Responses to Demands of LMU’s Black Graduate Students

Demands:

1. Tuition discounts or assistance for lower-income graduate students, or those working full time based on debt to income ratio. Rationale: Financial aid calculates two years prior, which is not accurate for people’s current financial situation and their master’s program demands.
2. Availability and access to tuition remission for graduate assistants and research assistants, or a 50% discounted rate on tuition. Rationale: Most universities offer tuition remission for these positions.

SOE Responses:

1. Each year, the SOE provides, on average, more than $18.5 million in student aid for graduate students enrolled in its programs. On average, 87% of all SOE students receive student aid each year, and the average award is $18,313 per student.
2. Since July 2020 the SOE has established several program funding and scholarships focused on supporting students of color. This includes tuition scholarships for students enrolled in SOE's Aspiring Leaders of Color program (established in 2021); a scholarship for Black Doctoral students (established in 2022); and a scholarship for DACA students enrolled in the doctoral program (established in 2022).

Demands:

1. BSU presence in graduate orientation to help Black students feel a sense of community and to motivate them to be more involved on campus. Suggestion: Have an email sent out to students at the same time as the orientation email for us to register for an additional orientation for Black graduate students to meet Black staff in their department, and to receive a tour an introduction to campus resources for Black students.
2. Funding for Graduate Students to include a Black Graduate Association. Suggestions: Picnic for incoming black graduate students; networking events with undergrad and alumni; networking events with working professionals in program fields (e.g. events for 1- to 3-year removed African American alumni, faculty, staff or other university connections to present experiences from their workplace and preparedness); career workshops; Black faculty meet and greets.
3. More mentorship events for collaboration with graduate and undergraduate students could help increase the number of African American graduate students.
4. Graduate presence on MarComm (marketing and communications) to advertise to graduate students.

SOE Responses:

1. The SOE is developing an orientation session for Black Graduate Students in the SOE, which will launch for the AY23-24. As requested, the orientation will include an invitation to an additional orientation for Black students, during which they will have an opportunity to meet Black faculty, staff, and students in the SOE and in their specific areas of study.  Black students will also receive an overview of campus resources for Black students.
2. The SOE has advocated for funding for the Black Graduate Student Association from the Office of Graduate Studies, led by Vice Provost David Sapp. 
3. Since July 2020, SOE has increased its support for doctoral students to engage in the Barbara L. Jackson Scholars, a national network of doctoral students of color administered through the University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA). Each year the SOE has recommended two new doctoral students for the program and has provided financial support for their their travel to UCEA’s annual conference. In Summer  2022, Dr. Linda Tillman, the founding director of UCEA’s Barbara L. Jackson Scholars program, and Dr. Antonio Felix, launched a formal LMU initiative for mentoring and supporting Barbara L. Jackson Scholars at LMU. 
4. Since July 2020, SOE has made intentional efforts to boost the racial diversity of its faculty. For current information on faculty demographics in the SOE, visit the “By The Numbers” section of the SOE 2022 Impact Report at https://soe.lmu.edu/about/ourimpact/2022/#btn

Demands:

1. Emails for BSU events prioritized in inbox along with financial, mental health, jobs, and academic resources.
2. More African American leadership in each graduate department within the next 2 years.
3. African American representative and resources in the career center within the next 2 years. Suggestion: Black@LMU apparel available at the bookstore (ex: sweatshirts, T-shirts) developed by students.

SOE Responses:

1. Since 2020, eight full-time faculty have been hired in the SOE. Four of the new hires are Tenure-line faculty (Maia Hoskin, Christopher Cormier, Kenzo Sung, and Dolores Delgado Bernal) and four are term faculty (Keisha Chin Goosby, Karen Hawkins, Dawn Richards, and Linda Tillman). Seven of the eight new faculty members are scholars of color, and five of the faculty are Black/African American or Mixed Race. A current search is underway for an additional scholar focused on leadership for social justice. 
2. In Fall 2021, Dr. Linda Tillman joined the LMU SOE Doctoral program as a Distinguished Visiting Faculty member. Dr. Linda Tillman, a Black woman, is a nationally renowned DEI scholar with expertise in leading for antiracism and social justice, mentoring students and faculty of color, and qualitative research. In addition to teaching in the doctoral program, Dr. Tillman worked with the director of the Doctoral Program to support a program review, to expose doctoral students to a diverse group of nationally recognized scholars of social justice, and to support our DEI cluster hiring efforts for the doctoral program. 
3. As of Spring 2023, the following Black faculty members are serving in leadership positions: Dr. Bill Parham (Associate Dean for DEI and Faculty Affairs); Dr. Keisha Chin Goosby (Academic Program Director of Teacher Education); Dr. Maia Hoskin (co-chair of the Diversity Action Committee).

Demands:

1. African American curriculum in all graduate programs that deals with systemic racism, with a focus on Black racism.
2. Black Authors, research, expanded material on current events vs. reoccurring material
3. More education on systemic racism included in generalized literature about African Americans. Example: When generalizing African American culture and history, talk about how systemic racism has impacted it.

