to thank our students for lending your voices to the important work of fostering an inclusive, safe, and supportive campus for all. I value your commitment to making change in our community, and I welcome your partnership in this collective work.

We are at our best when we work toward change together. I know that some of you are meeting with members of our administration team next week to discuss our newly updated Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Plan that we have been working on over the past year and to explore avenues for further partnership. Student engagement in this campus-wide work is necessary.

I find personally abhorrent the recently discovered misogynistic and homophobic content published by a faculty member. Such views do not represent our institution’s values, and we are addressing this matter through appropriate processes. I encourage all to counter hateful speech with better speech. That is what you are doing today.

Our ongoing and collective goal is to translate into action our abiding commitment to fostering a supportive, inclusive learning and working environment. We have made progress through recent and vitally important investments in positions dedicated to this work here on campus. And I am so grateful that the Diversity Advisory Council partnered with the Administration over the past year to develop the DEI Plan, which outlines the near-term and future actions we commit to taking, as well as establishes layers of accountability to create an equity-minded, inclusive standard across the university. This plan will annually undergo revision, reflecting new commitments to action as we learn together.

There is always more work to do. And your voices and efforts help us maintain an unyielding focus on how we can improve. Each of us has an obligation to confront injustice and inequity, and I am grateful for your partnership in this important work.

Seth