Taking intentional action around race, equity, and inclusion
Dear Members of the Loyola Community,
As a community, we must continue to focus on race, equity, and inclusion not just
in words, but also in planning intentional, constructive action. We must lean into
our mission and plan deliberately for the future. We ask for your patience—difficult
as that may be—as well as your partnership as we accomplish a more just future at
Loyola together.
The University leadership is currently engaged in active listening, meeting individually
and in groups with students, alumni, and employees of color who are sharing their
pain, their concerns, and their vision for all Loyola can and should be for students,
faculty, administrators, staff, and alumni of color.
Our immediate action steps include:
- Training for Students: We have invested in EVERFI diversity and inclusion training. This program will help students develop skills and learn key concepts related to identity, bias, power, privilege, and oppression. The incoming members of the Class of 2024 will complete the program prior to their arrival on campus this fall.
- Bias Reporting Process: Student voices will be included in the bias reporting process through the expansion of a student board. Student applications for membership are being accepted now. Please contact Dr. Moore-Thomas at ceio@loyola.edu for more information.
- Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Advisory Board: Student government leadership and the office of equity and inclusion are partnering to re-establish the diversity, equity, and inclusion advisory board. This board will serve as an important link between undergraduate students and the President’s Council on Equity and Inclusion.
- Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Alumni Advisory Board: The office of alumni engagement and office of equity and inclusion are partnering in the creation of a diversity, equity, and inclusion alumni advisory board. We’ve been gratified to see how much interest the office of alumni engagement has received already.
You might also be interested in these educational opportunities:
- “Voices on Equity”: The office of equity and inclusion is hosting “Voices on Equity: A Lunchtime Series with Loyola”; in today’s session at noon H. Lovell Smith, Ph.D., assistant professor of sociology will speak on “The Social Construction of Systemic Racism: Why Doing Nothing Makes You Complicit.” Register to attend through this page on the Voices on Equity site.
- Panel Discussion: Join in “Evergreen Conversations: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion,” a panel discussion hosted by the office of alumni engagement at noon on July 9; panelists are Dr. Moore-Thomas; Rob Kelly, Ph.D., vice president and special assistant to the president; Raven Williams, director of ALANA services; and Marianna Carlucci, Ph.D., associate professor of psychology and academic affairs diversity fellow. The panel will be moderated by Donna Woodruff, assistant vice president and director of athletics. Register to attend through the alumni website.
- Anti-Racism Resources: Find anti-racism resources and ongoing updates at the office of equity and inclusion’s site at Loyola.edu/equity.
We have much work to do as a university. Through our mission and the faith tradition of our institution, we have a call to hear the voices of the unrepresented and to work actively for justice. We recognize that creating and maintaining impactful change will be an ongoing process and one that we cannot solve or resolve quickly or easily. We invite you to participate in these essential conversations and the planning of intentional, deliberate, transformation action as we move toward necessary change for the future of Loyola.
Sincerely,
Rev. Brian F. Linnane, S.J., President
Cheryl Moore-Thomas, Ph.D., Chief Equity and Inclusion Officer