Editor’s note: This is part of a series of updates on campuswide diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives that will continue throughout the year.
Campus leaders encourage students, staff and faculty to reflect on the history and significance of Juneteenth, traditionally celebrated on June 19. Also, a search is underway for an assistant vice chancellor for Native American affairs. Read about these updates and more.
Employees reminded to use floating Juneteenth holiday before June 30
Campus managers are encouraging CU Boulder employees to use the floating Juneteenth holiday for 2023 before it expires on June 30.
Juneteenth, traditionally celebrated on June 19, marks the date in 1865 when the Union Army arrived in Texas—the last state in the Confederacy with institutional slavery—to proclaim freedom for enslaved Black and African Americans more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation.
Juneteenth became an official state holiday in Colorado last year.
On June 19 this year, CU Boulder will remain open in alignment with the 2023 academic calendar and will be open for classes and other university business. However, campus leaders encourage students, staff and faculty to reflect on the history and significance of the holiday and avoid scheduling other major campus events on Juneteenth.
Next week, the campus community will receive more information about opportunities to observe Juneteenth at events across the Boulder region.
Starting next year, CU Boulder will observe Juneteenth as a fixed holiday rather than a floating holiday and along with other public colleges, schools and offices will close in accordance with state guidelines.
Search underway for assistant vice chancellor for Native American affairs
A newly created university leadership position will work collaboratively with Colorado tribal communities to support the success of Native American and Indigenous students at CU Boulder.
Earlier this month, Chancellor Phil DiStefano announced the campus would launch a national search for an associate vice chancellor for Native American affairs. The search to fill this leadership position is part of the university’s efforts to enroll, sustain and graduate more Native American and Indigenous students.
The new associate vice chancellor will be part of the university’s Office of Government and Community Engagement, whose employees report to the chancellor. The new campus leader will liaise with tribal governments and communities around Colorado and the wider region, interfacing with state and federal entities that have roles in tribal affairs and higher education, the chancellor said.
Striving to improve student, staff and faculty success and well-being
Thirty-six campus academic and administrative planning units will continue their work to develop action plans to improve student, staff and faculty outcomes in their respective areas. The broad intent of the plans is to set specific goals for eliminating barriers that disproportionately affect people with minoritized identities, impacting their achievement, safety and sense of community at CU Boulder.
Unit leaders from colleges, schools, programs and administrative offices are working closely with staff consultants from the Office of the Senior Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion to implement the plans during the 2023–24 academic year.
To date, more than two dozen units have submitted plans focused on specific actions guided by five overarching goals to achieve desired outcomes with the goal of addressing challenges that are hindering the campus’s ability to sustain a more inclusive community.
Campus units began the action planning process in spring 2022, tapping into the results of the 2021 Campus Culture Survey and other resources to develop unique plans. The campus community and the public are encouraged to track the progress CU Boulder is making with these efforts by visiting the Action Planning Status webpage.
After the units have implemented their plans, assessment information will also be posted on this webpage, giving the campus insight into unit success stories, outcomes and where plans need to be improved.
UndocuAlly sessions scheduled for summer
The Center for Inclusion and Social Change has announced its summer schedule of UndocuAlly sessions for faculty and staff. The two-hour sessions are also open to students with administrative, professional or teaching roles on campus.
Intended to help the campus better support undocumented students and to create a more welcoming campus environment, the sessions will increase participants’ understanding of relevant terminology and the makeup of the undocumented community.
Participants will also learn more about the history of immigration to the United States; about the federal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and Colorado’s Advancing Students for a Stronger Economy Tomorrow (ASSET) programs and how they impact CU Boulder students; and about the challenges, opportunities and campus resources for undocumented students.
The schedule for summer sessions is:
- June 20, 1–3 p.m. via Zoom. Please register by noon on June 19.
- July 19, noon–2 p.m. via Zoom. Please register by noon on July 18.
In case you missed it
- ‘Obstetric racism’ prevalent in the US, fueling rise in questionable labor inductions
- Campus shares resources for celebrating Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in April
Sustaining our practice of inclusion
- Campus efforts and investments to address pressing and painful inequities at CU Boulder are only a beginning.
- Creating a culture of belonging will take each member of our community practicing sustained personal work to truly embrace and support diverse perspectives and intersectional identities in our community.
- Chancellor Philip DiStefano and other campus leaders urge every member of our community to join in learning more about equity, inclusion, belonging and anti-racism and to work continuously together to address these challenges more actively and in ways that can help authentically transform our campus culture.
Campus resources
- CU Boulder Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Website: Find more information about the campus’s work to create and sustain a more inclusive campus community and explore the results of the 2021 Campus Culture Survey.
- Center for African and African American Studies (CAAAS): Provides a focal point for Black community and culture at CU Boulder and a multipurpose space where scholars, students, artists, activists and allies come together to study Africa, African Americans, and the African diaspora. Subscribe to the center’s newsletter to learn more.
- Center for Asian Studies: Strives to be a space of community, curiosity and respectful engagement with Asia, views the area studies endeavor as a necessary yet distinct complement to disciplinary knowledge, and recognizes the historic and geographic centrality that Asia has and continues to play in the human venture.
- Center for Native American and Indigenous Studies (CNAIS): Promotes collaborative research focusing on local and global Indigenous knowledge and fosters projects that aspire to open conversations in Colorado and the world.
- Center for Teaching and Learning: Offers programs focused on creating inclusive classrooms and supports CU’s community of educators through free consultations, teaching resources, programs, seminars, workshops and other events.
- CU Boulder History Project: Seeks to share CU Boulder’s history based on intersectional perspectives to demonstrate our commitment to inclusive excellence and to deepen our institutional memory.
- Latin American Studies Center: Provides an institutional space for research, teaching and discussion on Latin America and Latinx/Latina/Latino studies.
- Office of Diversity, Equity and Community Engagement: Supports programming, events and campus wide initiatives for students, faculty and staff that promote diversity, equity and inclusion. Subscribe to the office’s newsletter to learn more.
- Research and Innovation Office (RIO): Offers resources focusing on diversity, equity and inclusion in research and innovation.
- University Libraries: Provides a rich assortment of diverse reading materials and other resources, events and initiatives for students, faculty, staff, alumni and Colorado residents.
