MCCL Annual Reports

2018–2019


May 2019 Report: PDF Version | DOC Version

Committee Members 2018-2019

The Multicultural Community and College Life Committee (MCCL) includes Mount Holyoke faculty, administrators, staff, and students. The following individuals served on the Committee during the 2018-2019 academic year:

Sabine Afodanyi, Class of 2020
Yunxuan (Emma) Chen, Class of 2022
Dayishaa Daga, Class of 2022
Latrina Denson, Associate Dean of Students for Community and Inclusion
Paola Granados Jaramillo, Class of 2022
Margaret (Gretchen) Lay, Assistant Professor of Economics
Olabode (Bode) Omojola, Five College Professor of Music
Barbara Dalton Rotundo, Program & Lab Coordinator, Department of Computer Science
Jared Schwartzer, Assistant Professor of Psychology and Education, Program in Neuroscience and Behavior
Donna Van Handle, Senior Lecturer in German Studies (co-chair)
Nashalie Vazquez, Associate Director of Residential Life (co-chair)
Lori Widmer-Hinckley, Assistant Registrar

Meeting Schedule

The MCCL Committee typically meets every other week throughout the year. This year the committee met every other Monday in the fall and spring semesters.

Accomplishments in 2018-2019

Review of MCCL’s Charge and Mission

The committee revisited and clarified MCCL’s charge and mission, especially given the arrival of Kijua Sanders-McMurtry, MHC’s new Vice President for Equity and Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer, in anticipation of redirecting and updating the MCCL charge to align with the Chief Diversity Officer’s forthcoming changes. MCCL co-chairs met with Kijua and Vice President for Student Life and Dean of Students Marcella Hall in September to seek guidance about the committee’s future tasks. We looked at the committee’s charge as described in faculty legislation and also discussed how to improve MCCL’s ability to elicit feedback from campus constituents concerning issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Since faculty legislation is currently being updated, we discussed how to modify the committee’s description to better reflect its focus.

Hortense Parker Essay Contest

In September, we read and evaluated 38 essays submitted by students for the Hortense Parker Essay Contest. Alongside other judges across campus, we helped select award recipients who were announced at the Hortense Parker Day Ceremony in October.

BOOM 2019

MCCL reached out to Kijua Sanders-McMurtry to offer the committee’s service as she began to plan and organize BOOM 2019. Kijua asked committee members to facilitate the discussions at the tables where topically-focused “Diversity Action Plans” were developed.

Inclusiveness Initiatives Funding (IIF)

Three times a year, MCCL distributes Inclusive Initiatives Funds (IIF), which allow students, staff, and faculty to organize workshops, cultural events, conferences, lectures, and other projects which promote diversity and inclusion. Jared Schwartzer chaired the sub-committee and all MCCL members reviewed the proposal and made award decisions. From our budget of $7,500.00, the committee awarded funds to 17 events and projects. Eight of these were faculty or staff-driven events, while the rest were organized by individual students or student organizations. IIF funds supported the following events:

Classical Music of India (concert): Sept 24, $500
An Evening with Barbara Smith ’69: A Life in Activism: Nov 1, $500
See Me, Hear Me, Understand Me: Building Allies for Recovery (lecture by Beck Gee Cohen): Oct 24, $500
Cross-Culture & Cross-Gender: A Performance of Yue Opera Excerpts: Oct 26, $500
Noche Latina: La Vida es Un Carnaval (A celebration of Latinx culture sponsored by La Unidad): Nov 16, $500
Birth Doula Workshop (with focus on culturally appropriate healthcare): Nov 10,11,16,17, $500
Being Muslim: A Cultural History of Women of Color in American Islam (lecture by Sylvia Chan-Malik of Rutgers University): Dec 6, $315
DEAFinitions: A Deaf Studies Conference (Hampshire): Mar 30, $500
Voices: A Reading and Discussion of "Enticement: Stories of Tibet": Apr 26, $600
Framed (interactive art installation focused on global movements, migrations, refugees, and diasporas): Apr 10-17, $600
Women of Color Trailblazers Leadership Conference: Apr 6, $357.14
Class visit by Arabic Scholar Dr. El-Ariss (discussion of gender and modernity in the early 20th century Arab world): Feb 13, $357.14
STEMPOC Celebration Party: Mar 1, $357.14
Five College Model United Nations Conference 2019: Apr 5-7, $357.14
Semana Latinx (to rebuild and strengthen the MHC Latinx community: Apr 15-20, $357.14
The Microaggressions Project at MHC: Apr 9, $357.14
Visit to Campus by Taina Asili (Puerto Rican artist /activist / documentary filmmaker): Apr 20, $357.14

The MCCL decided to add another deadline for IIF grant proposals to provide an additional opportunity to apply in the spring. In the 2019-2020 academic year, IIF peoposal deadlines will be: October 18, December 6, February 21, and April 3. The committee also began working on a more transparent rubric for evaluation of IIF proposals.

Listening Sessions

MCCL spent a lot of time this year discussing how the committee could play a more proactive role in addressing community concerns and improving campus climate. We decided to build on the work of last year’s committee and expand the concept of “Listening Circles,” now called “Listening Sessions.” Committee members felt we needed training to help us ask the right questions and listen most effectively. To that end, Carol Stewart graciously attended one of our meetings and provided us with reading materials. In a subsequent meeting MCCL developed a set of questions to pose during listening sessions. We also expanded listening sessions to include both group and individual sessions. MCCL began to reach out to groups in the spring semester for the group sessions. In addition, each committee member also blocked off times for individual listening sessions on a special Google calendar. This initiative was advertised in the Staff Council newsletter, Jon Western’s faculty newsletter, Marcella Hall’s weekly “Dean’s Corner” email, and there was a poster distributed across campus. This year, there were two group listening sessions: on March 1st several MCCL members met with representatives from the cultural houses and SGA committees and on April 8th with the Frances Perkins Student Association. In addition, there were five individual meetings with committee members. Notes taken at these meetings were shared with the Chief Diversity Officer and with the Dean of Students.

Goals for 2019-2020

MCCL hopes to increase participation in the listening sessions. Early in the fall, we will invite specific campus groups to a group listening session and we will publicize the individual listening sessions vigorously in order to encourage individual student, faculty, and staff groups to make appointments with MCCL members. Also, MCCL will continue to update its web pages. In terms of membership on the committee: Ted Gilliland (economics) will start his term as a new committee member in the fall. This spring, Nashalie Vazquez will complete her term on MCCL and a new staff member will be appointed by Staff Council. The new chair of MCCL will be Jared Schwartzer.

2017–2018


May 2018 Report: PDF Version | DOC Version

Committee Members 2017-2018

Latrina Denson, Assistant Dean of Students
Audrey Lee-St. John, Associate Professor of Computer Science
Anpa’o Locke, Class of ‘21
Sophia Marcellus, Class of ‘21
Katie McMenimen, Associate Professor of Chemistry
Guneet Moihdeen, Class of ‘21
Donna Van Handle, Senior Lecturer of German Studies, Dean of International Students
Nashalie Vazquez, Associate Director of Residential Life
Jonencia Wood, Alumnae Association Senior Director of Programs
Wesley Yu, Associate Professor of English

Meeting Schedule

The MCCL Committee typically meets every other week throughout the year. This year the committee met every other Wednesday in the fall semester, and every other Monday in the spring.

Accomplishments in 2017-2018

Hortense Parker Essay Contest

In early September, we read 17 essays submitted by students for the Hortense Parker Essay Contest. Alongside other judges across campus, we helped select a winner in anticipation of Hortense Parker Day.

BOOM! 2017 De-brief

We spent several meetings talking about information we gathered from our participation in last year’s BOOM! Conference. In 2017, the committee formed a listening table to hear comments, frustrations, and aspirations from the campus community. This year, we took the information that we gathered and discussed possible ways to continue the work of listening. We brainstormed possible projects to help promote communication and facilitate continued listening.

Inclusiveness Initiative Funding (IIF)

Three times a year, MCCL distributes Inclusive Initiatives Funds (IIF), which allow students, staff, and faculty to put on workshops, cultural events, galleries, and academic projects. Katie McMenimen and Donna Van Handle chaired the sub-committee and all MCCL members participated in review and award decisions. From our budget of $7,500.00, the committee awarded funds to 15 events and projects. Five of these were faculty- or staff-driven events, while the rest were organized by individual students and student organizations. IIF funds supported the following events:

“Moving Beyond Pity and Inspiration: Disability as a Social Justice Issue.”: Oct 2, $460
The Peony Pavillion: Oct 19, $300
Lecture on Queer and Indigenous, specifically two-spirit, Health by Margaret Robinson, (Assistant Professor, Dalhousie University): Oct 23, $300
Movement for Justice in El Barrio Presentation and Q&A: Nov 10, $450
Noche Latina fundraiser hosted by La Unidad for people affected in Mexico and Puerto Rico by the natural disasters: Nov 17, $450
Multimedia lecture concert arab arts vs. stereotyping: Nov 28, $200
Noche Latina: Mar 24, $250
Five College Model UN Conference: Mar 23-25, $415
DEAFinitions: A Deaf Studies Conference (Hampshire): Mar 25-26, $300
Health Law Workshop: Apr 3, $200
Women of Color Trailblazers Leadership Conference: Apr 7, $1,500
U.S. Policy on the Israeli/Palestinian Conflict During the Trump Administration: Apr 11, $415
Stage production of a new African Opera, Irin Ajo (Odyssey of a Dream): Apr 12-13, $500
Marcondo Nuestra Huella: The Revolution Starts with the Self: Apr 13-15, $800
Mending Masculinity Tour: Apr 14, $416

In the 2018-2019 academic year, IIF funding deadlines are: September 15, November 15, and February 15.

Listening Circle: Students of Color Committee

The committee sought to play a more proactive role in addressing community concerns and improving campus climate. To that end, based on work we did for last year’s BOOM! Conference, we strategized about starting a listening circle that would allow different campus groups to meet with the committee to discuss pressing topics on campus climate. This year, we met with the newly formed Students of Color Committee (SOCC) to hear about student experiences in the classroom, the dining halls, and residence halls.

Communicating, Listening, and Reporting Out

Over the year, we asked ourselves about various means to speak with the campus community, to hear from the community about DEI and climate, and to report out about issues, resources, and protocols at MHC. While BOOM! 2018 gave us the opportunity to attend workshops, lectures, mixers, and other events, it also compelled us to discuss spurring structural change. Topics and suggestions that came up during these discussions included current processes for bias-incident reporting; strategies for accountability in the classroom (for instance, adding an anonymized section on classroom climate to teaching evaluations); and community installation projects sponsored by the MCCL.

