University Diversity Plan
Context Statement
In 1988, the American Council on Educations Commission on Minority Participation in Education and American Life issued its report One Third of a Nation. In that report the Commission stated: America is moving backward - not forward - in its efforts to achieve the full participation of minority citizens in the life and prosperity of the nation. (One Third of a Nation,a Report of the Commission on Minority Participation in Education and American Life (Washington, DC: American Council on Education & Education Commission of the States, 1988), p.3.) Accordingly, there was a call for rededication by all segments of society to overcoming the current inertia and removing the remaining barriers to full participation of education and in all other aspects of American life. (Ibid, p.5.)Two years later Colorado State University developed its first five-year Diversity Plan. That plan and the one that followed it in 1998, were attempts to respond to the concerns identified by the ACE in a holistic institution-wide manner. While both plans looked at diversity in a broad context they also recognized the need to be mindful of those whose exclusion from the academic enterprise in all its facets served to limit their participation in American life and work..
Ten years after the ACE report the following statement served to further elaborate on the value and need for diversity in Higher Education.
Diversity broadly includes not only race and gender but the connections between these and other sources of identify such as religion, ethnicity, age, sexual {orientation], class and ability. It encourages forms of learning that deepen and enrich the ways we connect across our differences. The American Association of colleges and Universities challenge higher education to think more deeply about what individuals learn from their experience of campus ethos and how that learning in turn constrains or enriches the quality and vitality of American communities. The research shows that when a campus makes-and is viewed by its students as making-a significant commitment to diversity, all students gain educationally.
--American Commitments: Diversity, Democracy, And Liberal Learning, The American Association of Colleges and Universities, 1998, Page 2
This position was affirmed in the United States Supreme Court decision in the case of Grutter v Bollinger et al. In the majority opinion Justice OConnor states Effective participation by members of all racial and ethnic groups in the civic life of our Nation is essential if the dream of one Nation, indivisible, is to be realized. Justice OConnor further states Just as growing up in a particular region or having particular professional experiences is likely to affect an individuals views, so too is ones own, unique experience of being a racial minority in a society, like our own, in which race unfortunately still matters. At another point in her opinion she states: By virtue of our Nations struggle with racial inequality, such students {minority} are both likely to have experiences of particular importance to the Law Schools mission, and less likely to be admitted in meaningful numbers on criteria that ignore those experiences.(Grutter v. Bollinger, 539 U.S._____[2003]) The need to include individuals who offer these perspectives is also consistent with the role and mission of a land-grant institution such as Colorado State University.
Looking at the history and philosophical basis of the land-grant system one cannot help but note the commitment to increased access inherent in the legislation. In the middle of the 19th Century this access was intended for those who due to economic or social condition had not been offered full participation in the academic enterprise. Subsequent acts in the 1890's and 1990's continued the tradition of expanding access. As we enter the 21st Century it is not inconsistent to look at ways the land-grant mission can be used to provide access to new audiences seeking to gain the opportunities afforded by higher education. The benefits derived from an educational environment that includes individuals reflective of all aspects of our society cannot be overstated. It is only in such an environment that individuals from all walks of life come together to prepare themselves most effectively for their roles in a global society.
The University makes the following statement of commitment as a necessary element to the furtherance of its role and mission as a land-grant institution and defines diversity in the following way:
Colorado State University is committed to enhancing its diversity in all its forms: through age, different ideas and perspectives, disability, ethnicity, gender identity, national origin, race, religious and spiritual beliefs, sex, sexual orientation, and the socioeconomic and geographic composition of its faculty, administrative professionals, staff and students. Given the historic and legal discrimination that has existed in American society particular emphasis needs to be placed on the inclusion of individuals who are members of groups that have been excluded, i.e. racial/ethnic minorities, women in non-traditional areas and persons with disabilities. The University strives to foster for its members recognition of their role as citizens in the global community with greater understanding of cultures and perspectives different from their own.
The Universitys efforts to enhance diversity will require a genuine commitment, persistent effort, active planning, resources and accountability for outcomes on the part of all members of the University community.
The goals of the Diversity Plan are designed to support and further this commitment.
Revised 2/9/05