Faculty Officers Statement and Commitments in Response to Racism: A Call to Action
From Jeff Popke, Crystal Chambers, Amanda Klein, and Purificación Martínez
Like many members of our community, the ECU faculty have been grappling with emotions of outrage, revulsion and heartbreak in the wake of the senseless killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and so many others victimized by racism and police brutality in America. We affirm and support those who have responded to these atrocities with long-overdue cries for justice and urgent and nonnegotiable demands for social change. As educators, we are committed to exposing the white supremacy and systemic racial inequality that, for centuries, has bestowed wealth and privilege upon white Americans at the expense of Black and Brown people.
This violent history has left its mark on every American city, including Greenville, NC. We recognize our own history of racial oppression and violence on the campus where we teach, learn, and live. This legacy dates back to ECU’s founding father, Thomas Jordan Jarvis, an outspoken white supremacist and segregationist who actively campaigned for white supremacy and the disenfranchisement of Black voters. This shameful history continued with the experience of Laurie Marie Leary, the very first black student to officially enroll at ECU in 1963, who suffered bigotry and isolation during her time on campus. Today, Black and Brown students, faculty and staff report racist aggression, macro and micro, across pockets of the university. This is documented across several ECU Faculty Surveys since 2013, including the Harvard COACHE Surveys, ECU Faculty Climate Surveys, the 2019 ECU LGBTQ+ Race/ Ethnicity Survey, and the Faculty Engagement Survey of 2018.
Rather than deal with cultural racism as pervasive across campus, the administration of ECU, like many other universities nationwide, continues to treat racialized incidents individually and not systemically (Cole & Harper, 2017). The university was limited in its response to calls for the deportation of Congresswomen of color as well as verbal attacks against women and people of color by participants in the July 2019 Trump Rally, held in Minges Coliseum.
In light of present social unrest, ECU has shown greater support for the right of individual speech than concern for what for some members of our community experience as a racially hostile environment. Individuals have made public social media posts harassing and threatening our minoritized members of our campus community; however, the university has so far chosen to address these community harms privately. Moreover, all speech at ECU is not treated equally. When the collective ECU Marching Band in consultation with university administration in 2016 demonstrated against police brutality, their voices were silenced as a community and alumni condemned student actions under the guise of patriotism. Those students who were in their first year in 2016, both in the band and in the broader ECU community, are now seniors. And, much to our shame, we have made little change in policies, practices, or administrative accountability. Shame on us.
ECU’s policy on Non Discrimination states that it is against the policies of East Carolina University to create a hostile environment for an individual or group because of the individual’s age, color, creed, disability, gender, genetic information, national origin, political affiliation, race/ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, or veteran’s status (FM, Part XII.II). As members of the East Carolina University faculty, we are committed to working toward lasting and meaningful change. This means more than simply handing out degrees; we must instill in our students the historical, philosophical and ethical tools to shape a world in which racial justice is the norm, not the exception. In addition, we believe that in order for our students to thrive in a globally intertwined world, it is imperative that they leave from here with the intercultural competence to navigate the world of work today and in the future (Williams, 2013).
We take this charge seriously and therefore offer the following broad initiatives for the 2020-2021 school year:
1. We will form a Senate committee tasked with tracking racial justice and equity issues across campus, particularly with regard to curriculum development. Some examples of initiatives should include, but not be limited to:
- Time and professional development for faculty to create an inclusive curriculum;
- Time and professional development for faculty to learn how to facilitate difficult dialogues including those regarding race and racism;
- Mandatory faculty-led implicit bias workshops at the department; and,
- Implementation of a diversity and inclusion professional development requirement.
2. The Committee on Committees will be tasked with extending opportunities to discuss faculty senate and committee representation by minoritized faculty (with a target of October 2020).
3. ECU must have a stronger investment in the recruitment and retainment of Black and Brown faculty. Collectively we must shoulder the burden of racial justice work and recognize the emotional work performed by minoritized colleagues who are disproportionately asked to serve as racial representatives on committees, and as mentors to peers and our students. Currently, the ratio of Black students to faculty is 1 to 36, not accounting for the disproportionate distribution of these faculty in graduate and professional programs. The number of faculty of color teaching 1000 level courses, to the exclusion of education professionals teaching COAD 1000, can be counted on one’s hands. These are the faculty responsible for inducting new students into our campus and this body of faculty lacks racial and ethnic diversity. There are several units without any Black faculty and few undergraduate alumni who speak to having more than one Black faculty member during their time at ECU. This state of affairs is unacceptable as it is a travesty of learning opportunities. We are depriving our undergraduates across racial groups of the educational experiences and support provided by a diverse and inclusive faculty.