Goals for 2018-19

The MCCL has been through and anticipates fluctuations in committee membership. Just as the committee welcomes Jared Schwartzer, we will need to fill two staff vacancies, and make one temporary faculty appointment, which will help determine committee leadership. We look forward to working with MHC’s new Chief Diversity Officer, Kijua Sanders-McMurtry, to whom we will turn for guidance about the committee’s future tasks. Goals for next year include further clarifying our role in the context of expanded emphasis on diversity, equity, and inclusion in relation to President Stephens’s Strategic Plan. The MCCL will continue to address concerns related to recruitment and retention of diverse faculty and staff and hopes to collaborate with Human Resources to develop new mechanisms for supporting faculty and staff of color. The committee will also discuss our advisory role in helping align the College’s DEI initiatives with its publicity materials. Finally, we hope to reach out to individual student, faculty, and staff groups to participate in listening circles next year.

2016–2017


May 2016 Report

Committee Members 2016-2017

The Multicultural Community and College Life Committee (MCCL) includes Mount Holyoke
faculty, administrators, staff, and students. The following individuals served on the Committee
during the 2016-2017 academic year:

Iyko Day Associate Professor of English
Latrina Denson Assistant Dean of Students
Karen Fernandez Class of 2017
KC Haydon (Co-Chair) Assistant Professor of Psychology & Education
Katie McMenimen Assistant Professor of Chemistry
Tatiana Michel Class of 2018
Mary Ramsay (Co-Chair) Director of Foundations and Sponsored Research
Donna Van Handle Senior Lecturer of German Studies, Dean of International Students
Nashalie Vazquez Associate Director of Residential Life
Jonencia Wood Alumnae Association Senior Director of Programs
Wesley Yu Associate Professor of English

Meeting Schedule

This year the MCCL Committee met every other Monday afternoon, and additionally as needed, to discuss developments on and around campus pertaining to diversity and inclusiveness within and beyond the MHC community.

Accomplishments

Restructuring and Reorganization

In response to several changes in campus leadership, as well as the dissolution of the President’s Commission on Diversity and Inclusion, the MCCL consulted with Deans Western, Mosby, and Hall to determine a new advisory and reporting structure. The outcome was that MCCL now reports to and advises Dean Hall. The administrative staff in the Dean of Students office now provides support for MCCL, including management of listservs and the website and distribution of Inclusiveness Initiative Funding. Additionally, the MCCL affirmed its desire to play a more proactive role in addressing community concerns and improving campus climate, in contrast to recent years in which MCCL efforts centered more on gathering data on campus climate.

Post-Election Support for Community Members

In the immediate aftermath of the 2016 national election, members of the MCCL hosted several spaces for student dialogue in cultural houses and other locations. Through the remainder of the year, Mary Ramsay worked with a student group to help them think about allyship and
whiteness, which met five times under the name, “Disrupting Whiteness.” Along with Linda S, Mary also led a staff/faculty group on white privilege. The MCCL also opened the latter hour of its remaining Fall meetings to any/all members of the community who wished to discuss
concerns related to the post-election campus climate.

Inclusiveness Initiative Funding (IIF)

Three times a year, MCCL distributes Inclusive Initiatives Funds (IIF), which allow students, staff, and faculty to put on workshops, cultural events, galleries, and academic projects. Wes Yu chaired the sub-committee and all MCCL members participated in review and award decisions.
From our budget of $7,500.00, the committee awarded funds to 16 events and projects. Five of these were faculty- or staff-driven events, while the rest were organized by individual students and student organizations. IIF funds supported the following events:

Nov 3: Public lecture by Jodi Kim, “Debt Imperialism, Settler Modernity, and Militarized Sleights of Hand in Asia and the Pacific” ($600.00).
Nov 12-13: Public Lecture & Workshops. Eduardo Placer, “Dynamic Public Speaking Coaching for Women Leaders and Change-Makers” ($1,000.00).
Dec 2016: Hands-on science workshop and exhibit to promote interest in STEM fields, make MHC Makerspace more inclusive of different learning types ($300.00).
Dec 2: Fall Asian American Students in Action (AASIA) Journal ($260.00).
Spring 2017: 8-10 min film to accompany senior thesis on topic surrounding the Korean diaspora and former Korean comfort women ($300.00).
Spring 2017: Photo series using 20 volunteer models on Asian Americans and “hypocrisy of the American Dream,” focusing on “mental illness, pressure, fear, sadness, and diaspora” ($153.95).
Feb 15: Building Bridges: A Trans and Queer People of Color Speaker Series (see Apr 15).
Mar 1-11: Gallery show and group dialogue gatherings on the topic of expression and wellness among selfidentified women of color ($300.00).
Mar 2: “From Social Media to Social Change.” Presentations and dinner with speaker, Sonya Renee Taylor ($326.50).
Mar 20: “Revolutionary Vietnamese Women and Global Solidarity” ($200.00).
Mar 24-26: Five College Model United Nations Conference ($346.50).
Mar 25-26: DEAFinitions: A Deaf Studies Conference. Space for deaf artists, performers, academics, and others to share work; learning opportunities for hearing community ($346.50).
Apr 1: Women of Color Trailblazers in Leadership Conference consisting of workshops on peer networking, professional and personal development, and leadership. Keynote Staceyann Chin ($1,000.00).
Apr 6-8: African Cinema Symposium and Festival ($1,000.00)
Apr 15: Building Bridges: A Trans and Queer People of Color Speaker Series ($346.50).
May 5: Symposium and performance on intersectional identities, multi-modal cultural practices, and marginalization of Black, queer, bi-lingual, and immigrant subjects and artists ($1,000.00).

Ombudsperson Search Committee

Two members of MCCL – Jonencia Wood and KC Haydon – served on the search committee to select a new Ombudsperson. The committee met regularly between December 2016-March 2017, when the search concluded successfully.

BOOM! Steering Committee

Four members of the MCCL – Latrina Denson, Mary Ramsay, Jonencia Wood and Wes Yu – served on the steering committee for the BOOM! Conference on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Their role was to help plan and execute the delivery of the BOOM! Conference. The committee also listened, observed and collected information on how to move the DEI initiative forward. Having debriefed with the steering committee on the information gathered, the committee’s work will continue in 2017-2018 as its members think strategically to accomplish some of the tasks in the next phases of the DEI initiative. Smaller working groups have been formed to mine the feedback during this feedback/data-gathering phase of the initiative.

BOOM! Conference on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

The MCCL hosted a listening booth and comment wall at the March 27th BOOM! Conference on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. MCCL members were available throughout the day to talk with community members about their concerns and suggestions for improving campus climate. Copies of the 2013 Campus Climate Report and 2015 Inventory of Practice were also available for community members to review. Several MCCL members also presented at the BOOM! Conference. Along with students, Donna Van Handle, Leslie Ann Fraser, and Liza Lovozaya (Eliot House) offered the presentation: “Challenging Assumptions: International and Domestic Students at MHC. Finally, Mary Ramsay and the student group, “Disrupting Whiteness,” hosted a session at BOOM! that helped its audience navigate the issue of white privilege.

Goals for 2017-2018

In April 2017, the MCCL elected Wes Yu and Mary Ramsay to serve as Co-Chairs for the 2017-2018 academic year. Goals for next year include working with Dean Hall to further clarify our role in the context of expanded emphasis on diversity, equity, and inclusion in relation to President Stephens’s Strategic Plan. Related to that aim, the MCCL will mount a campaign to inform the community about our role and how we can serve community needs. This effort will include making major updates to the MCCL website and establishing other means of reaching
the community (e.g., through Dean’s Corner, the Dean of Faculty Newsletter, and social media). Lastly, the MCCL will address concerns related to recruitment and retention of diverse faculty and staff and hopes to collaborate with Human Resources to develop new mechanisms for
supporting faculty and staff of color.

2014–2015


May 2015 Report

Committee Members 2014-2015

Cerri Banks (Administrator) Dean of the College
Sara Blair (Staff) Area Coordinator, Residential Life
Angelica Castro (Staff) Assistant Director of Community Engagement, Co-Chair for 2014-2015
Iyko Day (Faculty) Assistant Professor of English, Co-Chair for 2014-2015
Latrina Denson (Administrator), Assistant Dean of Students
Karen Fernandez’17 (Student), Class of 2017
KC Haydon (Faculty) Assistant Professor of Psychology and Education
Liza Manchester (Staff) Learning Specialist, AccessAbility Services
Mary Renda (Faculty) Associate Professor of History, on-leave fall 2014
Aldo Santiago, (Faculty) Head Tennis Coach and Senior Lecturer in PE & Athletics
Stephanie Smith'15 (Student) Class of 2015

Meeting Schedule

In the 2013-2014 Academic Year, the MCCL Committee met approximately every other
Monday afternoon to discuss developments on and around campus pertaining to diversity and
inclusiveness within and beyond the MHC community.

Accomplishments

Diversity and Inclusion Inventory of Practice

In Fall 2014, Dean Banks commissioned the MCCL Committee to document on-going efforts to promote and foster diversity and inclusion at Mount Holyoke. The MCCL conducted a survey of 170 department chairs, center and program directors, campus service directors, and student organization leaders. Our goal was to map the number, type, focus, and source of diversity and inclusion-related events occurring in the past two years. Data analysis that began in January 2015 resulted in a 24-page report that summarized the main findings and presented key analyses. This report was shared with the Presidential Commission on Diversity and Inclusion in March 2015.

Meeting with the Presidential Commission on Diversity and Inclusion

In April 2015, MCCL and the Presidential Commission on Diversity and Inclusion held a joint meeting to discuss the findings from the Diversity and Inclusion Inventory of Practice and the Campus Climate Inventory, which MCCL submitted in spring 2014. MCCL presented action items that included training initiatives, clarifying the College’s diversity mission, and revising committee structures. Both committees will meet again in May 2015 to discuss the process of implementation.

Inclusiveness Initiatives Fund (IIF)

The MCCL is responsible for reviewing proposals and granting funding for the Inclusiveness Initiatives Fund (IIF) which provides financial support for projects surrounding diversity and inclusion on and off the campus. In keeping with changes that were implemented in 2013-2014, there are currently two funding deadlines per semester and the Committee no longer accepts applications on a rolling basis. Liza Manchester served as the primary point person who compiled applications and communicated with applicants. All members of MCCL participated in reviewing applications.

The IIF Subcommittee awarded 12 grants totaling $7,000. The following table illustrates the applications and the dollar amount awarded for each application.

