Dear Campus Community,
Over the past few weeks, there have been reported incidents of racist and harmful behavior, particularly the continued defacing of Black Lives Matter posters in Sinsheimer Labs and instances of racist “Zoom bombing” in remote classes and community events. We condemn these racist, harmful acts, which violate our values and Principles of Community. To quote one of the signs that was torn down, “all lives cannot matter until Black lives matter.” We must say and mean this at every opportunity. The university is currently investigating these incidents.
Beyond condemnation, we want to highlight the ongoing work of so many members of our community to address equity and inclusivity in our community. Associate Vice Chancellor and Chief Diversity Officer Teresa Maria Linda Scholz has developed a website to catalogue anti-racist efforts across campus. If you have projects or programming supporting anti-racist work that you would like featured, please reach out to odei@ucsc.edu. The work featured on this site includes undergraduate research projects, grant-funded work that supports a number of student groups, the offices on our campus that are charged to support equity and inclusion, and pedagogical resources for inclusive teaching.
Anti-racist work is iterative and requires that we each take it up within our sphere of influence, which is why the range of cross-campus efforts is so important. Here is some of the meaningful work already underway:
-
We are improving how our campus addresses discrimination based on protected identities with the increased scope and case management provided by the Office of Equity and Equal Protection.
-
Our Office for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is working directly with students through the Campus Community Climate Organization for Research and Equity (SCCORE) to improve and enhance awareness of the Hate/Bias response process.
-
The Division of Student Affairs and Success is transforming the way it supports and engages students through ongoing staff training and events that support mental health and community through the pandemic, most recently through the fantastic Live! At the Quarry concert series.
-
Both the Student Conduct and the Academic Misconduct processes are undergoing reviews focusing on ensuring equity in the due process required in these areas.
-
Academic divisions and departments are charging diversity and inclusion committees to identify and create action plans to address departmental and disciplinary-specific barriers.
-
And of course, our premier campus initiative, the Student Success Task Force, will bring together folks from across our community to close equity gaps in graduation rates and make good on the promise of access for all in higher education.
The work is happening everywhere at UCSC and, more importantly, it is everyone’s work. Crucially, this work does not undo the harm or the pain experienced by those who are subject to racist acts. We want to thank everyone who has brought concerns forward and for your collaboration on responses to these acts. At the suggestion of some of our community members, we anticipate additional training opportunities in the near future to support our faculty and staff members in this work and in building a more inclusive community.
Sincerely,
Lori Kletzer, Campus Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor
Cynthia Larive, Chancellor
