Oct 16, 2020 | Uncategorized
Fatimah Conley named interim chief diversity officer at UD
Fatimah Conley, associate general counsel at the University of Delaware, has been promoted to the position of interim chief diversity officer (CDO) at the University effective immediately, President Dennis Assanis announced today.
“During this time when our nation is confronting challenges in pursuit of equity and social and racial justice, there is an urgency for action. Even under the current circumstances of constrained resources, our commitment to the progress and advancement of inclusive excellence throughout the University of Delaware must remain steadfast. Our success will rely on strategic and innovative use of the resources UD is investing and maximize effectiveness,” Assanis said.
In her role as interim chief diversity officer, Conley will serve as the senior adviser to the president regarding all diversity, equity and inclusion (“DEI”) initiatives at the University. She will advise and collaborate with senior leadership and other University groups to develop and implement DEI programs that promote a welcoming campus culture for all faculty, students and staff. Conley will work closely with the president and the UD community to realize a clear vision for success for DEI efforts by engaging all stakeholder groups – students, faculty, staff, administrators, trustees, alumni, community. This will further solidify the foundation for actions that sustainably advance DEI as part of the University’s core mission.
“Fatimah’s experience, insights and drive will serve UD well as she takes on this new post,” Assanis added. “She will inspire, catalyze and coordinate our university-wide DEI efforts to reinforce and build upon one another. I look forward to working together to advance the DEI agenda for the UD community.”
Conley brings to this challenge a deep understanding of UD’s organization, culture, and aspirations. Over the past five years, she has worked closely with the Office of Equity and Inclusion, serving as interim director and Title IX coordinator for eight months, all the while consistently demonstrating steadfast commitment to the ideals of diversity, equity and inclusion at the University.
In addressing UD’s immediate priorities, the president has asked Conley to work closely with units and programs supporting campus-wide student, faculty and staff DEI efforts and provide recommendations on how to consolidate them into one cohesive structure reporting to the CDO. The goal of this effort is to improve coordination of our programs, and balance shared resources for enhanced impact, beginning with the establishment of a clearer accountability structure. As a first step in this process, the Office of Equity and Inclusion will report into her immediately, expanding its visibility and effectiveness while ensuring UD’s compliance with state and federal laws.
In consultation with senior leadership and building on information from an earlier study and results of a working group, she also will investigate potential spaces for a new multicultural center, seeking input from a diverse set of community members to help define the role of such a center and provide recommendations for the best path forward.
“I look forward to working with President Assanis, administrative leaders and the entire UD community to synthesize and integrate the University’s many diversity and inclusion efforts into a visible, meaningful, collaborative and effective strategy for enhancing diversity, equity, access and inclusion at UD,” Conley said. “In my role as interim chief diversity officer, I will engage our students, faculty, staff, alumni, trustees and UD community members to make significant progress for transformation.”
A staff member in the Office of the General Counsel at UD since 2015, Conley has also served since 2017 as senior counsel to the National Institute for Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals (NIIMBL), which is headquartered at UD and funded by the federal government to advance U.S. competitiveness in advanced manufacturing innovation. As she takes on this new role, Bradley Yops, assistant general counsel, will take over her duties at NIIMBL, which include advising the institute director on legal matters to ensure that decisions and outcomes are aligned with the University, working with the operations director to negotiate agreements for all projects and supporting NIIMBL’s sustainability efforts.
While at UD, Conley has worked directly with the Office of Equity and Inclusion, serving as interim director and Title IX coordinator from May to December in 2018 and as senior associate director of the office from 2015-16.
Before joining the University, she was an attorney at a law firm in New Orleans, handling all aspects of commercial transactions, and spent two years as a human resources consultant in higher education.
Conley is a member of the Louisiana State Bar Association and the National Association of College and University Attorneys. She earned her undergraduate degree at Fairleigh-Dickinson University and a law degree from Tulane Law School. Currently she is pursuing her MBA in UD’s Lerner College of Business and Economics.