2014-2015 IIF Awards:

Project Theatre, Performance of “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is not Enough,” October 25th & 26th, $500
College Counseling Service, Warrior’s Toolkit Workshop, October 24, $500
Tayllor Johnson, Beau Sia spoken word performance and workshop, November 15, $500
MEChA de Mount Holyoke, Latinos in the Arts Conference, October 24–26, $70
Vickiana Tejada, For the Love of WOMON, November 14, $500
Kuch Karo: Pakistani Students for Change, Urooj Arshad workshop on Muslim and Queer identities, November 20, $587
Chinese Program Faculty, Yu Opera artist Jun’an Wang performance, April 7 & 8, $500
La Familia, Creating Change Conference, February 4 - 8, $600
International Student Organizing Committee, iFair, March 28, $725
CAUSE, A Call to Consciousness Conference and Community Action Project, March 27 & 28, $500
Latina/o Studies Department, Kick-off Celebration and Lecture, March 30 & 31, $1,000
Women of Color Task Force and Office of the Dean of Students, Women of Color Trailblazers Leadership Conference, April 4, $1,018

Plans for 2015-2016 Academic Year

The MCCL Committee looks forward to continuing the work with and among faculty, staff, and
students to help foster a community that strives for inclusive excellence in all facets of our
campus life. The MCCL Committee aims to work on implementing strategies that will help to
further improve diversity and inclusion on campus. The Committee’s plans for 2015-2016
include the following goals:

Use American Association of Colleges and University rubrics on multicultural and global awareness to advance relevant curricular and co-curricular initiatives.
Continue to work with the Presidential Commission on Diversity and Inclusion to implement actions to improve campus inclusiveness.
Continue to identify “best practices” to increase allyship across axes of difference.
Develop new mechanisms for increasing communication between MCCL and the larger campus community about diversity and inclusion at Mount Holyoke.
Complement our recent focus on research by shifting toward action and implementation.

Respectfully submitted,
Iyko Day, Co-Chair
Angelica Castro, Co-Chair

2013–2014


May 2014 Report

Committee Members 2013-2014

Huda Alawa’15 (Student)Class of 2015
Cerri Banks (Administrator) Dean of the College
Katrina Borowiec (Staff) Assistant Director of Institutional Research, Co-Chair
Angelica Castro (Staff) CAUSE Advisor/CBL Assistant Coordinator
Rene Davis (Administrator) Dean of Students
Iyko Day (Faculty) Assistant Professor of English
Erica DeBlase (Staff) Counseling Service Clinician
Latrina Denson (Administrator) Assistant Dean of Students
Karen Fernandez’17 (Student) Class of 2017
Lori Hendricks (Faculty) Director of Athletics and Chair of Physical Education and Athletics, Co-Chair for spring 2014
Mary Renda (Faculty) Associate Professor of History, Co-Chair for fall 2013; on-leave for spring 2014
Suparna Roychoudhury (Faculty) Assistant Professor of English
Kate Singer (Faculty) Assistant Professor of English, on-leave for fall 2013
Stephanie Smith'15 (Student) Class of 2015

Meeting Schedule

In the 2013-2014 Academic Year, the MCCL Committee met approximately every other Monday afternoon to discuss developments on and around campus pertaining to diversity and inclusiveness within and beyond the MHC community.

Accomplishments

Campus Climate Inventory Report

In 2012-2013, the MCCL Committee conducted 16 focus groups with members of the faculty and staff regarding their experiences with diversity and inclusion at Mount Holyoke. The goal of these focus groups was to gather data to support the work of the Presidential Commission on Diversity and Inclusion.

In fall 2013, the MCCL Committee analyzed the focus group data and prepared a Campus Climate Inventory Report summarizing the research findings. The report was first shared with Dean Cerri Banks and President Lynn Pasquerella in fall 2013. Dean Banks requested changes to the formatting of the report. After the Committee completed these revisions an updated report was shared with Dean Cerri Banks and Dean Sonya Stephens, as Co-Chairs of the Presidential Commission on Diversity and Inclusion, as well as President Lynn Pasquerella, members of the senior staff, the director of human resources, and the ombudsperson in spring 2014. In April 2014, the report was shared with the Mount Holyoke community.

Multicultural Perspective Requirement

In spring 2014, Mount Holyoke’s faculty voted to change the College’s academic requirements for the A.B. degree. Prior to this vote, there was a proposal to remove the Multicultural Perspective requirement. Since members of the MCCL Committee strongly believe this requirement is an essential component of the College’s curriculum, the Committee drafted an argument in favor of the requirement which was shared with the faculty. Mary Renda, fall 2013 MCCL Co-Chair, also spent considerable time speaking with individual faculty members about the importance of the requirement. Ultimately, the faculty voted to keep the Multicultural Perspective requirement.

Inclusiveness Initiatives Fund (IIF)

The MCCL is responsible for reviewing proposals and granting funding for the Inclusiveness Initiatives Fund (IIF) which provides financial support for projects surrounding diversity and inclusion on and off the campus. Three members of the MCCL Committee formed the IIF Subcommittee. Erica DeBlase served as Chair of the Subcommittee and Iyko Day and Angelica Castro served as additional members.
In fall 2013, the MCCL Committee decided to revise the IIF application process. In an ongoing effort to be more equitable to applicants and better meet the needs of the community, the MCCL Committee increased the number of application deadlines for proposals from once a semester to twice a semester. The first deadline in a semester will be reserved for projects occurring that same semester or the following semester (September and February deadlines). The second deadline in a semester will be reserved for projects scheduled for the following semester only (November and April deadlines). The Committee will no longer accept applications on a rolling basis.

The IIF Subcommittee awarded 12 grants totaling $10,297.75. The following table illustrates the applications and the dollar amount awarded for each application.

Counseling Service 11/6/2013: 1,100 Lights 1,100 Lives, $350
La Unidad 11/22/2013: 4 Hours 4 Wellness 4 Everybody, $500
La Mecha 11/22/2013: Testimonios Conference, $500
Asian Studies Program 2/11/2014: Indian Music Concert, $500
MHC Entrepreneurship Club 2/20/2014: TED Talk: Women Influencing Change Through Diversity, $1,532
Office of Religious and Spiritual Life 2/21/2014: We Have Faith, $500
5-College APA Studies Certificate Program 2/26/2014: 5-College APA Symposium, $1,500
Department of Music and Theatre 2/28/2014: Nigerian Folk Opera, $1,500
Dean of Students 2/28/2014: Real Talk: Intra/Intergroup Dialogue, $960
MHACASA, Dean of Students 2/28/2014: Annual Women of Color Conference, $1,264
CAUSE 2/28/2014: Claiming Our Voice, $750
Weissman Center for Leadership CBL 2/28/2014: STEM Mentor Program, $441.75

Total: $10,297.75

Plans for 2014-2015 Academic Year

The MCCL Committee looks forward to continuing the work with and among faculty, staff, and students to help foster a community that strives for inclusive excellence in all facets of our campus life. The MCCL Committee aims to work on implementing strategies that will help to further improve diversity and inclusion on campus. The Committee’s plans for 2014-2015 include the following goals:

Evaluate the MCCL’s responsibilities and authorities as described in faculty legislation to think about our role in responding to community concerns. Propose revisions to the faculty legislation that better align with the Committee’s work.
Assess the current use of the IIF. Determine if there are more intentional ways the funding may be allocated to respond to research findings from the Campus Climate Inventory Report. Create funding priorities around a theme pertaining to diversity on campus.

Respectfully submitted,
Lori Hendricks, Co-Chair
Katrina Borowiec, Co-Chair

2012–2013


May 2013 Report

Committee Members 2012–2013

Cerri Banks (Dean of the College)
Katrina Borowiec (Assistant Director, Institutional Research)
Lauren Cook (Associate Dean, Admission)
Rene Davis (Dean of Students)
Erica DeBlase (Counseling Service Clinician)
Lori Hendricks (Lecturer of Physical Education and Athletics)
Khadija Hudson'13 (Student)
Mark Lauer (Senior Lecturer in German Studies, Co-Chair)
Gladys Moore (Director of Diversity and Inclusion, Co-Chair)
Mary Renda (Associate Professor of History)
Raquel Silva'14 (Student)
Kate Singer (Assistant Professor of English, on sabbatical leave in 2012/13)
Stephanie Smith'15 (Student); Wesley Yu (Assistant Professor of English)

Meeting schedule

In the Fall semester of 2012, the MCCL Committee met approx. every other Monday to discuss developments on and around campus pertaining to diversity and inclusiveness within and beyond the MHC community.

Tasks 2012–2013

The MCCL committee reviewed approaches to conduct a campus climate inventory surrounding the topics of diversity and inclusion within the MHC community. The goal of the inventory is to support the work of the Presidential Commission on Diversity and Inclusion at Mount Holyoke and to both celebrate and support all of the good work around diversity and inclusion already happening on campus aiming to move toward a more systematic and institutional approach to this work.

In order for the committee to gain a broad and at the same time deep understanding of the campus climate, the committee members decided on a question-set of four questions (Appendix A) addressed in sixteen (16) meetings with different focus groups across campus throughout the spring (Appendix B).

The remarks collected in each focus group meeting will be anonymous, but not confidential. The committee will compile the results from across the meetings and present the findings in the aggregate to the President’s Commission. The committee expects to submit its report in June of 2013.

Inclusiveness initiatives Fund

The MCCL committee reviewed sixteen (16) Inclusiveness Initiative Applications in 2012/13 with different people/entities applying for funding through the Inclusiveness Initiatives Fund (IIF). The fund provides financial support for projects surrounding
diversity and inclusion on and off the campus. The following illustrates the applications and the sum awarded to each application.

Luo 9/3/12: Multicultural Quiltmaking, Requested: $2,500.00, Awarded: $0
Omojola 9/20/12: West African Highlife Band, Requested: $4,000.00, Awarded: $2,000.00
Holmstrom 10/28/12: Alliance for the Respect of EveryBody, Requested: $3,000.00, Awarded: $0.00
Maitre 10/28/12: Diversity Days, Requested: $2,000.00, Awarded: $800.00
Morgan 10/29/12, Women's Wellness & Focus on Maternity Care, Requested: $1,400.00, Awarded: $0.00
Jacobus 10/30/12: Robyn Ochs: Bisexuality 101, Requested: $1,000.00, Awarded: $900.00
Wang 11/5/12: Avant Garde Chinese Arts, Requested: $3,000.00, Awarded: $2,300.00
Wurms 11/20/12: Holocaust History for the Next Generation, Requested: $960.00, Awarded: $950.00
Sharma 12/29/12: Himalayan Connections. Requested: $500.00, Awarded: $500.00
DeBlase 1/8/13: Jeffersons Children, Requested: $3,500.00, Awarded: $3,500.00
Mindieta 1/12/13: Child Slavery in the United States, Requested: $1,252.85, Awarded: $1,097.85
Morris 1/31/13: Undocumented, Requested: $1,500.00, Awarded: $1,500.00
Lauer 2/20/13: German Theater Festival, Requested: $524.00, Awarded: $524.00
McRay 3/18/13: StacyAnn Chin & Transgressive Identity, Requested: $500.00, Awarded: $500.00
Shankar 4/4/13: Rang De Basanti, Requested: Requested: $559.59, Awarded: $0.00
Priest 4/5/13: LGBT Sports Summit, Requested: Requested: $1,090.00, Awarded: $1,090.00

Total Requested: $27,286.44
Total Awarded: $15,661.85

Plans for 2013-2014

The MCCL Committee looks forward to continuing the work with and among faculty, staff and students to help foster a community that strives for inclusive excellence in all facets of our campus life. The committee expects to continue with the campus climate inventory. Together with the Presidential Commission on Diversity and Inclusion, the MCCL Committee aims to work on implementing strategies that will help to further improve diversity and inclusion on campus.

