UNC Charlotte will form a Council on University Community Working Group (CCWG) to raise the visibility, coordination and impact of the considerable efforts underway to advance UNC Charlotte’s Campus Plan for Diversity, Access and Inclusion (Diversity Plan).
Reporting to the provost, the Council on University Community Working Group will focus on overseeing and coordinating diversity programming within Academic Affairs. It will coordinate with other divisions across the University as it advises the provost on how resources, policies and practices can be used to advance institutional goals related to diversity. The group will stay current on national issues affecting diversity and inclusion in higher education, and it will provide a forum for campus faculty and staff who are directly engaged in diversity and inclusion to share best practices.
One faculty member and one staff member from each of the colleges and Atkins Library, as appointed by deans, will constitute members of the Council on University Community Working Group. The director of the Faculty Affairs and Diversity Office will be an ex officio member, representing the Office of the Provost. The vice chancellor for student affairs will appoint two additional ex officio members from the Division of Student Affairs staff and two students, including one undergraduate and one graduate.
The provost will appoint a Faculty Fellow for Diversity, Access and Inclusion to chair the CCWG; the fellow will be a tenured faculty member with research interests and a background in issues of diversity and inclusion. This two-year appointment will require half-time work during regular semesters, plus one month in the summer.
The Faculty Fellow will bring concerns from across the campus to the Working Group and the Council on University Community, will conduct research on issues of diversity and inclusion and will work with the Faculty Affairs and Diversity Office and others to support programming related to diversity, equity and inclusion in units across campus.
The University will issue a call for applicants for the position of Faculty Fellow; an appointment is expected by fall 2017.
UNC Charlotte’s redesigned website will add a diversity landing page that will provide a new channel of communication about the Diversity Plan and its objectives.