Collegiate Times

An e-mail from Provost Mark McNamee updated the Virginia Tech community yesterday on the progress of the Implementation team that was formed to review the recommendations of the Task Force on Race and the Institution.

The task force was appointed during the 2006-07 academic year after political science professor Chris Clements, who is black, was denied tenure, and students and faculty gathered outside of Burruss Hall in protest.  

The task force, under the leadership of Wayne Scales, met throughout the year and issued itsfinal report in 2007.  It consisted of faculty, staff and students with demonstrated knowledge and experience in dealing with race relations. The force was divided into six subcommittees focusing on academic programs, administrative infrastructure, alumni and community engagement, faculty and staff, graduate students and undergraduate students.

The Implementation team was formally introduced in August 2007 to closely examine the recommendations made by the task force.   It is co-chaired by both the provost and the vice president for Multicultural Affairs and Equity and consists of faculty, staff and students in areas that oversee various components of the recommendations.

The team has been meeting on a monthly basis since September to analyze each of the recommendations to determine their feasibility.  

The e-mail stated that the team "will be providing periodic updates to the university community," as well as a formal report at the end of the semester.  A specific date for the release of the final report still remains unannounced.  

The members of the Implementation team include Mark McNamee (co-chair), University Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs; Kevin McDonald (co-chair), Vice President for Multicultural Affairs and Equity; Christina Brogdon, EO/AA Coordinator, Office for Equal Opportunity; Sheila Carter-Tod, assistant professor, English; David Ford, Vice Provost for Academic Affairs; Guy Sims, Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs; Pat Hyer, Associate Provost for Academic Administration; Jonathan Moore, graduate student in biological sciences; Ray Plaza, Director of Diversity Initiatives, Office of Multicultural Affairs; Karen Sanders, Assistant Provost and Director of Academic Student Services; Elisa Sotelino, professor, civil and environmental engineering; James Turner, professor, mathematics and interim Associate Provost Graduate School; Rianka Urbina, SGA diversity chair and undergraduate student in finance; Judy Ridinger, Director, Staff and Compensation in Human Resources.