Florida State University will hold an organizational session of the President’s Task Force on Anti-Racism, Equity & Inclusion this week as the group begins to address racial and ethnic disparities on campus and accelerate the university’s goal to strengthen diversity.
The meeting will take place virtually at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 19. To register for this webinar or view the agenda, visit https://president.fsu.edu/taskforce/.
During the first session, President John Thrasher will give the task force its charge, while Professor of English Maxine Montgomery, chairperson of the task force, will announce subcommittee assignments and review a fall meeting schedule.
Last month, Thrasher appointed 30 members of the university community to serve on the task force. The panel members will be expected to make final recommendations on specific symbols and names of buildings on campus and will examine how to best reflect FSU’s values in relation to its historical connections to race and ethnicity.
The task force will also be asked to identify racial and ethnic disparities on campus and to implement a range of initiatives, such as developing mandatory diversity and inclusivity training for all campus employees and students and fostering the recruitment and retention of students, faculty and staff from underserved groups.
The task force members will produce bimonthly progress reports on actionable issues, as well as a final report at the end of the 2020-2021 academic year. Thrasher and the senior leadership team will consider actions for each item.
Three subcommittee listening sessions have also been scheduled. The university community will be invited to participate during these sessions.
The subcommittee meetings will take place:
Wednesday, Aug 26, 3 p.m.
Subcommittee on Recruitment, Retention, and Diversity Training Listening Session
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Wednesday, Sept. 2, 3 p.m.
Subcommittee on Campus Climate Listening Session
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Wednesday, Sept. 9, 3 p.m.
Subcommittee on Historical Legacy Listening Session
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For a list of task force members or to register for these meetings, visit https://president.fsu.edu/taskforce/.