Universities Must Cultivate Race-Conscious Policies to Address Historical Inequities

January 15, 2020

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“Socioeconomic disparities or characteristics are only rough approximations of the unique lived experiences of Black and Brown students,” says Dr. Francis Pearman, assistant professor in the Graduate School of Education at Stanford University.

“Those are the types of realities that can only be captured by way of policies, practices and procedures that acknowledge and foreground the role and reality of race in not only the students’ lives, but also campus life in general,” adds Pearman.

Disaggregated data enables conversations that can lead to meaningful curriculum redesign, faculty development and creation of a reward structure where faculty and staff are rewarded for innovative ideas.

Students of color face explicit discrimination, yes, but also implicit biases that are less apparent. They need a sense of community to support their academic endeavors. And this is where diverse faculty and staff can play a big role.

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