Article by UDaily staff | October 16, 2020
May 29, 2020 | Uncategorized
CONTINUED LEADERSHIP FOR DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION
Article by UDaily staff Photo by Evan Krape May 28, 2020
Michael Vaughan appointed interim vice provost for diversity and inclusion full-time
Michael L. Vaughan, who has served as interim vice provost for diversity and inclusion at the University of Delaware since September, will now be devoting himself full-time to the role in the Office of the Provost, effective July 1.
Previously, Vaughan had also maintained his duties as associate dean for undergraduate education in the College of Engineering on a half-time basis.
A national search for a chief diversity officer at the University is currently paused in light of the campuswide hiring freeze, Vaughan will continue to serve as interim vice provost until further notice.
“I am honored and humbled to have the opportunity to devote my full-time attention to this critical work as the University continues its focus on evolving an increasingly diverse, equitable and inclusive campus culture,” Vaughan said. “As we all deal with the challenges, impact and uncertainty of crisis, it is clear that a commitment to access and equity has never been more important.”
In this important role, Vaughan works to advance the University’s academic mission and goals in the areas of diversity, equity, inclusion and human rights by leading efforts to define, assess and cultivate diversity as both an institutional value and an academic priority. He is senior adviser to the president and the provost on matters of diversity and collaborates with campus leaders and others on the development and implementation of initiatives designed to support UD’s diversity efforts.
Vaughan has spent more than 28 years at UD as an academic administrator. In his most recent role in the College of Engineering, he was responsible for the success of the college’s undergraduate education enterprise and led the overall college-level undergraduate academic infrastructure and processes.
Since 2014, he also has held a secondary faculty appointment as an instructor in the college.
Vaughan received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering from North Carolina A&T State University and completed his Ph.D. in civil engineering at UD.
May 15, 2020 | Uncategorized
Students with disabilities, staff adjust to remote learning amid coronavirus
Article by Zachary Davis | Photos courtesy of Lizzy Phillips, Melissa Gatti and Igbal Attaelmanan
Melissa Gatti misses the Green.
“I loved walking around campus, seeing the activities going on,” said the first-year computer and information sciences major, who is part of the University of Delaware Center for Disabilities Studies’ Spectrum Scholars program for undergraduates with autism. However, with her daily commute to campus replaced by instant connection via Zoom and Canvas, Gatti found an unexpected space in her schedule for a social skills workshop she had been previously unable to attend.
Lizzy Phillips is also creating silver linings. In her first year of CDS’s Career and Life Studies Certificate (CLSC) program for students with intellectual disabilities, Phillips is keeping up with her clubs, including Support Our Troops and the Native American Student Alliance. She’s even organizing her own events, like a digital “Mary Poppins Returns” screening for several friends.
Remote learning in the era of coronavirus is “less than ideal,” said CLSC Program Manager Jay Sellers, but “we approach the experience as a uniquely valuable one.” As they navigate their new digital reality, students and staff in CDS’s two college transition programs are honing an essential skill: adaptability.
“That’s the whole point of the transition program,” Sellers said. “Learning how to enter new environments and carry your transferable skills with you.”
Melissa Gatti, a first-year UD student in CDS’s Spectrum Scholars program, appears on a Zoom call with her peer mentor, senior Sofia Mazza (inset).
Spectrum Scholars, a collaboration between UD and JPMorgan Chase, offers a system of support and career exploration opportunities to select undergraduates with autism. These include weekly get-togethers with peer mentors and twice-weekly one-on-one meetings with a point coach to reflect and set goals. Gatti has found her goals barely changed — she’s still aiming to make the dean’s list, find scholarships to apply for and reach out to professors with questions or concerns.
Spectrum Scholars Program Manager Pam Lubbers said that students’ self-advocacy, along with clear, direct communication from professors, is helping to smooth the adjustment. Even acts viewed as “easy” by some, such as emailing a professor or calling IT for tech support, can represent important learning opportunities. “Every college student has to have that ability to bounce back when things don’t go exactly as planned,” said Lubbers.
Phillips, who was homeschooled in grades 3–12, said the skills she developed then are helping her handle remote learning. While staying on top of classwork was “a little bit hard at first,” her bigger concern was “going a little bit into panic mode when I heard about the coronavirus hitting UD. But I learned to stay calm,” she said.