4. We demand that the Office of Faculty Excellence hire a full-time equity and inclusion director of professional development to guide faculty in the implementation of the above goals. This individual must have faculty credentials meeting at the level of tenured associate professor and have expertise concomitant to the role. This must be an institutional priority.
5. We request the provision of resources to the Office for Equity and Diversity (OED) for the support of employee resource groups. This should include an administrative assistant to begin at half time dedicated to scheduling and coordinating faculty and connecting faculty to student groups.
6. We request the dissemination of diversity, equity, and inclusion goals for academic administrators from the department chair level on up. These goals must include accountability measures and specified methods to hold administrators accountable for equity in hiring, faculty turnover, and unit climate. We also request data on faculty employment by race disaggregated by college to be included in the OED annual report. We respect the need for faculty privacy and support the use of * as a symbol to report cell sizes under five.
We are committed to leveraging the Faculty Senate and its Committees, and to working in partnership with the faculty at large, in order to study and adopt these and other concrete policies during AY 2020-21. We hold ourselves accountable to ensure that faculty, through their teaching, research and service, contribute meaningfully toward the eradication of racism in our campus, our community and our country.
References
Cole, E. R., & Harper, S. R. (2017). Race and rhetoric: An analysis of college presidents’ statements on campus racial incidents. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, 10(4), 318–333. https://doi.org/10.1037/dhe0000044
Williams, D. A. (2013). Strategic diversity leadership: Activating change and transformation in higher education. Stylus Publishing, LLC.
To Show Your Support
You are invited to show your support for this statement by adding your name to those of the Faculty Officers. Fill out the form here and your name will be added below. The list will be updated throughout the day. If you experience issues with the form, please contact us.
The following faculty, staff, and students have added their names in support of the statement:
Full Name | Department/Unit/Office |
---|---|
Dr. Anna Froula | Department of English |
Julie Stanley | COE |
Dmitry Tumin | BSOM Department of Pediatrics |
Anne Ticknor | College of Education |
Susan C. Pearce | Sociology |
Michele Stacey | Criminal Justice |
Brandon N. Kyle | Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine |
Karen Vail-Smith | Health Education and Promotion |
Dr. Wanda Lynn Lancaster | Department of Advanced Nursing Practice & Education |
Dr. Helena Feder | English, HCAS |
Jim Aloor | East Carolina Diabetes and Obesity Institute |
Joseph G. L. Lee | Health Education and Promotion |
Marylaura Papalas | Foreign Languages & Literatures |
Margaret Blome | Geological Sciences |
Isabel C Gay | School of Dental Medicine |
Aaron F. Lucier | Student Affairs/ Adjunct Education |
Patrick Michael Rider | Kinesiology/HHP |
Judy Siguaw | College of Business |
David Hisle | ALS Research & Instructional Services |
Paige Averett | School of Social Work |
Lou Anne Baldree | College of Nursing |
Courtney Caiola | College of Nursing, Department of Nursing Science |
Jeffrey Johnson | English |
Jonathan Morris | Political Science |
Amanda Haberstroh | Laupus Health Sciences Library |
Cynthia Deale | School of Hospitality Leadership |
Emily Pauline Yeager | Recreation Sciences |
Hans L. Tillmann, MD, FAASLD | Brody School of Medicine, Dept. Medicine, Div. Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition. |
Marianne Montgomery | English |
Todd Fraley | Honors College |
Regis M Gilman | Academic Outreach, Continuing and Distance Education |
Derek Maher | Dept of Philosophy and Religious Studies; Harriot College |
Jennifer Overstreet | Joyner Library Special Collections |
Amanda Hartman McLellan | Academic Library Services |
Amy Curtis | Joyner Library |
Ryan J. Martin | Health Education & Promotion |
David P. Thomson, MS, MD, MPA | Emergency Medicine, BSOM |