Respectfully submitted,
Mark Lauer, 4/25/2013
Co-Chair, MCCL
mlauer@mtholyoke.edu

Appendix A

Questions addressed in focus meetings

How do you feel supported or not supported at MHC? How does that work for you in relation to, for example, racism, gender, class, age, ability, and religion?
How have you addressed issues related to diversity and inclusion when working with students? With faculty and staff?
What do we say we are doing in relation to diversity and inclusion? What are we actually doing?
What has captured your attention in relation to diversity and inclusion? What do you think MCCL needs to know?

Appendix B

Spring 2013 Campus Climate Inventory MCCL Committee Focus Group Meetings:

February 11: Meeting with Admissions/Frances Perkins/Student Financial Services Offices
February 25: Meeting with New Tenure Track Faculty and Senior Lecturer Track Faculty.
February 28: Meeting with the Dean of Students Division
March 6: Meeting with Operational Policy Council (OPC)
March 11: Faculty Forum I
March 12: Faculty Forum II
March 12: Meeting with Facilities Management
March 20: Meeting with Campus Police
April 2: Ability/Disability focus group meeting
April 4: Meeting with people born or raised outside the U.S.
April 8: Meeting with People of the Global Majority (People of Color)
April 9: Meeting with Staff Council
April 9: Meeting with people born or raised working class or who currently identify as working class.
April 11: Meeting with senior staff
April 16: Meeting with people who identify as LGBTQ
April 18: Open forum

2011–2012


Current Committee Members

Students: Hilary Pollan ('12)

Staff: Catarina Cost-Wofford (Associate Dean, Admissions); Winnie Rivera-Vallejo (Sr. Administrative Assistant, Dean of the College's Office); Katrina Borowiec (Assistant Director, Institutional Research)

Faculty: Mark Lauer, Co-Chair (German Studies); Kate Singer (English); Kanae Haneishi (Physical Education and Athletics); Lori Hendricks (Lecturer of Physical Education and Athletics)

Administrators: Rene Davis (Dean of Students); Cerri Banks (Dean of the College and Vice President for Student Affairs); Gladys Moore, Co-Chair (Dean of Religious and Spiritual Life & Director of Diversity and Inclusion)

Mission, Tasks, and Responsibilities

Responsibilities and Authority

This Committee shall determine its agenda by choosing among issues brought to it by students, faculty, and staff.
Advise the Dean of the College on activities and policies fostering an inclusive community that respects group and individual differences, and that serves the intellectual, educational, and social needs of its members.
Advise and oversee committees addressing all aspects of College life under the jurisdiction of the Dean of the College, including those that relate to the development of a more culturally diverse community life, and/or involving issues of student co-curricular and residential life.
Review, monitor, and propose College policies to assure that all practices at Mount Holyoke are unbiased and to provide ongoing anti-bias education throughout the institution.
Create permanent subcommittees, and temporary task forces and ad hoc committees when needed, and appoint Faculty, when needed, to serve as members or chairs of such entities.
Receive, review, and act on reports from all subcommittees, ad hoc committees, and task forces under its jurisdiction.
Maintain a list of current subcommittees, task forces, and ad hoc committees under its jurisdiction, and publish that list for the College community.
Meet regularly with the Trustee Committee on Student Affairs.
Solicit from the College community suggestions and concerns relevant to the Committee's charge.

Operations

The Committee shall meet regularly throughout the academic year; set up subcommittees, ad hoc committees, and task forces as appropriate; and act on reports and recommendations from all entities under its jurisdiction. One of these entities shall be a subcommittee on the inclusiveness program.

Meetings Schedule in 2011/2012

Throughout the academic year 2011/2012, the MCCL met approx. every second Tuesday to discuss developments on and around campus pertaining to our tasks as listed above.

Climate issues that fueled our discussions in our bi-weekly meetings were topics surrounding disability, international students, and student stress. We also discussed the Committee’s role in benchmarking and the assessment of the climate issues. Collecting and discussing information, feedback, and thoughts on these topics will also be part of our discussions next year.

As part of our meetings, we arranged for guest-visits from different entities on campus to raise questions and receive input on developments surrounding topics such as diversity and interactions of community members on campus. We received important feedback from Donna Van Handle (Senior Lecturer German and Dean of International Students) and Carol Stewart (Ombudsperson at MHC).

Event Organized by MCCL

In April 2012, the MCCL organized a film showing of The Grace Lee Project, a film directed by Grace Lee on questions of identity and stereotypes. As part of the showing, committee members developed a set of questions on issues of identity and community that were circulated among students subsequent to the film showing for further discussion. Even though only a small number of students attended (approx. 10 students in addition to the committee members), we felt that the discussion was fruitful and engaging.

Inclusiveness Initiatives Fund

Again, we spent a good deal of our time administering the Inclusiveness Initiatives Fund (IIF), which provides monies for projects that support diversity and dialogue about inclusiveness on and off the campus. As of 4/25/2012, the committee supported the following events (additional proposals will be reviewed on 5/3/2012):

APPLICANT	PROPOSAL DESCRIPTION	AWARD
Ying Wang	Classical Chinese (YUE) Opera Performance	$800
Faith Conant	Ethnomusicology/Nani Agbeli Residency (Amherst)	$425
Hilary Pollan '12 R. Minana	Classrooms Communities Panel Series	$1080
Kanae Haneishi	Culture Shock in Athletics DVD	$1200
Lena Zuckerwise	The Intersections of Class, Race and Gender	$1500
Layli Amerson '13	Interfaith Leadership Institute (Reg fees & travel to)	$2000
Hailey Streibich '12	Lyon Bowl Flag Football Tournament	$450
Daryl Beres	Cultural Detective Workshop	$600
Tyrra Minto '12	Hope for Haiti Discussion Night	$200
Alexis Myers' 14	No Means No Talk	$1700
Total IIF Funds Awarded		$9955

Plans for 2011-2012

MCCL will continue to encourage, seed, and support initiatives that recognize both the particularity and complexity of identity. Our thematic focus of next year will be to address “Cultures of Stress.” We will encourage members of our community to share their thoughts on ways to alleviate stress on campus and the ways in which various cultures or groups respond to or understand pressures placed on students, faculty, and staff. IIF proposal surrounding this topic are highly encouraged, but potential funding will not be limited to proposals surrounding such questions.

The MCCL Committee looks forward to continuing our work with and among faculty, staff, and students to help foster a community that strives for inclusive excellence in all facets of our campus life.

Respectfully submitted,

Mark Lauer
Co-Chair, MCCL
mlauer@mtholyoke.edu

2010–2011


Committee Membership

Students: Kana Ariyoshi (’13); Chi Chen, Spring 10 (’13); Hilary Pollan, Spring 11 (’12)
Staff: Catarina Costa-Wofford (Admissions); Winnie Rivera-Vallejo (Sr. Administrative Assistant, Dean of College's Office)
Faculty: Roger Babb, Co-Chair (Theatre); Renae Brodie (Biology); Mark Lauer (German); Sarah Oelker (Science Librarian)
Administrators: Rene Davis (Dean of Students); Penny Gill (Dean of the College); Gladys Moore, Co-Chair (Dean of Religious and Spiritual Life & Director of Diversity and Inclusion)

What We Are

A group of faculty, students, staff and administrators who report to the Dean of the College on issues of diversity, inclusion and the climate of campus life.

What We Do

We meet every two weeks for two hours.

We arrange to have people speak to us from multiple perspectives about what’s going on on campus. For example, among others, we spoke with Donna Van Handle about the needs and concerns of international students. We invited Carol Stewart, Ombudsperson to speak about trends and areas of interest to MCCL. We met with President Pasquerella to discuss our work and how we might be helpful to her.

This year we focused on a number of areas.

I. Disabilities and Ableism

We sponsored speakers and workshops to help educate the campus about disabilities (and non-apparent disabilities). We have been talking with Elizabeth Hogan and Disability Services about creating campus wide awareness of these issues. We supported students who seek to include disabilities and ableism under the diversity umbrella as issues of both access and social justice. We invited Emma Fialka-Feldman, a graduating senior who is very active with these issues, to speak about student organizing around these topics.

II. Assessment

We feel the need for a campus-wide assessment of the current climate related to diversity.

The Student Conference Committee survey data on students’ perceptions of inclusive campus climate related to racial and ethnic identity, political affiliation and socio-economic status has been useful as have been Orientation and pre-Orientation surveys. Members of the committee have met with Allison Donta-Venman from Institutional Research to examine data and try to determine trends over time. One helpful suggestion has been to have individual departments access data and generate their own questions, such as the racial composition of Senior Majors etc. MCCL would like to encourage this type of self evaluation within departments and help distribute the information gathered. We also encourage the discussion of issues of diversity and inclusion at department meetings and are working on ways in which to support such activities.

III. Inclusiveness Initiative Fund

We spend a good deal of our time administering IIF which provides monies for projects that support diversity and dialogue about inclusiveness on and off the campus.

Sustainable Agriculture and Social Justice
Samira Sayeh Lecture: "Islam, Tradition and the Republic Lifting the Veil on a Political Controversy"
A Night of Bulgarian Music
Living in Marked Bodies": Eli Clare (Living with Disabilities)
UMMA Eid a-Adha Celebration
Aya Ogawa, Japanese Playwright: Artist's Talk and 3 Day Writing Residency
Thomas Bradshaw, African American Playwright: Reading/Talk Workshop and Concert of Syriac Liturgical Msuic from theMiddle East
Asian Refugee Week
Live Feed From the Black Unconscious at Mount Holyoke College
Black Solidarity Conference at Yale
The Art of Building Inclusive Community
Dining Services Appreciation Week

One of the benefits of being on this committee is that it puts members in touch with staff, students, faculty and administrators every other week to discuss the progress we are making in becoming a more diverse and inclusive community as well as discussing the challenges and opportunities for doing so.. We respond to events and contingencies but we also initiate projects and possible solutions. Committee members develop projects within their own departments and workplaces that have been sparked in part by visiting speakers or discussion within the committee. MCCL wants to disseminate techniques and methodologies that are successful and useful in encouraging and supporting inclusiveness.

