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Through the support of the Chief Diversity Officer (CDO), we have established a campus wide committee to examine and address Inclusive Physical Spaces (IPS). This request was prompted after I read an article on "Dude Walls" in a trade magazine. "Dude Walls" are exemplified by a wall of pictures, in many departments, showing images of previous department heads, for example. Historically, these department heads are also commonly white men. This article discussed the walls, the negative imaging associated with them among students from historically under-represent groups, and presented the approaches of several other universities toward addressing the issue. I forwarded this article to the CDO and noted several examples of the Dude Wall phenomenon across our campus. I was subsequently asked by the CDO to build an Inclusive Physical Spaces committee and develop projects across campus to address these and similar issues. "Dude Walls" are an example of historical campus structures that can inadvertently serve to degrade a feeling of "belongedness" in members of historically marginalized and under-represented groups. This clearly contradicts with the welcoming aspects of many university's recruiting materials and also the objectives of many university strategic plans. Other examples of negative imaging can include artwork, mascots, and building names. One of the driving goals of this committee is to address issues by providing context and balance while seeking to minimize the appearance of political correctness or white-washing history. This presentation will discuss the formation of the committee and describe several initial projects and our approach for addressing them. The committee has been established for approximately one year. To construct the committee, the goal was to include a wide variety of members, particularly those from the historically marginalized and under-represented groups. These voices help to provide the leadership on the committee to properly view and then develop potential solutions. The committee also represents the entire university and thus, we have included a mix of faculty, staff, students, administrators, and community members. This committee is a subcommittee of the university wide Council on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (CDEI). As chair of the IPS, I also serve as a member of the CDEI. This allows me to interact with other CDEI members as needed to address issues. The IPS committee has met and discussed what issues the committee members would like to address and also what tools that members possessed that might be used to address issues. The committee has now formed subcommittees, based on member interest, and have chosen to focus on three issues: 1) Dude Walls, 2) non-gendered bathrooms, and 3) artwork. Further details on each of these issues and current approaches will be discussed. We also seek audience examples of other issues that may fall under the charge of this committee and other approaches that have been tried or considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
