June 3, 2020

Dear UM family,

Over the past few weeks, the killings of Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd have convulsed communities across the country. To yet again see black community members killed so callously fills us with grief and anger and lays bare our nation’s unfulfilled promise of a just society. We acknowledge the anger, sadness and burden that members of our Black, Indigenous and People of Color communities are uniquely experiencing in this moment and have long experienced as a result of historic institutionalized racism.

Institutions across our country have not served all people and all communities equally. Too often, institutions have become instruments of inequality and oppression. As leaders in higher education, we acknowledge our particular responsibility to act — with empathy, humility and proactive commitment — to foster positive, systemic change both on campus and in broader society. We recognize that our efforts to date have not been sufficient, that we have at times not understood the voices and needs of people of color in the UM family, and that dialog and raised awareness, by themselves, will not solve these problems.

We reaffirm our commitment to act in solidarity with those who have suffered from systemic oppression and who have worked to forge a better future for all people. We commit to acknowledging that we must do better. We commit to listening to, learning from and acting alongside BIPOC members of the UM family and broader community to root out institutional racism.

Seth Bodnar – President

Also signed by members of the President’s Cabinet
and the Academic Deans at UM:

Alicia Arant – Director of Equal Opportunity & Title IX Coordinator

Chad Bishop – Interim Dean, W.A. Franke College of Forestry and Conservation

Barry Brown – Interim Dean, Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library

Cathy Cole – Vice President for Enrollment Management and Strategic Communication

John DeBoer – Interim Dean, College of the Arts and Media

Lucy France – Legal Counsel

Tom Gallagher – Dean, Missoula College

Taylor Gregory – ASUM President

Rozlyn Haley – Chair, Staff Senate

Jon Harbor – Executive Vice President and Provost

Kent Haslam – Director, Intercollegiate Athletics

Larry Hufford – Incoming Dean, College of Humanities and Sciences

Reed Humphrey – Dean, College of Health

Paul Kirgis – Dean, Alexander Blewett III School of Law

Paul Lasiter – Vice President for Operations and Finance

Adrea Lawrence – Dean, Phyllis J. Washington College of Education

Nathan Lindsay – Vice Provost for Academic Affairs

Marketa Marvanova – Acting Dean, College of Health

Jenny McNulty – Interim Dean, College of Humanities and Sciences

Tim Nichols – Dean, Davidson Honors College

Chris Palmer – Chair, Faculty Senate

Terri Phillips – Associate Vice President for Human Resource Services

Renae Scott – Chief Information Officer

Paula Short – Director of Communications

Megan Stark – President, University Faculty Association

Sarah Swager – Vice Provost for Student Success

Suzanne Tilleman – Interim Dean, College of Business

Kelly Webster – Chief of Staff

Scott Whittenburg – Vice President for Research and Creative Scholarship