Igbal Attaelmanan is a Career and Life Studies Certificate program assistant for academic and career exploration.
CLSC students take several undergraduate classes during their time on campus as part of a curriculum that also includes learning job skills and daily living skills, as well as engaging as part of the campus community. Igbal Attaelmanan, the CLSC program assistant for academic and career exploration, said that shifting coursework online was a challenge.
“The first few weeks were really hard,” said Attaelmanan, “and all [the CLSC staff] did was try to maintain consistency, keeping a routine. But even when we are struggling, we do our best to maintain a ‘push forward’ attitude.’ Our students really took that to heart.”
A majority of CLSC students had to push forward when UD closed its campus. They were living in residence halls – an option that has been available to CLSC students for several years – but like the vast majority of UD students, they moved back home.
CLSC’s approach to career preparation has seen big changes, too. Usually, students start an internship in the spring semester of their first year, which continues through the second year. By the time they graduate, students will have applied for a job — either the same they held as interns or another that’s an even better fit. However, during the coronavirus pandemic, students do not have the opportunity to get first-hand experience on job sites. Instead they are doing more reflection and research on the career paths that interest them. They are also brushing up on job search skills, including sitting for mock interviews conducted over Zoom by staff from across the UD campus.
Spectrum Scholars is working with campus partners as well. Instructional coach Wes Garton and consultant Vince Varrassi are collaborating with the Office of Academic Enrichment on virtual note-taking and time management workshops open to the general student body. Program staff have also worked with the Center for Counseling and Student Development to present the Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills (PEERS) — the social relationships workshop Gatti was able to join — for students with autism.
Lubbers said these cross-campus collaborations “ensure that each Spectrum Scholar continues to be served comprehensively, while we continue to promote autism acceptance and inclusion across campus. We didn’t want any of those benefits to stop just because of the coronavirus.”
Sofia Mazza, a UD senior, said she feels those benefits acutely during the lockdown. Mazza is Gatti’s peer mentor and her PEERS social coach, which means they chat over Zoom every few days.
“Talking to Melissa is one of the highlights of my week,” said Mazza. “We talk about things she’s discovered. It’s a little pick-me-up throughout these weird times.”
Attaelmanan recalls getting a pick-me-up of her own on a gloomy morning a couple weeks ago: “I had a student lecture me on, ‘Let’s not think about the negatives right now. Let’s just get through this.’ ”
“Moments like that are what will keep us going,” Attaelmanan said.
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Apr 20, 2020 | Uncategorized
Racism is wrong. Clearly, objectively, patently wrong. Which means its opposite — embracing and promoting diversity — must be right.
Right?
According to James McCoy Jones, long-time faculty member and honored speaker at the March 10 luncheon of the University of Delaware Association of Retired Faculty (UDARF), this is a loaded question. Unlike racism (always condemnable) or rooting for the UD Blue Hens (always commendable), diversity is not a neatly defined moral absolute. It is far more nuanced than that.
“Diversity is one of these challenges where, if we do it right, we’ll be on a positive course,” said Jones, Trustees’ Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Psychological and Brain Sciences and Black American Studies. “But if we don’t, we’ll be facing very serious problems.”
This may sound subversive. Haven’t we as a society determined that diversity is our strength — no questions asked? You can now buy that catchphrase in the form of sweatshirts, refrigerator magnets and embroidered Pinterest pillows. It is woven into the mission statements of companies selling everything from software to sunscreen. It is increasingly the mantle of leaders in business and government. It is, by all indicators, the future.
So… what gives?
According to Jones, who directs UD’s Center for the Study of Diversity, in the public consciousness there are two conflicting arguments for diversity. Each is correct. Each is valid. Yet, these arguments are sometimes at odds with one another, and this is problematic.
One of these positions is the so-called moral argument: Diversity efforts are a way to acknowledge historic racism and ameliorate those effects. The other position is the instrumental argument: Diversification includes and benefits us all. In other words, as author Peter Wood wrote in the New Boston Post in 2015: “Diversity is both kumbaya and Black Lives Matter.”