SOE Responses:

1. The SOE Doctoral program developed, with the LMU graduate school, a set of standards and an aligned rubric for curriculum review and revision which includes a focus on issues of racial injustice, equity, and inclusion. This was used to conduct an audit of syllabi, texts, and projects in an effort to make adjustments as needed for Fall Semester 2020. Similar efforts are beginning across all SOE programs as a part of an equity audit. 
2. A diverse national external review committee conducted an extensive review of the doctoral program’s syllabi, texts, projects, practices, resources, and faculty in Spring 2022 to provide guidance for strengthening the program. A committee was launched in Fall 2022 to begin the redesign and enhancement of the doctoral program. 
3. The DAC was tasked with planning and launching an SOE equity audit as part of the University Institutional Review process. This audit will involve a review of SOE policies and practices related to faculty, staff, and student hiring, admission, recruitment, review and retention, professional learning, curricular reform, program development, and recognitions to identify problems related to inequity, systemic forms of inequity and oppression (particularly racial inequity and oppression). The outcome of this equity audit will inform interventions, measures of progress, and accountability. Dr. Will Perez began spearheading this process as part of the University’s institutional review process and presented preliminary findings to the university community in the fall of 2021.
4. The SOE has developed a recommended statement for all SOE course syllabi that focuses on anti-Black racism. Programs have begun to integrate this statement and to adapt course content to ensure that this topic is addressed in ways appropriate to the crisis of anti-Black racism in our society.
5. The SOE included an objective in its strategic plan focused on engaging in regular equity audits of its policies, procedures, and practices. Specifically, Goal One of the LMU SOE Strategic Plan reads as follows:

Priority Goal One:  The School of Education will support its mission and vision by integrating diversity, equity, and inclusion throughout SOE programs, practices, and partnerships.

Objective 1.1: All SOE programs, practices, and partnerships will reflect the SOE's commitments to diversity, equity, inclusion (DEI) and social justice.

Objective 1.2: The SOE will increase the diversity of its faculty, staff, and student populations, thereby contributing to LMU's desire to increase the diversity of its students, faculty, and staff.

Objective 1.3: The SOE will audit and revise all programs' curriculum to support diversity, equity, inclusion, and social justice.

Objective 1.4: The SOE will become the first SOE in the country to offer a Seal of Biliteracy and/or Bicultural Badge through all of its programs.

Alignment to University Plan: The objectives that fall under the SOE’s Priority Goal One, align most closely to the University’s Spotlight Initiative One. 

Demands:

1. More Black graduate students and staff recruited as a targeted population via LinkedIn or other social media sites.

SOE Responses:

1. A diverse national external review committee conducted an extensive review of the doctoral program’s syllabi, texts, projects, practices, resources, and faculty in Spring 2022 to provide guidance for strengthening the program, including student recruitment. A committee was then launched in Fall 2022 to begin the redesign and enhancement of the doctoral program. 
2. For current information on student demographics in the SOE, visit the “By The Numbers” section of the SOE 2022 Impact Report: https://soe.lmu.edu/about/ourimpact/2022/#btn
3. The SOE included an objective in its strategic plan focused on diversifying the student body. Specifically, Goal One of the LMU SOE Strategic Plan reads as follows:

Priority Goal One:  The School of Education will support its mission and vision by integrating diversity, equity, and inclusion throughout SOE programs, practices, and partnerships.

Objective 1.1: All SOE programs, practices, and partnerships will reflect the SOE's commitments to diversity, equity, inclusion (DEI) and social justice.

Objective 1.2: The SOE will increase the diversity of its faculty, staff, and student populations, thereby contributing to LMU's desire to increase the diversity of its students, faculty, and staff.

Objective 1.3: The SOE will audit and revise all programs' curriculum to support diversity, equity, inclusion, and social justice.

Objective 1.4: The SOE will become the first SOE in the country to offer a Seal of Biliteracy and/or Bicultural Badge through all of its programs.

Alignment to University Plan: The objectives that fall under the SOE’s Priority Goal One, align most closely to the University’s Spotlight Initiative One. 

Demands:

1. Seminars on black history’s impact on society that will give us a better perspective on African American impact on history. Examples: Black inventors; Black legends and their stories (e.g. Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Rosa Parks, Booker T. Washington).
2. Consider graduate students' class schedules when scheduling events and eateries
3. BSU or other African American events advertised by professors and more events including graduate students 

SOE Responses:

1. In addition to programmatic changes described in previous areas of these responses, SOE has offered a series of DEI-related events and programming, organized by groups such as the SOE DAC, CEEL, academic programs, and the SOE Alumni Association. These included guest speakers focused on DEI issues (including Bettina Love, Tyrone Howard, Howard Fuller, Lecia Brooks, and Linda Tillman), workshops such as the alumni-led workshop: “Race in the time of COVID; How to Facilitate healing conversations at school, work or home in 2020,” and professional learning opportunities for SOE faculty and staff organized by the DAC.

Additional Steps Taken By the SOE DAC to address programming:

1. The DAC analyzes multiple sources of information on the experiences of Black students, staff, and faculty, with priority being given to the experiences of Black graduate students and alumni. Taken together with data gathered from the SOE student survey, the DAC and SOE Leadership will push out a communication on the key priorities, commitments, and longer-term Equity Audit process.
2. The DAC is working toward a roadmap to implement in SOE for lasting impact.
3. DAC Co-Chairs will engage with the leaders of similar committees in other schools, colleges and university units to ensure efforts are aligned across the university, share lessons learned, and learn from one another’s efforts. 
4. DAC Co-Chairs are willing to assist in forwarding communications regarding attempts to build community and updates from student representatives to Department Chairs and Program Directors and to support efforts to include this information in SOE and University Newsletters.