University of Wisconsin School of Education described actions it is planning to take in response to the recent incidents of hate and bias on campus in a letter sent Tuesday to its students and faculty members.
Sent to 3,560 students, staff and faculty in the School of Education, the letter is meant to communicate the school’s concern over the campus racial climate, School of Education Dean Diana Hess said.
Hess said the letter not only addresses the need to recruit a more diverse student body, faculty and staff, but the need to create a more inclusive campus climate.
“We are going to set clear goals, deploy the resources necessary to implement these changes and hold ourselves accountable,” Hess said. “We are not planning short-term responses because we know the kinds of changes that are needed will take sustained attention.”
In the 1970s, the school was one of the first to establish an equity and diversity committee, but has since failed to live up to its expectations, Hess said in the letter.
To create a more inclusive and thoughtful campus climate, and to meet these expectations immediately, the School of Education plans to implement several changes. These changes include providing professional development opportunities for faculty, teaching assistants and staff in the school, organizing an institutional response plan to incidents of hate and bias and supporting the university’s effort to change the campus climate, Hess said.
In addition, the school also plans to hold open forums for faculty, staff and students to share their experiences on campus to help identify what the university and school need to make campus more inclusive.
“The School of Education will not tolerate actions meant to hurt, alienate or divide the members of our community,” Hess said. “Instead, we are committed to moving forward to create safer, more welcoming and more inclusive school.”
Students, faculty and staff have been targeted, intimidated and threatened through hateful and bias acts on campus, Hess said.
Hess said these acts have violated members of the UW community’s right to teach and learn in a safe environment. The School of Education, which welcomes all students, faculty and staff, deserves and demands respect and dignity for the members of its community, but also has the responsibility of creating this respect, she said.
“We want to state that it is the responsibility of the entire campus community, including our School of Education, to take the strongest stand against the perpetrators of these acts, ensuring there are real consequences for their actions,” Hess said.