This duality, Jones explained, “can foster confusion and conflict.”
Consider statements on diversity written by universities. Jones said 75 percent of these adopt the instrumental — or kumbaya — approach. There’s nothing wrong with this, per se, Jones said, except for what the research shows: Black students are less likely to graduate and more likely to perform poorly in schools that adopt the we-are-all-in-this-together attitude.
“Groups who are concerned with biases they must overcome feel unfulfilled — and at times disrespected — when they are lumped with other groups with very different histories,” Jones said. “The inclusive idea — that everyone is better for it — does not work in a world that is seen as a zero-sum contest for resources, prestige and opportunity.”
On the other hand, the moral approach to diversity that acknowledges our different histories? Research shows whites feel excluded from this and, when they feel excluded, they fail to support diversity efforts, he said. Sometimes, they actively or passively oppose them.
Put another way: “Inclusion as a concept is both a goal of diversity and a challenge it faces,” Jones said.
These difficulties are compounded by other factors. For starters, diversity encompasses much more than race. There are variations of sex, gender orientation, religion, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation and immigrant status to consider, among other factors. Within an institutional framework, it’s impossible to respond to them all. So, when formulating or analyzing diversity efforts, these differences get truncated into categories.
“Consider, for example, international students,” Jones said. “They may come from China, Southeast Asia, Japan, Middle East, Caribbean, South America and Africa, not to mention Europe. Considering this diversity of background, what does the international category even mean?”
Of course, these obstacles don’t take away from a research-backed truism: The more diverse we are at any level, the greater the gains in terms of learning and experience. The question, then, is not whether greater diversification should be attempted, but how to go about it in a meaningful way — one that goes beyond magnets and embroidered pillows.
For that, Jones explained, there must be constant negotiation and communication between groups. At both the institutional and personal levels, everyone must strive for openness when it comes to learning about and with others. And, in navigating this potentially tricky territory, we need to keep in mind, perhaps, the importance of understanding.
“Anthropologist Margaret Mead once likened people living in a post A-bomb world as pioneers,” Jones said. “I believe we are living in a post-diversity-explosion world, and we are all still learning how to do that….Yes, diversity is the new normal, but it is not yet normalized. It is still a work in progress.”
Article by Diane Stopyra, Photo by Kathy F. Atkinson | This article was originally published in UDaily on March 31, 2020.
Mar 3, 2020 | Uncategorized
The event on March 3 featured interactive courtroom drama, ‘Defamation’
Article by Cindy Hall Photo and illustration courtesy of The Defamation Experience February 26, 2020
The Defamation Experience will headline the University of Delaware’s annual Louis L. Redding Lecture on Tuesday, March 3, at 5:30 p.m. in Mitchell Hall on UD’s campus in Newark.
The three-part experience features a live performance of Defamation, a riveting courtroom drama by award-winning playwright Todd Logan that explores the highly charged issues of race, class, religion, gender and the law. The premise is a civil suit in which an African American business owner is suing a Jewish real estate developer for defamation. The twist: the audience is part of the performance, playing the jury in the case. A facilitated discussion follows the show.
The show’s website describes Defamation as a 75-minute trial that “holds our prejudices and assumptions under a powerful lens, and does not let go except by way of an unsettling self-examination.”
Logan said that the experience is intended to generate honest conversation and challenge people’s preconceived notions about race, class and religion, leading to greater empathy.
The event is free and open to the public. Those interested in attending should register at www.udel.edu/006602. Reserve seats for a class or group by emailing dlperry@udel.edu.
Sponsored by the Office of the Vice Provost for Diversity, the Louis L. Redding Lecture honors the late civil rights pioneer, a prominent lawyer in Wilmington, Delaware, whose work led to educational opportunities for African American students in the state and nation.
In addition to the performance, Michael Vaughan, interim vice provost for diversity and inclusion, will recognize the recipients of the Louis L. Redding Diversity Award and the Louis L. Redding Scholar Award at the event. More information about the awards and the nomination process is available on the University’s diversity website.
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