UVA_HRHR Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
The HR Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee was established in May 2020, and in partnership with UVA's Office for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) and the Office for Equal Opportunity and Civil Rights (EOCR), promotes awareness of and respect for diversity among UVA staff and faculty; advocates for inclusion and inclusive practices and policies; and ensures equity in human resources programs and processes. Current DEI committee chairs are Brian Ford and Kimberlyn McDonald, Senior HR Business Partners. John Kosky, VP & CHRO is the HR DEI Executive Sponsor.
President Jim Ryan on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
In President Ryan's recent UVA Today article about DEI, he asserted that "Colleges should continue to promote the core elements of DEI, as these efforts are crucial to ensuring opportunity and access, attracting and retaining the most talented people, creating a vibrant campus culture, and promoting a richer and more robust exchange of ideas." He notes that critics fall into two camps about DEI: those who embrace the concept but who are concerned about overreach, and those "who would like to see DEI disappear altogether." His article looks for common ground among the camps.
He goes on to define diversity as "not just race, ethnicity, and gender, but a wide range of other factors and characteristics, including geography, socioeconomic status, first-generation status, disability status, religion, age, sexual orientation, viewpoint, ideology, and special talents" and equity as "an effort to ensure equal opportunity, not equal results." He defines inclusion as "an effort to make everyone feel like they belong and are full and welcome members of the community."
He concludes, saying, "To create a community that is diverse, equitable, and inclusive, those in leadership positions have to take actions that actually further those goals – through their admissions processes; their hiring and retention practices; and in the myriad decisions they make about rooming policies, the food to serve, the events to celebrate, the spaces to create for students, and who in their community they choose to honor."
September 15 - October 15 is National Hispanic Heritage Month
Hispanic Heritage Month celebrates and calls out the achievements and contributions of Hispanic Americans - Latinos, whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America - who have inspired others to achieve success. The observation began in 1968 as Hispanic Heritage Week under President Lyndon Johnson and was expanded by President Ronald Reagan in 1988 to cover a 30-day period. It was enacted into law on August 17, 1988.
The 2023 recognition theme, Latinos: Driving Prosperity, Power, and Progress in America, pays tribute to the immense economic and political strides Latinos have made in the U.S.
The word Hispanic is generally a linguistic category, referring to people from the 21 Spanish-speaking countries and territories, including Spain. The word Latino is more of an ethnic and cultural category, used to describe people who are descendants from Latin America, including Mexico, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Cuba, Central and South America. It is often a personal choice which term people use to describe themselves. Latine and Latinx are gender-neutral terms recently popularized to describe people that originate from Latin America (Latine is the more grammatically correct) because gendered Spanish words offer no option for those who choose to identify as non-binary.
Enjoy this colorful presentation about Hispanic Heritage Month by Gabriela Garcia Largen, UVA HR Sr. Director of Service and Experience.
