University of Maryland Office of the President Speeches and Statements
University of Maryland Office of the President
Initiatives		 McKeldin Library

Executive Summary

In January 2000, University of Maryland President C.D. Mote Jr., in consultation with the Campus Senate, appointed a 21-member panel to recommend how to unite our diverse faculty, staff, and students to interact as a community. President Mote provided the panel with a specific charge and goals. In keeping with the President's directives, the panel solicited campus-wide input into its work, and aimed for a fresh look at current campus practices and organization.

The panel made several findings. Foremost among these is the progress the University has made over time to increase the number of individuals in our community from varying racial and ethnic groups. There is also increasing acknowledgement of persons of the varying religious and cultural groups, sexual orientations, socio-economic backgrounds, and those who are differently able. As a result of these gains, identity-based faculty, staff and student groups, and Presidential Commissions have been established on campus. The panel sees these groups and commissions as continuing, positive catalysts for achieving equity for all campus citizens, and as potential contributors to increased inter-group relationships.

While the University's gains have been impressive, some resistance to total acceptance of this diversity exists, resistance which regrettably can surface as acts of hate. While the University cannot legislate human behavior, the University, in its primary role as an educational institution, can educate. Education of the campus not only to accept diversity, but also to welcome it cannot be forced but should be wisely and skillfully encouraged. In this regard, the panel also was impressed with the number of diversity-related research, educational, and recruitment programs and activities now in place on campus. The panel was concerned, however, that these initiativesÕ effectiveness may be hindered by lack of visibility, and by being insufficiently coordinated and integrated into mainstream campus priorities. In a related finding, the panel concluded that the campus would benefit from a systematic program both to gather data about the status of the campus as a community, and to communicate diversityÕs educational and community benefits.

The panel particularly wishes to emphasize its finding that community building among diverse groups requires interrelated stages of progress. There is no single solution or quick-fix. Instead, progress will occur by constructing an infrastructure to ensure that no minority or majority group feels threatened by any other, and each is able to pursue its aspirational goals. In addition, the University must continue to build diversity to create a framework of shared strength in and among groups. With these foundations, the University will be prepared to improve the quality of its diversity by drawing on the mutual trust, respect, and common goals of all its members.

Progress will likely be more incremental than dramatic. This should not be grounds for discouragement. The University is working to overcome strongly felt opinions, prejudices, experiences, and the historical legacy of segregation. Throughout this process, the University also must recognize legitimate expressions of individual free speech and demonstrations of academic freedom.

Any action plan designed to lead the University through these stages must rely on collaboration among all campus units to promote as many opportunities as possible for different groups to interact. Success will occur only if there is a system for accountability of measurable outcomes across the highest levels of campus administration. Some on campus, including the Vice-Presidents, expressed concern the University has lost momentum towards becoming a national model of diversity in higher education. Ultimately, the campus must look to the President's leadership to reinvigorate this momentum if it is to forge itself into a diverse community.

Based on these findings, and as further detailed in the report, the panel recommends that the President and the University:

  • Create a simple, visible process for reporting incidents which threaten the safety of members of the campus community. Recommendations include identifying the campus police emergency number, 911, as the hate crime/incident reporting mechanism; and centralizing the responsibility for processing and coordinating other appropriate campus units' responses in the Office of Human Relations.
  • Require aggressive efforts to recruit a diverse pool of candidates for every hiring opportunity, starting with the highest levels of administration. The University also should pursue increased flexibility in hiring practices, including options such as: "target of opportunity" and "designated" hiring; and pre-doctoral and post-doctoral fellowships or visiting lectureships for advanced graduate students and recent Ph.D.Õs.
  • Initiate an expanded orientation program for new faculty, and institutionalize a mentoring system for junior faculty.
  • Institute grants and scholarships for graduate and undergraduate students awarded on merit measured by indicia other than standardized test scores.
  • Recognize the University's excellence in research and scholarship on diversity, multicultural studies, and curriculum innovation, and commit to supporting and publicizing these efforts. The Consortium for Race, Gender, and Ethnicity could be a vehicle for increasing collaboration and heightening the visibility of such scholarship.
  • Enhance the curriculum for diversity by initiating a collaborative review of the existing curriculum diversity initiatives; by encouraging development of courses that expand acceptance, and enhance understanding of the value of diversity; and by further designing living/learning centers, first year focus clusters, and small group curricular activities with emphasis on diversity among participants to encourage students to learn better how to live in a diverse society.
  • Restructure the administration of campus equity and human relations programs. Responsibility and accountability for this restructured equity system should be at the Vice-President level.
  • Establish a clearinghouse for the multitude of existing diversity programs; and consolidate responsibility for program coordination and evaluation, long-term planning, and an organized system for dissemination of program information to the campus.
  • Implement surveys at regular intervals to evaluate the status of the campus as a diverse community as well as the effectiveness and benefits of diversity initiatives over time.
  • Visibly communicate the University's commitment to diversity at the start of each academic year. This might be done by a consolidated awards ceremony for faculty, staff, and students; by a special diversity or service learning program on the Mall; and/or through enhanced student orientation programs.
  • Continue a leadership role in creating a diverse community by, for example, realizing the goal of a campus child care center; prioritizing the accessibility of the Main Administration building; initiating training workshops for all high level administrators; and pressing the Board of Regents for domestic partner and contract employee benefits.

Office of the President | University of Maryland | 301.405.5803
Main Administration Building, College Park, MD 20742-5025
Maintained by the University of Maryland ElectricPub
Comments and questions may be directed to emailum@umd.edu