Plans for 2011-2012

MCCL often reflects on ways to do our work more efficiently and effectively. We will continue to encourage, seed and support initiatives that recognize both the particularity and complexity of identity. However, we have also noted the need for more collaboration between various campus constituencies in order to build capacity for diversity-related work. Thus, one of our goals is to fund through IIF a facilitator who will work with student cultural organizations to assist them in working cooperatively. In addition the committee will further its work with the Director of Diversity and Inclusion in developing specific and measurable campus-wide diversity objectives to enhance the college’s strategic plan. As we seek to develop a campus climate that is welcoming and inclusive, we will intentionally seek to promote ways of becoming a more family-friendly campus. The MCCL Committee looks forward to continuing our work with and among faculty, staff and students to help foster a community that strives for inclusive excellence in all facets of our campus life.

Respectfully submitted,

Roger Babb
Co-Chair, MCCL

2009–2010


Committe Membership

Students: Kana Ariyoshi ('13); Martina Pittius ('11); Zilin Cui, Fall 2009 ('11); Chi Chen, Spring 2010 ('13)
Staff: Kris Bergbom (Student Affairs), Winnie Rivera Vallejo (Sr. Administrative Assistant, Dean of College's Office), Catarina Costa-Wofford (Admissions); Elizabeth Cahn (Public Safety)
Faculty: Lenore Reilly Carlisle, Co-Chair; Sarah Oelker; Roger Babb; Renae Brodie (on leave)
Administrators: Penny Gill (Dean of the College); Elizabeth Braun (Associate Dean of the College/Dean of Students); Gladys Moore, Co-Chair (Dean of Religious and Spiritual Life & Director of Diversity and Inclusion)

Committee Charge

The responsibilities and authority of this committee, as set out in Faculty Legislation, include: a) addressing issues chosen by the committee from among those brought to it by students, faculty and staff; b) advising the Dean of the College on activities and policies fostering an inclusive community that respects group and individual differences, and that serves the intellectual, educational and social needs of its members; c) advising and overseeing committees addressing all aspects of College life under the jurisdiction of the Dean of the College; d) reviewing, monitoring and proposing College policies to ensure that all practices at Mount Holyoke are unbiased and to provide ongoing anti-bias education throughout the institution. Faculty legislation further stipulates that the MCCL Committee (MCCLC) shall create, maintain, and work with permanent subcommittees, task forces, and ad hoc committees such as are necessary to carry out its work; that it shall meet regularly with the Trustee Committee on Student Affairs; and that it shall solicit from the College community suggestions and concerns relevant to the Committee’s charge.

Committe Activities 2009-2010

For most of the academic year, we have had a full slate of faculty, staff and students on our committee and have met regularly every other week. Our work has focused on systematically gathering feedback and data from diverse constituents on campus; seeking support for planning and implementing programs and events to address needs identified during the feedback/data collection cycle; and supporting initiatives and programming developed by students staff and faculty through the Inclusiveness Initiative Funding.

I. Gathering Data

In accordance with its legislated responsibilities, MCCL routinely gathers input from various constituencies on campus regarding how each experiences our campus climate. Our website feedback form remains open to all in the community and provides the Committee with on-going input. Over the course of the year we met with the following groups and individuals:

Tanya Williams, Associate Dean of Students for Diversity and Inclusion, reporting on pre-orientation activities, Passages, changes in policies regarding Cultural houses, and updating the committee on preparations for the first contingent of Posse students arriving in the fall of 2010.
Carol Stewart, Ombudsperson, reporting on college use of the Ombudsperson’s office and noting specific trends/data of interest to MCCL.
Elisabeth Hogan, Associate Dean of Students/Disability Services, reporting on issues related to students with disabilities.
Representatives from Class Action, reporting on ongoing faculty/staff workshops.
Laura Greenfield, reporting on the work of the SAW center and supporting the needs of all students, including English Language Learners
Jesse Lytle, updating the committee on the Presidential Transition and helping MCCL consider how best to share its priorities and the focus of its work with the new administration
Becky Packard, reporting on the workshops she and Sarah Bacon have been organizing and facilitating regarding faculty pedagogy, advising and related issues
Members of the Student Conference Committee, reporting on survey data highlighting students’ perceptions of inclusive campus climate with regard to racial and ethnic identity, political affiliation and socio-economic status. (Please note key findings: 40% of students surveyed disagreed or disagreed strongly that students of all political backgrounds feel welcome on campus; ableism and classism comments were on the rise; and only 22% of students felt that students of all economic backgrounds fell welcome on campus).
Additionally, important outreach/action-oriented and collaborative work was accomplished through the vetting, funding and advising support offered to those submitting Inclusiveness Initiative Fund (IIF) Proposals.

II. Addressing Identified Needs

Based on feedback that came to the committee last year and this year, we laid the groundwork for and made progress in three key areas: 1) the need for a campus-wide assessment of the climate related to diversity; 2) the need to sustain challenging dialogues around issues of race, class, gender, and other diversity issues among all segments of the campus and to develop structures and procedures for conducting such dialogues; and 3) the need for ongoing faculty professional development.

MCCL also discussed several topics related to the Department of Public Safety during the year, including the 2009 Report of the President’s Review Panel. A number of suggestions were put forward as to how MCCL could assist in developing and supporting a more robust, continuous, and positive relationship between Public Safety and all aspects of the MHC community, including the following:

Increased education and outreach to the campus community by Public Safety
Use of intergroup dialogue to foster cross-group discussions about safety, enforcement, community norms, and profiling. Public Safety has several IGD facilitators on staff and is already using IGD methods for internal training on diversity.
Creation of a standing campus committee or MCCL subcommittee to address public safety issues on a regular basis, not just when there is a complaint.
Establishment of a regular campus-wide forum on diversity issues that would not focus on public safety, but would be available should public safety issues be raised.

III. Supporting Diversity Initiatives Through the Inclusiveness Initiatives Fund (IIF)

MCCLC continues to support initiatives that both recognize the complexities of identity and create opportunities for continuous dialogue in order to create and sustain a diverse educational community.

Initiatives MCCLC has encouraged or partially funded include: the Taboo series; Intergroup Dialogue; expanded pre-orientation offerings; the Race/Class Intersections seminars offered by Class Action; Community Conversations; disability awareness and advocacy speaker; as well as numerous other projects, programs and events.(A full list of projects supported by the Inclusiveness Initiative Fun is available on the MCCL webpage.)

Plans for 2010-2011

The MCCLC spent time this spring reviewing its original charge from faculty legislation, as well as its responsibilities summarized in the document prepared by the President’s Commission on Diversity and Inclusion (2005) and the final report of the President’s Review Panel on the Incident of December 1, 2009. Together, these three documents outline an enormous breadth of responsibility for both assessing and improving the well-being of the college community, the quality of the functioning of many offices and programs, and the college’s progress at meeting its goals of being an inclusive and challenging college community.

We have decided this would be an appropriate moment to pause and consider how best to focus our work, re-examine what our membership should be, and determine how we might assist others to set goals and evaluate their progress towards those goals of becoming a fully inclusive community. We would like to assist the college, in its next iteration of a plan, to articulate both an institutional vision of a fully inclusive community and specific goals for various parts of the college. MCCLC would like to create periodic opportunities for assessment, and to improve communication and dialogue across our many differences.

We also note that the DCC report of 2005 is now five years old. In the near future, the college will need to analyze outcomes for its Fifth Year NEASC assessment. While we recognize fully that not all goals set forth in the DCC report have been met, progress has been made and continues to be made in several areas. Regular assessment of climate issues should be part of our cycle of continuous improvement. Progress made should be documented and celebrated, possible regressions must be identified, new areas of focus should likewise be identified, and our collective work toward becoming a fully inclusive campus should continue. We hope a campus-wide assessment will help us develop an updated diversity action plan and likewise provide the college with diversity-related outcomes data for its NEASC mid-cycle report.

We continue to field persistent and recurring requests from faculty and students to explore how the college can ensure that there is adequate opportunity for professional development of all faculty regarding teaching, learning and advising on our diverse campus. We applaud the work of professors Packard and Bacon in providing a comfortable and informal context in which faculty can engage in stimulating discussions about diversity, pedagogy, and advising. While these and other successful initiatives targeting small segments of the teaching faculty are powerful beginnings, many have suggested the need for a more comprehensive and far reaching faculty development initiative in this area. Sharing effective practices currently being implemented, exploring new pedagogical approaches, and entertaining conversations about how to institutionalize faculty development efforts in this area should be a continuing priority of the MCCLC and the college.

A Call for Involvement and Action

We have much to learn from our students: the student survey developed and administered by the SCC stands as a stellar example of how diversity climate data can be gathered, analyzed and reported efficiently. The MCCLC relies on the involvement of all segments of the campus working to foster an inclusive community that respects group and individual differences, and that serves the intellectual, educational and social needs of its members. We urge departments, in keeping with recommendations of the DCC report, to consider departmental “check-ins” linked to embedded diversity goals within their departmental reports. We continue to seek the support of the entire Mount Holyoke Community in advancing this work, whether through proposals to the Inclusiveness Initiative Fund, bringing pressing issues and difficulties to our attention, or participating in future conversations, initiatives and campus climate assessment work. Our committee looks forward to working with the campus to identify viable approaches and processes amenable to administration, faculty, staff and students.

Respectively submitted,

Lenore Reilly Carlisle
Co-Chair, MCCL

2008–2009


Committee Membership

Students: Judith Frank, ‘10; Zilin Cui,‘10
Staff: Kris Bergbom (Student Affairs), Winnie RiveraVallejo (Sr. Administrative Assistant, President’s Office)Spring ‘09, Catarina Costa-Wofford (Admissions) Rebecca Hernandez, (Student Financial Services) Fall ‘08; Elizabeth Kahn (Public Safety) Spring ‘09
Faculty: Lenore Reilly Carlisle, Co-Chair; Sarah Oelker; Renae Brodie, Fall, ‘08; Roger Babb
Administrators: Penny Gill (Dean of the College), Elizabeth Braun (Associate Dean of the College/Students),Gladys Moore, Co-Chair (Dean of Religious and Spiritual Life & Director of Diversity and Inclusion)

Committee Charge

Committee Activities

For most of the academic year, we have had a full slate of faculty, staff and students on our committee and have met regularly every other week. The committee continues to focus its efforts on addressing and monitoring progress on the 2005 recommendations of the Presidential Commission on Diverse Community as well responding to emerging issues and needs on our increasingly diverse campus. To that end, our work has been focused in three areas: illuminating complexities; gathering data; and devising and supporting opportunities for intellectual engagement, community conversations and action.

