Mission, Diversity, and Inclusion

The Joint Commission on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (the Commission), co-sponsored by the President of La Salle University and the Faculty Senate of La Salle University, is hereby convened to engage all members of the La Salle community around the challenges of diversity, equity, and inclusion and to:

1. ensure a learning and working campus environment that affirms the dignity and uniqueness of each member of our community;
2. advance equity and inclusion across our internal systems, policies, and practices, as well as our external interactions within the broader community;
3. examine and enable the development of a diverse and inclusive curriculum and course readings that challenge racism, homophobia, sexism, ableism, and all expressions of bigotry, hate, and discrimination;
4. and cultivate truth, reconciliation and healing in a spirit of faith, courage, solidarity, and prophetic hope through our Lasallian association.

The Commission is co-chaired by Ernest J. Miller, FSC, D. Min., M.A. ’95, Vice President of Mission, Diversity & Inclusion; Shakeya Foreman, J.D., Employee & Labor Relations Specialist, Office of Human Resources; Luisa Ossa, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Spanish and the Area Chair of Undergraduate Spanish Program.

All appointed members agree to serve a one-year term on the Commission, beginning on September 1, 2020. The Commission is asked to complete its work on or before May 15, 2021, the feast of our patron and namesake, Saint John Baptist de La Salle, founder of the Brothers of the Christian Schools.

The first task of the Commission will be to determine the scope of its work. To this end, these initial broad goals are offered for consideration in structuring this work.

1. To conduct a process to generate data that details the current climate surrounding issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion at La Salle University. While deploying a climate survey seems one potential method for generating such data, there are other methods for establishing this baseline;
2. To identify prospective curricular strategies that will advance a climate of diversity, equity, and inclusion at La Salle University, with such strategies to be considered by the Provost/Vice President for Academic Affairs and the Faculty Senate;
3. To investigate and recommend any specific policy and/or structural changes that will advance diversity, equity, and inclusion within La Salle University’s operations;
4. To review any non-policy practices and guidelines at La Salle University with a view to recommending, as needed, any specific revisions in those approaches;
5. To consider recommendations that would advance La Salle University’s role as a community partner in working with our neighboring organizations, institutions, and individuals to build relationships grounded in dialogue, mutual respect, and trust for the sake of our common home;
6. To be open to collaborating with the newly formed Anti-Racism Working Group of the Faculty Senate, specifically respecting matters of diversity, equity, and inclusion related to racialized populations at or beyond La Salle University;
7. To recommend the creation of any ongoing body or structures that will ensure the assessment, continuity, and accountability of this work following the completion of the Commission’s mandate; and,
8. To address any other related areas of concern that arise during the work of the Commission.

The Commission is expected to provide regular updates of its work to the co-sponsors and to the broader La Salle University community and submit a final report with any material findings and a set of recommendations to the President and the Faculty Senate. Furthermore, the recommendations are also expected to be shared with a variety of populations within and beyond La Salle University, as deemed appropriate. That includes La Salle staff, faculty, students, alumni/ae, trustees, and the campus communities of the Brothers of the Christian Schools.