National Conversations
As a leading research university, the University of Utah is positioned to support state leaders in their efforts to shape criminal justice reform, promote social justice and equity, and address pervasive racism. This spring, we began a series of campus conversations designed to bring community leaders and scholarly experts together in search of understanding and solutions to racism, oppression and hatred. We are committed to equity, diversity and inclusion at the University of Utah and are steadily progressing in our efforts to make this historically white institution more representative of and responsive to the diverse communities we serve.
Our work will continue with renewed vigor and intensity.
New Leadership Academy Fellows Program
The New Leadership Academy (NLA) Fellows Program changes the expectations that surround leaders, leadership and leadership development across higher education. The learning strategies informing the program’s curriculum are premised on a recognition that the demographic, democratic, and discursive foundations on which modern higher education has been built are changing. As colleges and universities respond to these environments, leaders will require specialized knowledge and tools, as well as the personal and professional courage to be effective in what are clearly complex and highly contested environments.
EDI Executive Committee
The EDI Executive Committee was created to inform, guide, and coordinate addressing racist policies and long-standing practices that perpetuate racism and inequity on our campus. The committee examined institutional policies and practices that perpetuate racism, bias, and systemic inequity in the recruitment, hiring, and advancement of staff and faculty in order to inform hiring and retention initiatives and other actions that will build on previous diversity hiring efforts at the U.
George Floyd Memorial Fund
President Ruth Watkins announced on June 10, 2020, the creation of the George Floyd Memorial Fund in the Black Cultural Center at the University of Utah, which will directly support students and programs committed to advancing the interests of the next generation of aspiring black leaders. Give to the Fund here.
Friday Forums
Friday Forums is a commitment to the state and region in elevating national conversations and showcasing models of disrupting complicit racism. Each session welcomes national thought leaders to lead discussions and provide opportunities for participants to share ideas on actionable items towards a diverse, equitable, and inclusive campus.
Racism as a Public Health Threat Lecture Series
Created in response to the killing of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, this series reflects the moral and political struggle around issues of systemic racism and inequity. This lecture series seeks to demonstrate what we fiercely believe to be true: that the physical and mental health of the whole of society is negatively impacted when racist attitudes and practices are allowed to continue uncontested. The series selects speakers whose community and intellectual efforts help connect this understanding. This series is hosted by the Department of Family and Preventative Medicine.
White Coats for Black Lives – University of Utah School of Medicine Chapter
WhiteCoats4BlackLives is a medical student-run organization born out of the National White Coat Die-In demonstrations that took place on December 10, 2014. The organization’s mission is to dismantle racism in medicine and promote the health, well-being, and self-determination of Black and Indigenous people, and other people of color. Contact the School of Medicine’s chapter here.