Nicole I. Caswell | English |
Sharon M. Ballard | Human Development & Family Science |
Amy McMillan | Management/College of Business |
Jennifer McKinnon | History |
C. Kim Stokes | PA Studies/College of Allied Health Sciences |
Michelle F. Eble | English |
Dan Thomas | Construction Management |
Kelley Reinsmith-Jones | School of Social Work |
Amanda Ann Klein | English Department, THCAS |
John Anders Carlson | School of Theatre and Dance |
Jayme Host | School of Theatre and Dance |
Catherine A. Rigsby | Geological Sciences |
Annette Greer | Bioethics and Interdisciplinary Studies |
William P Banks | English/University Writing Program |
Sitawa Kimuna | Sociology |
Jonathan A. Reid | History |
Carol Ogus Woodruff | ECU Career Services |
Jennifer Matthews | Health Education and Promotion |
Kelly Anderson | OT/ College of Allied Health Sciences |
Dr. Jennifer M. Valko | Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures |
Allison Crowe | Counselor Education, College of Education |
Jill Matarelli Carlson | School of Theatre and Dance |
Colin Burns | Chemistry |
James C. Fletcher, MD, FACEP | Department of Emergency Medicine - Brody School of Medicine |
John T. Fallon, MD | Pathology, Brody SOM |
Kelley Hulihan MS, PA-C | Physician Assistant Studies |
Helen Dixon | History |
Beth Bee | Geography, Planning, and Environment |
Jocelyn Nelson | School of Music |
Stacey Meardon | Physical Therapy |
Michael D. Baker | Department of Psychology |
Angela Raper | English |
Beth W. Osborne | School of Social Work |
Brian L. Massey | School of Communication |
Linda Quick | College of Business/Accounting |
Rita Soulen | Library Science, College of Education |
Donna J. Kain | English |
Jo Anne G. Balanay | Health Education and Promotion |
Dale Knickerbocker | Foreign Languages and Literatures |
Melinda D Kane | Sociology |
Ariel G. Robinson | Career Services |
Stacy L. Weiss | Special Education, Foundations & Research/COE |
Brandy Daniels | Campus Living |
Cheryl Dudasik-Wiggs | English Department, THCAS |
Jamie Bloss | Laupus Health Sciences Library |
Robert G Carroll | Medical Education |
Angie Jenkins | Educational Leadership |
Rebecca Asch | Department of Biology, THCAS |
Jay Newhard | Philosophy and Religious Studies |
Adriana Heimann Rios | Geological Sciences |
Lisa Beth Robinson | School of Art & Design |
Patricia Anderson | College of Education, Dept. of ELMID |
Angela Lamson | Human Development and Family Science |
Professor James Anthony McKernan | College of Education, Cultural Foundations of Education (SEFR) |
Crystal Waters | ECU Career Services |
Michael Daniels | Health and Human Performance/ Social Work |
Ruby Haynes | College of Nursing |
Eboni J. Baugh | Human Development and Family Science |
Dr. Kimberly D. Thompson | English |
Patrick Horn | Biology |
Kate Taylor Harcourt-Medina | Human Development and Family Science |
Jim Tisnado | School of Art and Design |
Erol Ozan | Technology Systems |
Tricia Wilson-Okamura | Foreign Languages and Literatures |
Edward Jacobs | Theory, Composition & Musicology/School of Music |
Tim Nowak | Music Education |
Mark Alan Taggart | School of Music |
Daniel Shirley | School of Music |
Loni Crumb | Interdisciplinary Professions |
Eleanor I Cook | ALS Joyner Library |
Ariane L Peralta | Biology |
Jean-Luc Scemama | Biology |
Christyn Dolbier | Psychology |
Rachel Gittman | Biology and Coastal Studies Institute |
Alex Davis | School of Music |
Cynthia L. Wagoner | Music Education and Therapy/School of Music/CFAC |
Cindy Putnam-Evans | Harriot College of Arts and Sciences |
Denise Donica | Occupational Therapy |
John Hoben | Biology, Water Resources Center |
Kristen Orr | Biology |
Tamra Jo Church | Health Education and Promotion |
John Stiller | Biology |
Eric Horsman | Geological Sciences |
Jacob Hochard | Economics |
Eleanor Baker | Biology |
Stephen Gray | Disability Support Services / Student Affairs |
Heather Ries | Mathematics |
Marjorie Ringler | Educational Leadership |
Beth Thompson | Biology |
John Kramar | School of Music/Vocal Studies |
Burrell Montz | Geography, Planning, and Environment |
Kimberly Anderson | College of Education |
Rodney C. Roberts | Philosophy & Religious Studies |
Jason Mose | Health Services and Information Management |
