After a tumultuous two weeks, I am writing to reiterate NDSU’s commitment to creating and sustaining an inclusive and supportive environment for all of our members. Hate speech and actions have no place on our campus. As I reflect on the past two weeks, I personally offer my apologies to the students, faculty and staff who have been deeply harmed, and reaffirm my own commitment to more effectively stand against hate and foster a truly inclusive and welcoming campus community.
Hate speech undermines our efforts to be an educational environment that is accessible, diverse, equitable and inclusive. A painful lesson of these incidents is that as clearly as I believed we had been about stating and living these values, hate speech was still expressed here, and that is unacceptable.
In response to the recent incidents of hate speech on our campus, I want to remind you of several actions that have taken place to improve our campus climate.
- Incidents that I reported to you are under active investigation by the Equity Office. An external consultant has been hired to ensure that NDSU is being consistent with all best national practices.
- On December 7, I appointed a task force charged with developing actionable items to make NDSU more diverse and inclusive. The task force has met multiple times and is actively identifying actionable ideas and timelines to help make NDSU more diverse and inclusive. I expect to see a preliminary report in January.
- I charged the Dean of Students with reviewing the Student Code of Conduct to begin immediately and be completed before the end of spring 2021.This will be done with a lens toward equity, inclusion and innovation and to comply with national best practices.
- In addition to existing mandatory trainings for faculty and staff, diversity and cultural competency training will be provided for all incoming students beginning in fall 2021.
- I joined a productive meeting with student activists. We identified shared goals to work on in the coming weeks and months.
The actions described above are just a beginning. Improving our campus culture will take a commitment and sustained effort by each member of our NDSU community. Across the leadership team in administration, we are committed to doing the work that will bring that lasting change. I also have heard from many faculty, students and staff, and so I know I can count on campus to join me in working toward a campus community where all members will feel safe and valued. NDSU can and will be better.
Reminders of important resources:
Reporting
- NDSU’s bias reporting system provides NDSU students, faculty, and staff with an avenue to report incidents of bias, bigotry or hate that occur on our campus or in off-campus settings that impact NDSU.
- Complaints and reports may also be filed here.
Emergencies
- Dial 911
- Campus Police, 701.231.8998
General Safety
- 24/7 Campus Safety Escort Service, 701.231.8998
- Pathlight App
Counseling Center
- 24/7 Counselor on Call, 701.231.7671
Complaint/Bias Reporting
Emily McGann, 701.231.7159,
- Equity Office:
- Heather Higgins-Dochtermann, 701.231.7107, Heather.Higginsdocht@ndsu.edu
- Emily McGann, 701.231.7159, Emily.McGann@ndsu.edu
- Complaint Form
Office of Multicultural Programs
- Director: Jaclynn Wallette, 701.231.7314, Jaclynn.Wallette@ndsu.edu
- Program Coordinator: Ruth Grimmett-Tejedor, 701.231.6179, Ruth.Grimmett-Tejedor@ndsu.edu
Dean of Students Office
- Dean of Students: Casey Peterson, 701.231.7750, Casey.Peterson@ndsu.edu
- Assistant Dean of Students: Emily Frazier, 701.231.8406, Emily.Frazier@ndsu.edu