I. Illuminating Complexities

The MCCLC is invested in deepening campus-wide understandings of the complexities inherent in the work of creating and sustaining a diverse educational community. As the world and Mount Holyoke become increasingly more diverse, so too do the issues and ambiguities we face. Indeed, a generative question for our work this year has been, “How, when and by whom are people on our campus categorized?”

Simple identity descriptions no longer hold sway. For instance, the term “ALANA” does not adequately portray the multiple identities of our students of color in the 21st century. International students in a “racialized” United States context struggle to understand themselves and how they fit into our campus community. Religious and cultural identity markers are more fluid than ever. Thus, MCCL has supported initiatives that both recognize the complexities of identity and create opportunities for continuous dialogue.

Some of the initiatives MCCLC has encouraged or partially funded include: the Taboo series; Intergroup Dialogue; the expanded pre-orientation offering; the Race/Class Intersections seminar by Class Action; Community Conversations; Let's Talk About It; and various one-time offerings supported through our Inclusiveness Initiatives grants. (A full list of projects supported by the Inclusiveness Initiative Fun is available on the MCCL webpage.)

As we look to the future we are committed to soliciting and developing more opportunities for campus-wide assessment of our climate of diversity; to engaging the multiple and fluid identities that our students, staff and faculty bring to their respective work; and to creating proactive institutional processes for dealing with controversial issues

II. Gathering Data

The MCCLC, in accordance with its legislated responsibilities, routinely gathers input from various constituencies on campus regarding how each experiences our campus climate Our website feedback form remains open to all in the community and provides the Committee with on-going input.

Additional efforts to gather data included the following:

Dean of International Students, Donna Van Handle and our Coordinator of Multicultural Affairs, Tanya Williams were invited to be regular contributors to our committee process.
MCCL co-chair and Director of Diversity, Gladys Moore, conducted 9 department visits as part of her ongoing effort to collect information that informs the work of her office and the MCCLC as it pertains to the interrelated agendas of more fully realizing an inclusive community.
Important outreach/action oriented and collaborative work was accomplished through the vetting, funding and advising support offered to those submitting Inclusiveness Initiative Fund (IIF) Proposals.
Representative committee members attended all campus forums which was an essential component of participation and information gathering.
Meeting with students and faculty from the Athletics Department broadened our understanding of campus climate issues unique to that arena of campus and to established connections with students from SAAC whose diversity and inclusion work is gaining national recognition.
Round table conversations during with new and visiting faculty members were held during which they shared, as frankly as possible, their experiences at MHC. Their observations and suggestions focused on the entry process, first impressions about our campus climate, pedagogical successes and failures, and suggestions from other campuses. These conversations yielded useful suggestions and information, (see appendix A) much of which will contribute to addressing future MCCLC priorities.
MCCL invited Craig Woodard, Associate Dean of Faculty for Science, and Lois Brown, Director of the Weissman Canter, to participate in a roundtable conversation and to share extensive updates from their offices. The ongoing nature of their respective programs in support of student achievement is widely known and therefore not described here, but was nonetheless an important addition to our record of ongoing diversity and inclusiveness initiatives. Notably both agreed that faculty need more pedagogical support, and that the campus has yet to properly locate and sustain programs that will address this essential need.

Recommendations based on these data gathering efforts include:

Encouraging and supporting the institution of improvements to Faculty Orientation and Pedagogical Training by the Dean of Faculty.
Encouraging Staff Council and department heads to expand upon and develop new orientation and professional development programs aimed at increasing cultural competencies and lived/realized experiences of inclusion for all staff members in our community.
Continuing informal cross-campus collection of feedback (via forums, invitations to meet, tabling, web data, sub-committee work) on “campus climate” and investigating formal assessment and tracking tools for a comprehensive 2010 progress report.

III. Intellectual Engagement, Community Conversations and Action

The issue of how best to engage in conversations about difficult topics was a recurring theme for MCCL this year. As a committee, we discussed the need for the campus to consider how such conversations should be approached not only in the midst of crisis (as was the case when discussions of the event that brought author Norman Finkelstein and Smith College professor Donna Divine to campus occurred) but as a part of an ongoing component of our work. Questions about who decides who is an appropriate speaker to invite to campus, how disputes should be handled and by whom when disputes arise, how we understand free speech and academic freedom on a diverse campus, and whether or not we want to consider adopting principles of discourse to structure difficult dialogues, are all elements of this work that warrant further exploration. The DCC report clearly referenced the need to establish institutionally supported structures, protocols and practices to avoid the persistent cycle of flare-ups and lulls of frustration and discontent on campus; hence MCCL hopes to facilitate an inclusive process to address what clearly remains a pressing need.

Numerous forums for community conversation regarding issues of diversity were supported by MCCL this year, while the campus in general worked to ensure that essential dialogues about these vital issues occurred. MCCL supported community breakfasts and open forums as well as focused conversations following a serious racial incident on campus. As noted in Section I of this report, the campus sponsored many events designed to foster both conversation and action, including the Taboo series, Class Action workshops, Intergroup Dialogues, and Faculty and Staff of Color Dialogues, among others.

Finally, MCCL reports that Multicultural Perspectives Requirement amendments crafted in collaboration with the APC last year were approved by the faculty at the October 29, 2008 meeting (attached to this report as Appendix B).

Plans for 2009-2010

Committee discussions have led to the identification of three primary areas of focus for the next academic year. First among these is the need to move ahead with our commitment to implement a campus wide climate assessment. We realize that any such assessment will require broad buy-in across a wide range of constituencies: therefore it will be important to identify viable approaches and processes amenable to administration, faculty, staff and students. While we launched this task in 2008-2009 and have already had several conversations with both campus and outside consultants about how to proceed, other pressing issues took precedence. We have established this as a firm priority for the coming academic year

Second, we became keenly aware of how important it is for a diverse community to have discussions regarding processes and principles of discourse when controversial/difficult topics emerge. To date we have looked at documents from two other campuses that address this issue. We plan to engage the campus community to develop a locally nuanced document that will help guide the entire community in the future. In this way, we hope to institutionalize pro-active practices that will ensure respectful, rigorous and inclusive dialogues. Connected to this is the need to more systematically explore our individual and collective understandings of free speech on our diverse campus.

Third, we have fielded persistent and recurring requests from faculty and students to explore how the college can ensure that there is adequate opportunity for professional development of all faculty regarding teaching, learning and advising on our diverse campus. While there have been numerous successful initiatives targeting small segments of the teaching faculty, many have suggested the need for a more comprehensive and far reaching faculty development initiative in this area. Sharing effective practices currently being implemented, exploring new pedagogical approaches, and entertaining conversations about how to institutionalize faculty development efforts in this area will be an important aspect of our work.

A Call for Involvement and Action

MCCLC relies on the involvement of all segments of the campus working to foster an inclusive community that respects group and individual differences, and that serves the intellectual, educational and social needs of its members. We seek the support of the entire Mount Holyoke Community in advancing this work, whether through proposals to the Inclusiveness Initiative Fund, bringing pressing issues and difficulties to our attention, or participating in future conversations, initiatives and campus climate assessment work.

Respectfully submitted,
Lenore Reilly Carlisle
Co-Chair, MCCL

Appendix A

The following list reflects issues, concerns and suggestions shared with MCCL at its April 7, 2009 meeting with new and visiting faculty. It reflects a shared a desire for improved orientation to campus and sustained opportunities in the following arenas

Social and pedagogical mentoring relationships with established faculty from other departments (maybe from other consortium colleges)
Physical campus spaces and local environs
Social networking to supplement professional networking
Sustainable program for pedagogical training & development, including topics such as: “tricks of the trade”, student advising, understanding stereo type threat, cultural competencies on classroom topics relating to race, class, gender, religion, political affiliations, etc., conversations about the changing patterns of student accountability, tools for helping students learn to disagree without rancor in the classroom, better understanding of the networks of support available to students.
Faculty with alumni experience shared the ways in which they see the persistence of tensions around diversity and inclusion spanning time (particularly regarding racial/ethnic differences) to be both disheartening and hopeful - noting that they have witnessed an increase in dialog and inclusiveness actions and a deepening of the conversation into more complex and intersecting layers of understanding.
Desire for interdepartmental conversations with new and experienced faculty to take up the topic of what it means to teach a truly diverse group of learners and what impact our community’s expanding diversity & globalization has on pedagogy. Incorporate pedagogical strategies for teaching about the obstructions that white privilege can pose to an environment of excellence in learning for all.
Some academic departments (Anthropology, Psychology, Athletics, and Theater) reported ongoing faculty discussions on pedagogical strategies, diversity and inclusion topics, and sharing of “classroom case studies”.
Some with experience on other campuses were impressed by the cross-campus expectation of a commitment to diversity and inclusiveness work, even – and in particular – during the period of community response to the egregious harassment of a faculty member of color last fall.
Others expressed ongoing concerns that our campus is not as successful at retaining Faculty (and Staff) of color as it should be, and wanted more attention paid to climate issues contributing to this problem.
Attention to the lens of social class differences was noted as increasingly informing classroom conversations.
Initiation into teaching in on an all-women’s campus brings with it experiences that are new even to seasoned faculty from other campuses. Some would appreciate orientation/mentorship around this.

Appendix B

Multicultural Perspectives Course Requirement

Proposal for Change
Academic Priorities Committee
in consultation with
the Committee on Multicultural Community and College Life

Current Requirement:

Multicultural Perspectives requirement. One four-credit course which is devoted primarily to the study of some aspect of Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, or the non-white peoples of North America and which incorporates a diversity of perspectives. This Multicultural Perspectives Requirement course may be fulfilled at any time during a student’s college career by completion of an approved course in the department of her choice. [See Catalog for current list of courses.] With the approval of the Dean of the College, a course taken off-campus may be used to fulfill the requirement. (Legislation, p. 19)

Proposed Requirement:

In keeping with the mission of the College, Mount Holyoke’s Multicultural Perspectives Requirement encourages students to engage intellectually with the complexities of the world and its peoples.

Students must complete one 4-credit course devoted primarily to the study of some aspect of:

the peoples of Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East; or
peoples of color in Australia, Europe, or North America; or
peoples in North America whose primary language is other than English.

This course must incorporate a diversity of perspectives.

The Multicultural Perspectives Requirement may be fulfilled at any time during a student’s college career by completion of an approved course in the subject of her choice. [See Catalog for current list of courses.] With the approval of the Dean of the College, a course taken off-campus may be used to fulfill the requirement.

Rationale:

A major goal of this proposal is to eliminate the term "non-white," which characterizes people in terms of what they are not, rather than what they are. The MCCL and APC also thought it important to expand the study of peoples of color beyond the geographic boundary of North American (hence b), and to allow for the inclusion of courses on immigrant populations (hence c).

...

Appendix B. Update: As noted in the above report the Multicultural Perspectives Requirement amendments were approved by the faculty at the October 29, 2008 meeting.