Dr. Andrea Kitta | English |
Kimberly Rogers | Coastal Studies, Integrated Coastal Programs |
Margit Schmidt | Biology |
Chris Ulffers | School of Music |
Cynthia Grace-McCaskey | Anthropology & Integrated Coastal Programs |
Deborah R.Moody | Student Affairs - L.W.G. Inter-Generational Community Center |
Shahab A. Akhter | Cardiovascular Sciences BSOM |
Nicole Franklin | School of Music |
Marianna Walker | Communication Sciences and Disorders |
Jessica Teague | School of Theatre and Dance |
Rachel Baker | Faculty Senate |
Carol A. Johnston | Human Development and Family Sciences |
Andrea VanDeusen | School of Music |
Johanna Hannan | Physiology/BSOM |
Patrick Harris | Biology |
Otto Rehfeld | Office of Data Analysis & Strategy |
Jeffrey McKinnon | Biology |
Jami Rhodes | Vocal Studies/School of Music/CFAC |
Dr. Heidi Bonner | Criminal Justice |
Gabe Duggan | School of Art and Design |
John Bibby O’Brien | Keyboard Studies Music |
Joshua Gardner | English |
Catherine Gardner | School of Music |
Carol Goodwillie | Biology |
Jay Juchniewicz | School of Music |
Scott Walfield | Criminal Justice |
Kristen Gregory | College of Education, Department of Elementary and Middle Grades Education |
Keiko Sekino | School of Music |
Jie Yang | School of Social Work |
Aisha Powell | College of Business |
Ronny Antonio Bell | Public Health/Brody School of Medicine |
Virginia Driscoll | Music Education and Therapy |
Tonya Ramona Smith | TEDI BEAR CAC |
Brittney Harrell | ECU Graduate Admissons |
Nancy Keith | ECU Pediatrics- TEDI BEAR CAC |
Scott Curtis | Geography, Planning and Environment |
Cheryl V. Elhammoumi | College of Nursing |
Quonice Payton | Internal Medicine |
Matthew K. Smith | News Services and Research, Economic Development and Engagement |
Suzanne Manizza Roszak | English |
Katie MacPherson | Internal medicine |
Madison Tyndall | Joyner Library |
Hannah M. Barnett | Family Medicine Research Division |
Teresa A. Davis | Financial Services |
Brianna Roberts | ITCS, Client Engagement and Support |
Karlene Cunningham | Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine |
Ryan Kirk | Mathematics |
Stephen J. Culver | Geological Sciences |
Dede Smalls | Registrar's Office |
Laurie B Godwin | ITCS and SOAD |
Latoya Evett Mobley | Pediatrics |
Gina Firnhaber | College of Nursing |
Tyshyia Nicole Williams | ECU School Of Dental Medicine |
Chris Baillie | Biology |
Kimberly Winslow | Dept of Human Resources |
Jennifer-Scott Mobley | School of Theatre and Dance |
Dr. Erika Katherine Johnson | School of Communication |
Karen C. Rupp | Registrar Office |
Seo Eo | School of Art and Design |
Amy D. Fagans | COB/FINA |
R. Martin Reardon | Educational Leadership |
Margaret Bauer | English |
Melissa Spain | Athletics |
Madison Heffentrager | Geography, Planning, and Environment |
Jasper Leavitt | Biology |
Desirae D. Rivers | ECU Pediatrics- TEDI BEAR CAC |
Jacquelyn Mallette | Human Development and Family Science |
Joshua Killian | Chemistry/Kneeling 19 |
Ralph Scott | Academic Library Services |
Rebecca A. Snyder, MD, MPH | Department of Surgery |
Angela Marie Novak | Elementary and Middle Grades/College of Education |
Karen D. Jones | College of Education, Dept of Ed Leadership |
Craig Marshall | School of Hospitality Leadership |
Katherine Ford | Foreign Languages and Literatures |
Patricia A. Suggs | University Advancement |
Janet H. Sanders | Technology Systems |
Alexandra Venuto | Graduate Biology |
Sharon McNeil | ITCS |
Lok Pokhrel | Department of Public Health/Department of Health Education and Promotion |
Liz Jones | Biology |
Deborah Culbertson | CSDI |
Dr. Marame Gueye | English |
David P. Conradt | Political Science, Professor Emeritus |
E. Thomson Shields, Jr. | English |
David Siegel | Educational Leadership |
Vanina Wekam | Biology |
Lida Cope | English |
Stacey R. Altman | Kinesiology |
Sheena Eagan | Bioethics & Interdisciplinary Studies |
Alice Richman | Health Education and Promotion |
Eric Soule | Health Education and Promotion |
Renee Safford-White | ECU Medical & Health Sciences Foundation, Inc. |
Holly F. Mathews | Anthropology |
Chelsea Stowe | BSOM Dept. of Pediatrics |
Allen Dennis | Academic Technologies |
Patricia Dragon | Academic Library Services |
Lynnsay Marsan | Biology |
