The 21-day Anti-Racism Challenge, held during the summer of 2020, helped campus community members further their awareness, compassion, understanding, and engagement towards anti-racism, with a focus on anti-Blackness and the experience of Black people in America. The challenge generated an interest in proactive steps and additional training to help develop solution-oriented action plans.
Over the past several months, UC San Diego campus leaders have been in ongoing dialog with representatives from the Black Student Union (BSU) and Black Graduate and Professional Student Association (BGPSA) on how to better meet their needs and how to drive action to make our campus a more inclusive and welcoming environment for Black students. These robust conversations brought into focus the progress that has been made over the years as well as the gaps yet to be addressed. Simultaneously, Student Affairs created shared strategic commitments to address Anti-Blackness, and prioritized hosting a symposium on the Black student experience at UC San Diego in response to students’ request for a series of sessions.
To continue to advance our progress and effectively engage the campus community in developing solutions to improve the experience of Black students on our campus, representatives from the BSU, BGPSA, Student Affairs, and the Office of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion collaborated to create a shared learning experience – via a symposium – that better equips the campus to respond to the concerns voiced by our Black students. More than 40 faculty and staff across campus came together to co-create this symposium to empower their colleagues to engage in this work. The goal of the symposium is to increase awareness of the Black student experience at UC San Diego, with the goal of fostering intentional and sustained action to enhance their experience and promote pro-Blackness at UC San Diego.
The event will begin with a kick-off workshop on addressing Anti-Blackness and Designing Pro-Black Student Solutions on Friday, April 16, 2021 from noon – 2:00 p.m. to prepare us for the daily sessions. Keynotes on the Black Student Experience will be presented Monday, April 19, 2021 from 9:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.
We will be hosting daily themed sessions April 19-23, 2021 from noon – 2:00 p.m. in the following areas of student support:
- Monday, April 19, 2021: Pre-Matriculation
- Tuesday, April 20, 2021: Current Students, Campus Safety and Well Being
- Wednesday, April 21, 2021: Current Students, Retention & Campus Climate
- Thursday, April 22, 2021: Current Students, Academics
- Friday, April 23, 2021: Graduation and Beyond
Each day is focused on a particular topic and you may find certain days are more aligned to your work within our community at UC San Diego. We hope you walk away with at least one action or policy change that will enhance the Black student experience at UC San Diego.
In recognition of this event, two hours of administrative leave with pay have been approved for employees to attend. Supervisors, upon request, may approve the use of such leave when the absence does not infringe upon the performance of required job duties or patient care.
Please share this invitation with your colleagues. Creating better experiences for our Black students requires campus-wide support, collaboration, and action plans.
Thank you for your commitment to creating a better experience for our Black students. We look forward to your continued involvement in actively transforming UC San Diego into a student-centered university.