2007–2008


Committee Membership

Students: Naa Abia-Ofosu-Amaah, ’10, Fall 07; Judith Frank, ’10; Patricia Egessa, ’10, Spring 08; Zilin Cui, ’10, Spring 08.
Faculty: Debbora Battaglia, Fall 07; Lenore Reilly Carlisle, Co-Chair; Sarah Oelker Elizabeth Young, Fall 07; Renee Brodie.
Staff: Kris Bergbom (Student Affairs), Rebecca Hernandez (Student Financial Services), Catarina Costa-Wofford (Admissions).
Administrators: Lee Bowie (Dean of the College), Elizabeth Braun (Associate Dean of the College/Students), Gladys Moore (Dean of Religious and Spiritual Life & Director of Diversity and Inclusion).

Committee Charge

The responsibilities and authority of this committee, as set out in Faculty Legislation, include: a) issues chosen by the committee from among those brought to it by students, faculty and staff; b) advising the Dean of the College on activities and policies fostering an inclusive community that respects group and individual differences, and that serves the intellectual, educational and social needs of its members; c) advising and overseeing committees addressing all aspects of College life under the jurisdiction of the Dean of the College; d) reviewing, monitoring and proposing College policies to ensure that all practices at Mount Holyoke are unbiased and to provide ongoing anti-bias education throughout the institution. Faculty legislation further stipulates that the MCCL shall create, maintain, and work with permanent subcommittees, task forces, and ad hoc committees such as are necessary to carry out its work; that it shall meet regularly with the Trustee Committee on Student Affairs; and that it shall solicit from the College community suggestions and concerns relevant to the Committee’s charge.

Committee Activities, 2007-2008

Our committee is functioning at full capacity. We have an enthusiastic and committed group of students who regularly attend meetings and have greatly enhanced the full committee’s understanding of issues related to diversity on campus. Likewise, we have a full slate of faculty and staff and have met regularly every other week this year.

The committee continues to focus its efforts on addressing and monitoring progress on the 2005 recommendations of the Presidential Commission on Diverse Community. To that end, our work has been focused in four major ways.

Pro-active programming: The Committee has had an active funding cycle, providing Inclusiveness Initiative Funding to some twenty-two proposals. Approximately $30,000 was awarded to fund projects and initiatives developed by students, faculty and staff. Examples include the Understanding Labels- Experiencing Diversity program for newly arrived international students; the Director of Diversity and Inclusiveness’ office organizing 30 students, staff and faculty to attend the three day White Privilege Conference in Springfield; and student initiated programming on Native Spirit and the Committee for Native American Heritage Month programs, and the work of MHC’s Students for a Free Tibet.
Linking our work with the initiatives and work of others: MCCL has played a role in helping groups who are dealing with diversity issues on campus to access resources to support collaborative dialogues and solution-oriented approaches to vexing problems. Examples include working with MHACASA to facilitate a series of dialogues with Public Safety regarding perceived issues of bias; and working with students seeking a productive venue for dialogues related to tensions among Chinese and Tibetan communities on campus. In addition, MCCL has worked closely with the APC on revising the language of the Multicultural Course requirement. We have reached tentative agreement with the APC on language revisions and expect APC to bring a document forward to the faculty at its September meeting. We have also met with individuals in key leadership positions to be updated on diversity work with regard to faculty recruitment and retention, academic support for students to address achievement and opportunity gaps, bias incident reporting and procedures, and multicultural affairs.
Responding to issues and incidents: MCCL has responded to critical incidents on campus by offering ways to continue needed dialogues and meetings among faculty, staff and students. Examples include working with Tanya Williams, Coordinator of Multicultural Affairs to help facilitate four major student dialogues last fall on issues of race and racism on campus; and assisting students from the Student Coalition on Action in planning a Spring 2008 student-led Alternative Community Breakfast Dialogue on honoring the varieties of work here at Mount Holyoke.
Building our presence: The DCC report highlights the importance of working toward an improved climate for diversity and inclusion by embedding efforts in all aspects and at all levels of college life. Recognizing its responsibility to oversee these efforts, MCCL has worked to enhance awareness of its role as a clearing house for members of the campus community needing guidance, opportunities for dialogue, and learning. We continue to work to make information easily accessible to all members of the campus community. The MCCL web-subcommittee continued the work of building the Community Updates on Diversity and Inclusiveness website. The sub committee also helped to develop, launch, and integrate with other MHC web based diversity resources, the web pages for the Office of Diversity and Inclusion.

Plans for 2008-2009

The issues identified and goals set forth in the Diversity Report are far-reaching. The report is written with the understanding that a vital campus community is not static, and that new issues will arise and require the determined efforts of the entire campus to addresses them. With this in mind, MCCL hopes to work with other campus offices to conduct a more formal assessment of the climate on campus, both as a way of understanding how the campus community views its progress in addressing long-standing issues and as a way of uncovering newly emerging challenges that will need to be examined and addressed.

A Call for Involvement and Action

The call for new annual updates from departments yielded very few this year, yet it remains a part of the MCCL agenda to find ways to maintain and increase community input to our work and our website as we move further past the initial mandate of the 2005 DCC report. We recognize that excellent work is being done in many corners of campus to answer to the initiatives of the DCC report but because it is often not shared around campus much of the work remains below radar. It is the hope of the committee to continue to assist in broadcasting news about Diversity and Inclusiveness initiatives and ongoing programs around campus. Departments are once again urged to make contributions to the site as one of the primary ways of dispersing information to our resident community and off campus web visitors.

Respectfully submitted,

Lenore Reilly Carlisle
Co-Chair, MCCL

2006–2007


Committee Membership

Debbora Battaglia
Kris Bergbom
Lee Bowie
Liz Braun
Mufaro Kanyangarara '07
Naa Abia Ofosu-Amaah '10
Sarah Oelker, Elizabeth Young
Web support: Yingting Qiang '09

This year, the committee was technically acephalous: no one person was chair, and all made contributions based on their areas of experience and/or expertise, and based on their available time, or propensity to impulse or to organization. We look forward to electing a chair when our new faculty representatives join us to fill out the committee next fall, and hardened veterans return.

The committee met once a week throughout the term.

What We Do

As many of you know, the committee (MCCL) serves two broad functions in relation to the goal of the College to establish cultural diversity as an ongoing fact of life, and as an educational resource for all.

First, we are charged with promoting and overseeing the goals of the Diverse Community Commission (DCC) and reporting our findings to the community. We also recommend corrections in course to the Dean of the College.

In addition, the committee fosters a climate of inclusiveness and orients meaningful social action in all realms of social and cultural diversity on campus, and in relations with communities beyond our gates.

This Year’s Projects

We have done a great deal this year to raise diversity awareness proactively on a community-wide scale, and to respond to community concerns.

I. Community Report on Diversity and Inclusiveness

Perhaps our most significant accomplishment this year is the creation of the Community Report on Diversity and Inclusion website. Keeping track of the progress of the DCC recommendations has been a large job for the MCCL. A multi-layered website will help the community accomplish this task and keep the DCC's goals in view. The site will highlight what has been accomplished and what remains to be done.

This was the work of members Kris Bergbom and Sarah Oelker, with web consultant Yingting Qiang '09. The site is beautifully designed, informative, interactive, and can be updated in direct response to initiatives and problems that flow from our more and more established community commitment to diversity. The site is nearly ready for launch, and will make its official debut in the fall.

II. Making Class Visible

Our focus this year was on social class, which we take to be an important diversity factor in our community relations and intellectual lives. In a move to acknowledge Mount Holyoke’s rich socioeconomic and cultural diversity, and to promote conversation and social exchange across different sites of class consciousness, we sponsored and organized a keynote project on Making Class Visible. This project included the offering of a 2-unit January Term class (Anthropology J-222 taught by Debbora Battaglia) that drew on ethnographic studies of class culture to orient students to their own class-based identity practices and socioeconomic challenges and privileges, and gave them tools to undertake videographic projects in which students interviewed faculty, staff, administrators, and other students, and created their own Mount Holyoke “home movies.” Students shot approximately 30 hours of digital footage, which became the basis of an independent group project in the spring by three students who created a 20-minutes film, “Making Class Visible: A Mount Holyoke Home Movie.”

This original film was screened in March at a community-wide forum, Making Class Visible: A Mount Holyoke Community Forum. Supported by a student-designed publicity campaign and a major website that was created and maintained by students from the J-Term class, the event filled Chapin Auditorium. Childcare was provided, to encourage attendance. In addition to the screening, the forum gave the audience an opportunity to hear and engage with a panel of staff, faculty, students, and alumnae, speaking from their experiences of and commitment to issues of social class. Questions from the audience are also collected and posted on the Making Class Visible website.

III. Inclusiveness Initiative Fund

The Inclusiveness Initiatives Fund (IIF), recommended by the Diverse Community Commission (DCC) and administered by the MCCL, awards $30,000 a year of funds derived mostly from the President's office. The fund seeks to support projects that will embed deeply the goals of the DCC report. This year's focus for the MCCL has been on issues of social and economic class and class stereotyping.

With the goal of weaving diversity through the life of the college on an ongoing basis, the Inclusiveness Initiative Fund has continued to support a broad range of provocative and educational events and programming. Funds for these events are allocated twice annually, and in small amounts on a rolling basis. We welcome faculty, staff, and student submissions to scheduled deadlines and on a rolling basis.

The attached list gives further details of funded events – many of which packed rooms to overflowing.

IV. Oversight

In our oversight function, the committee was active this year. Early in the year, we reviewed new protocols for bias incidents and hate crimes. These will be implemented in the fall, and rendered more accessible to the college community.

We also engaged in and encouraged the hiring of a new Director of Diversity and Inclusion, Gladys Moore, who joins us in fall 2007. And we are confident that the President will soon be announcing the hiring of a new Ombudsperson.

The committee also noted the need for regular childcare support for faculty, staff, and students with children who might wish to attend and participate in community events.

Plans for 2007-2008

Next year, we plan to draw attention to a wide range of issues at Mount Holyoke, addressing the question “Who’s Not at the Table?” In particular, we are concerned to continue to draw attention to matters of class privilege, stereotyping, and the value of exchanges across diverse socio-economically-linked sites of local knowledge. In addition, we plan to draw attention to issues of political diversity, religious diversity, and new developments in the discourse of gender diversity, engaging the Centers, faculty representatives, and the Staff Council in conversations and models for weaving these forms of diversity into our everyday lives.