Jukelia Bess | Center for Health Disparities |
Jill Twark | Foreign Languages and Literatures |
LaTrenda Shenane Britt | Athletics/Pirate Club |
Kirstin Squint | English |
Gera Samuel Miles Jr. | English & Ethnic Studies |
Randall Martoccia | English |
Claudia M. Williams | Internal Medicine |
Mark D. Johnson | Department of English |
Stacy Trackenberg | Biology |
Matthew Cox | English |
Rebecca Johnson | University Writing Center |
Tracy Ann Morse | English |
Kristin Z. Black | Health Education and Promotion |
Michael Aceto | English |
Cassandra Hawkins | Pediatrics/TEDI BEAR |
Keith H. Nelson, MD | Obstetrics and Gynecology |
Cameron Eigner | English |
Rachel Roper | Microbiology & Immunology, Brody School of Medicine |
Wendy Sharer | English |
Patricia Roullard | College of Education |
Guiseppe Getto | English |
Xiaoming Zeng | Health Services and Information Management |
Kimberley Gise DDS | Surgical Sciences/School of Dental Medicine |
David Smith | Foreign Languages and Literatures |
Krista McCoy | Biology |
Don Chaney | Health Education and Promotion |
Emily Tate | Biology |
Anna Albright | Biology |
Lucas Antonio John Tidmarsh Cortes | Biology |
Atta Ahmad | Biology |
Christopher Balakrishnan | Biology |
Claudia Daly | BSOM |
Brian Glover | English |
Ed Stellwag | Biology/THCAS |
Reginald Wade Watson | English |
Luke Whisnant | English |
Sunghan Kim | Engineering |
April Blakeslee | Biology |
Emily Scott | Biology |
Amanda Williams, DA II | School of Dental Medicine |
George Carlyle Martin IV | Communication |
Elizabeth Ables | Biology |
Susan Latham Phelps, RN | ECU Women's Physicians |
Rene Soto | HHP |
Matthew Egan | School of Art and Design |
Michelle Chamberlain | Biology |
Jason T. Raupp | History |
Heather Vance-Chalcraft | Biology |
David Chalcraft | Biology |
Joan Mansfield | School of Art & Design |
Tiffany Sheppard - Allgood | Office of Educational Support, Faculty Development & Continuing Education |
Dr. Keisha Brown | Dept. Of Human Resources |
Liza Wieland | Department of English; Harriot College |
Marsha Taylor | School of Dental Medicine |
Amy McIntyre | School of Art and Design |
Barbara Smith Campbell | Real Property |
Lathan E. Turner | Student Affairs/Visiting faculty COE |
Monisha Atkinson | College of Education |
Emory Wellman | Department of Biology |
Ryan Garrigues | Microbiology & Immunology |
Emily Johnson | Biology |
Laura Mazow | Anthropology |
Gwendolyn Tyson | College of Nursing |
Sandy Acheampong | BSOM Office of Student Development and Academic Counseling |
Doris Leach | College of Nursing |
Anne Mallory | English |
Joy Morgan | College of Nursing |
Christopher M. Anderson | Biology |
Derrance Hughes | Counseling Center |
Matt Pahl | Biochemistry |
Keith L. Keene | Center for Health Disparities |
Aimee West Smith | Psychology |
Mark Richardson | School of Music |
James Morley | Biology |
Benjamin Blaisdell | College of Education |
Alexander Schoemann | Psychology |
Paul Hager | Biology |
Audrey Eaves | Physician Assistant Studies |
Grace Gardner | Student |
Linda Clark Stevens | LEED |
Amanda Peterson | College of Business/Accounting |
James Loudon | Anthropology |
Erin Frost | English |
Joseph Reid | College of Business - Department of Accounting |
Stephanie Wallio | Psychology, THCAS |
Trip Lamb | Biology |
Catherine Schwartz | College of Education |
Siddhartha Mitra | Geological Sciences |
David Griffith | Coastal Studies/ Integrated Coastal Programs |
Donna Rackley | College of Nursing |
Natasha Bell | Engineering and Water Resources Center |
Antoni Aguilar | REDE |
Regina DeWitt | Physics, THCAS |
Christy Howard | College of Education |
Mikkaka Overstreet | College of Education |
Jean L. Merenda | College of Allied Health Sciences |
Lisa Barricella | Academic Library Services |
William Bloss | Criminal Justice |
Zach Robinson | Mathematics |
Leigh Belford | College of Education |
Heidi Puckett | Educational Leadership, College of Education |
Alan R. Bailey | Academic Library Services, J.Y. Joyner Library |
Claire Anderson | Student |
Elizabeth Swaggerty | College of Education |
Tiffanie N. Moore | Internal Medicine |
Steven Wolf | Physics, THCAS |
Sambuddha banerjee | Chemistry |
Casey Oliver | English |
Kendra Alexander | University Advancement |