2005–2006


Committee Members

Bruce Arnold
Kris Bergbom
Dina Bevivino
Lee Bowie
Liz Braun (spring 2006)
Rene Davis (fall 2005)
Owen Ellard
Mufaro Kanyangarara ‘07
Julia Koch ‘06
Amy Martin (fall 2005)
Jillian McLeod
Veronica Ochoa ‘08
Becky Packard (spring 2006)
Lauret Savoy

The “Report of the Presidential Commission on Diverse Community,” which was released in September 2005, located “oversight” of its agenda in the MCCL. This agenda aims to strengthen the College’s diversity and inclusiveness--our ability to bring our diverse population together constructively, and engage diverse perspectives in support of all of our education.

The MCCL took as its primary work this year:

the review of implementation efforts by the College,
development of a web presence for communicating “diversity” work (and concerns),
review and funding of proposals submitted to the Inclusive Initiatives Fund (fall and spring), and
pulse-taking of responses to the DCC report recommendations and college action.

The committee held open-forum sessions with members of student cultural and other organizations (APAU, ADAPT, AIR, AASIA, EAC, FPSA, La Unidad, SGA, White Privilege Awareness Project), and worked with the FCC to frame faculty meeting questions on advising and the multicultural course requirement, both of which were concerns raised by many students. The committee also had individual conversations with, and received reports from, top administration (Dean of Faculty, Dean of the College, Vice President for Finance and Administration, Vice President for Development, Vice President for Enrollment and College Relations, and the President) and the Academic Deans to learn of existing work and proposed plans in each division to meet the DCC report recommendations, and to identify how the committee might serve as a resource or communication conduit.

Areas of Progress (requiring continuing attention)

Creation of the positions of Director of Academic Development, Coordinator of Multicultural Affairs, and a new hire as Director of Diversity and Inclusion/Ombudsperson. Together these positions are crucial to any broad, organic engagement of the college community, but can’t be successful without continued commitment as each position grows and evolves.
Other hires for new positions, including Adriana DiPasquale (clinician in Counseling Service) and Annie Rodriguez (Five College Outreach and Diversity Coordinator).
Academic deans’ increased awareness of the need for students in their first two years to have a “team” of mentors/advisors; faculty advising video.
Initial efforts in the sciences on curriculum, pedagogy, advising, and mentoring (in part sparked by the faculty seminar series last year led by the Director of Academic Development).
Pilot summer cascading mentorship program for incoming first-year students of color with science interests.
Multicultural Student Forum (convened last fall by the Director of Academic Development, continued this semester by the Coordinator of Multicultural Affairs and MCCL member Kris Bergbom).
Increased campus dialogue (e.g., Carrie Gibson performances and talk-back, Day of Listening, Intergroup Dialogue, faculty meeting questions on advising and multicultural course requirement).
Growing attention to hiring practices in order to increase competitive, diverse pools.
Anti-bias workshops (e.g., by Dean of the College, Enrollment division, Facilities Management, Communications).
Continuing efforts by some offices to embed DCC report goals into work practices (e.g., LITS, Financial and Administrative Services).
Past pedagogy workshops at the Weissman Center, and attempts to move to smaller classes.
Redesign of parts of Groves Health Center (for counseling and health services) with a multicultural eye, and initial physical improvements to some cultural houses.
Inclusiveness Initiatives Fund support of Eliot House “Circles of Change” program, re-launch of Intergroup Dialogue, Islamic Film Festival, and other initiatives to be reviewed this spring.
More attention to cultural heritage months as collaborative community celebrations.

Challenges and MCCL Recommendations to the President and College

The goal of becoming a “diverse community” and steps to reach it are fragile, especially if not embedded into institutional structure and climate. There needs to be heightened visibility of commitment and expectation, agenda and progress, as well as more opportunities for dialogue. Communication across divisions, across student-staff-faculty boundaries, is fragmented. Gaps exist between the College’s work and stated goals and the lived experience of many students, especially students of color and students with limited financial means who may feel disenfranchised, disconnected, and unheard.

Increase administrative staff attention to student, staff, and faculty of color retention and satisfaction (rather than just increased numbers on campus). Develop ongoing measures of health to assess how students and employees perceive the quality of their experience (by Dean of Faculty, Dean of the College, Human Resources and office managers).
Strengthen point-of-entry education (orientation) and in-service education for students, staff, and faculty around issues of anti-racism, cultural sensitivity, classism, and the fulfillment of the college mission statement as a living community commitment.
Urge the Dean of Faculty office to emphasize these issues in new department chairs training, and to call on existing department chairs to take leadership roles. (For new faculty, there should be attention given to cultural competencies in teaching, mentoring, and advising. For existing staff and faculty, there should be an atmosphere of expectation for all.)
In addition to re-establishing New Staff Orientation, urge Human Resources to include work contributing to diversity and inclusion goals as part of the criteria for performance reviews and annual goal setting.
Provide continuing learning opportunities for faculty (especially for supporting and valuing the work of those engaged in these efforts, and for influencing those not yet engaged).
Continue to push for improvements in academic advising that attend carefully to the needs of students of color and other marginalized students. How can multiple routes of “advising teams” better help students in need? Identify measures of advising accountability for both pre-tenured and tenured faculty.
Strengthen institution-wide commitment to providing opportunities for those students who traditionally haven’t had access by supporting and protecting programs such as WEED.
Consider adding anti-bias wording in the honor code and faculty legislation.
Develop a continuing high-profile presidential lecture series with visiting speakers on issues of power, oppression, privilege, class and “race” (each semester).
Increase intentional evaluations of hiring practices for faculty and staff with respect to recruitment of persons of color.
Urge division heads to remain actively engaged in the improvements and initiatives of the DCC report both in annual planning and reviews of work done.
Increase community attention, education, and activism around issues of classism at MHC.
Assist working class and first-generation students with financial needs by 1) researching potential funds for them (to defray costs of applications, etc.), 2) rethinking the practice of penalizing them by restricting registration (for financial holds), and 3) better publicizing financial assistance.
Enhance and improve the communication of commitments, resources, and progress via the college website, other college media, and college-wide programming.
Increase outreach to and recruitment of students of color.
Review recruitment efforts for Native American students, with goal of increasing their population.
Increase focus on issues pertaining to the staff community, especially effective ways of including and representing their voices in the college community.
Continue to support college-wide cultural programming (e.g., heritage months), work to attract and involve more staff, and develop more venues for dialogue.
Support and enhance Passages (by strengthening present system, investigating working models at other schools, and exploring effects of Passages on participants).
Expand the faculty around the following areas to include more of the diasporas of each: African American Studies, Latin American Studies, Asian American Studies, Native American Studies.
Support the coordination of efforts to improve the accessibility of classrooms and buildings in order to meet the needs of students differently abled.
Provide education to faculty on universal design and its place in teaching.
Develop a means of collecting annual progress reports and/or evaluative data from each campus division regarding implementation of the DCC report recommendations so that we encourage ongoing commitment and remain aware of areas of strengths and challenges.
Push for curricular evaluation and reform that prioritizes the importance of an overall climate of achievement for all.
- encourage APC review of the Multicultural Requirement (including updating the legislative language of the requirement to eliminate the phrase "non-white");
- increase support of the Office of Academic Development;
- encourage more first-year seminars addressing issues of racism, oppression, power, and privilege.
Continue to inspire, support, and encourage all members of the community to see this work as their own, individually and collectively--from the President's Office, through each campus department and division, and on to each student.

Future MCCL Agenda

Continue to develop the inclusive/multicultural community web presence. This is one part of the effort to facilitate communication among members of campus. Key is informing students, staff, and faculty of the work (progress and agenda), and building an iterative process of feedback.
Continue to have check-in or update conversations each year with the President and different members of senior staff.
Follow up with Staff Council and reach out to bargaining staff.
Develop “Is This Who We Are?” poster campaign with testimonies (to make known, and engage dialogue on, the stories and voices not heard).
Set up joint subcommittee of MCCL and APC to
1) review multicultural course requirement in relation to the goals of the DCC report, and
2) work to develop a version of Intergroup Dialogue as a for-credit course.
Review and revise the Inclusiveness Innovation Fund process; identify a subcommittee as a proposal review group.
Research college resources available to working class students, and rethink practice of penalizing them by restricting registration (for financial holds).
Work with the Director of Academic Development, Coordinator of Multicultural Affairs, and Director of Diversity and Inclusion/Ombudsperson on coordinated initiatives.
Assist in developing a high-profile Presidential lecture series.
Develop more effective ways of communicating with staff.
Hold a campus-wide open forum each year.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the Multicultural Community and College Life Committee (MCCL),

Lauret E. Savoy

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MCCL Annual Reports

2018–2019

Committee Members 2018-2019

Meeting Schedule

Accomplishments in 2018-2019

Review of MCCL’s Charge and Mission

Hortense Parker Essay Contest

BOOM 2019

Inclusiveness Initiatives Funding (IIF)

Listening Sessions

Goals for 2019-2020

2017–2018

Committee Members 2017-2018

Meeting Schedule

Accomplishments in 2017-2018

Hortense Parker Essay Contest

BOOM! 2017 De-brief

Inclusiveness Initiative Funding (IIF)

Listening Circle: Students of Color Committee

Communicating, Listening, and Reporting Out

Goals for 2018-19

2016–2017

Committee Members 2016-2017

Meeting Schedule

Accomplishments

Restructuring and Reorganization

Post-Election Support for Community Members

Inclusiveness Initiative Funding (IIF)

Ombudsperson Search Committee

BOOM! Steering Committee

BOOM! Conference on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Goals for 2017-2018

2014–2015

Committee Members 2014-2015

Meeting Schedule

Accomplishments

Diversity and Inclusion Inventory of Practice

Meeting with the Presidential Commission on Diversity and Inclusion

Inclusiveness Initiatives Fund (IIF)

Plans for 2015-2016 Academic Year

2013–2014

Committee Members 2013-2014

Meeting Schedule

Accomplishments

Campus Climate Inventory Report

Multicultural Perspective Requirement

Inclusiveness Initiatives Fund (IIF)

Plans for 2014-2015 Academic Year

2012–2013

Committee Members 2012–2013

Meeting schedule

Tasks 2012–2013

Inclusiveness initiatives Fund

Plans for 2013-2014

Appendix A

Appendix B

2011–2012

Current Committee Members

Mission, Tasks, and Responsibilities

Responsibilities and Authority

Operations

Meetings Schedule in 2011/2012

Event Organized by MCCL

Inclusiveness Initiatives Fund

Plans for 2011-2012

2010–2011

Committee Membership

What We Are

What We Do

I. Disabilities and Ableism

II. Assessment

III. Inclusiveness Initiative Fund

Plans for 2011-2012

2009–2010

Committe Membership

Committee Charge

Committe Activities 2009-2010

I. Gathering Data

II. Addressing Identified Needs

2018–2019
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2017–2018


2016–2017
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2014–2015


2013–2014


2012–2013


2011–2012


2010–2011
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2009–2010


2008–2009


2007–2008
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2006–2007
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2005–2006
