Main Image for 2020–21 Action Agenda

2020–21 Action Agenda

 
Gospel Explosion concert at Bard College.
Photo by Eliza Watson ’21

Latest Updates

Progress on Current Initiatives

Updated November 23, 2020

  • Academic Initiatives
    An update from the Dean of the College outlines substantive work completed and underway in diversity, equity, and inclusion in academics at Bard, including:
    • Social justice training for faculty leaders, 
    • Inclusion Challenge grant proposals,
    • Workshops on antiracism practices,  
    • Diversity in hiring, and 
    • Expanded curricular offerings.
    More about Academic Initiatives


  • Faculty and Staff Training
    The College has engaged Dax-Devlon Ross to provide antiracism training and lead workshops for faculty and staff as part of a long-term initiative to provide ongoing antiracism education across the College. He recently led a faculty workshop for all academic program directors on adaptive leadership and identifying and reimagining structures of power and privilege. His next antiracism training will be with members of the Athletics staff. 

    All employees will be completing a mandatory training by the end of the semester on preventing harassment and discrimination in the workplace; creating an inclusive classroom, office, and workplace; and responding to reports of bias incidents.
  • Liberal Arts Colleges Racial Equity Leadership Alliance
    Bard has joined the newly formed Liberal Arts Colleges Racial Equity Leadership Alliance, whose inaugural members include 53 universities and liberal arts colleges across the nation, giving us access to:
    • Regular virtual learning sessions on antiracism and equity, 
    • A range of assessment services, and 
    • A national network of respected higher education leaders in diversity, equity, and inclusion.
  • Climate and Facilitation Initiatives
    The College has contracted with the 122 Consultancy Group to conduct a Diversity Climate Assessment with our Athletics program that will take place over the course of the next six months. It will include a variety of facilitated discussions across the department. 

    We are finalizing a contract with a local mediation center to establish a longer-term relationship that will provide campus-wide access to ongoing facilitation, mediation services, and trainings focused on restorative practices to support our DEI work. 
  • President's Commission
    The Commission thanks the entire Bard community for its diligence in completing the HEDS Diversity and Equity Climate Survey. The high participation rate will allow the Commission to utilize the data in a statistically significant way. The Commission is grateful to all who completed the HEDS Survey and participated in the Town Hall sessions, providing invaluable insights for crafting a meaningful and actionable report to the President. 
  • Annandale Road
    The College met recently with Dutchess County Public Works Commissioner Bob Balkind to discuss short- and long-term goals for securing the safety of Annadale Road. Planning efforts and stakeholder involvement will be a substantial part of next steps that will include the formation of a working group to hear concerns, generate ideas, and maintain an open dialogue and flow of information. Concurrently, the County is assembling a team of engineers, designers, attorneys, and other relevant departments to begin looking at physical options for the road. After the new year, we will convene a joint Task Force that is committed to seeing the project through.
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Reporting

  • We encourage members of the Bard community to make the College aware of any instances of discrimination or harassment.

    Reports can be made to the College using the Bard College Incident Reporting Form or the Title IX Reporting Form, or by calling the dean of inclusive excellence at 845-758-7367. Any emergency should be reported to Campus Safety and Security at 845-758-7777.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Task Force

President Botstein has appointed a standing task force of Bard administrators to work with the Council for Inclusive Excellence (CIE). This group will keep the community informed on a regular basis on the steps being taken.
 


2020–21 Plan of Action

Phase 1: Caring for the immediate emotional needs of the campus community
 

Meeting the needs of people in distress remains a priority. The acknowledgment of pain (both verbally and in writing) and the provision of emotionally safe healing spaces must both occur in order for people to move forward in a productive manner.  

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Mental Health

  • Bard Counseling Services
    Bard Counseling Services continues to be available to support students. We encourage you to reach out to schedule an appointment.

Financial Support

Given COVID-19’s compounding of existing financial disparities, a request was approved for the Bard Student Emergency Fund to remain an ongoing initiative under the auspices of the Council for Inclusive Excellence (CIE). With the support and leadership of the College’s development professionals, we will continue to solicit financial contributions to support students experiencing unforeseen financial challenges. This funding complements the institutional and government resources already allocated to support this effort.

Phase 2: Empowerment, Preparation, and Education for Action

This phase includes solidifying the educational, human, and fiscal resources needed to sustain long-lasting change.

  • Review of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committees
    The dean of inclusive excellence will review the structure of the Council for Inclusive Excellence and reconstitute the Campus Climate Committee / Bias Incident Community Response Team—the entities charged with campus-wide data collection, planning, and action. For example, data garnered from a survey of the Professionals of Color (a CIE working group) will provide vital information on the experiences of professionals working at Bard who identify as members of historically marginalized communities.  
  • Inclusive Pedagogical Instruction
    The dean of inclusive excellence will partner with academic colleagues on inclusive pedagogical instruction and coaching, the review of curricular and programmatic offerings, and faculty engagement as panel participants, subject matter experts, and coorganizers of collaborative institutional programming. These initiatives are a few of the preliminary aspirational outcomes—all of which require the leadership and talent of Bard’s faculty and academic administration.
  • Including Student Voices
    To ensure that student voices remain heard, the dean’s office is establishing a Dean of Inclusive Excellence Advisory Board consisting of the student leadership of all affinity-based clubs and organizations. The board will ensure direct student access to the institution’s chief diversity personnel when concerns arise. Diversity-centered partnerships with local and county municipalities are also being secured. A collaborative team of campus leaders is working diligently to create a policy on racial and ethnicity-based harassment. 
Bard College Gospel Choir

Bard College Gospel Choir

Dean Sablo relaunched the Bard Gospel Choir in the spring of 2020, with the goals of meeting the spiritual and community needs of Bard students.

Gospel Explosion concert at Bard College, February 2020. Photo by Eliza Watson ’21

Phase 3: Evaluating and Strengthening Successful Systems and Incentives

  • Long-Range Diversity Strategic Plan
    Pending COVID regulations, the fall semester will include the development of a long-range diversity strategic plan that ensures unit-level engagement and accountability. We cannot let this moment pass without a clear commitment to a sustainable and inclusive future. Additional future actions also include the exploration of a department-level diversity assessment tool. These instruments provide individual departments an opportunity to engage in transparent conversations about the role of diversity/inclusion in their current service or program delivery.
  • NCBI Campus Affiliate Program
    A Campus Affiliate chapter of the National Coalition Building Institute (NCBI) will be launched at Bard in the fall. The benefits of this affiliation include options for curriculum integration, free diversity training and workshops on demand, student engagement programming, controversial issues expertise, and the potential to consider this cultural/inclusion training model as an essential part of the new student/employee onboarding experience.
  • Diversity and Inclusion in Bard Athletics
    The dean for inclusive excellence will serve as the Diversity and Inclusion Designee for Bard Athletics, working to support athletic operations through an equity and inclusion lens. The dean serves as the chairperson of excellence in athletics—a coalition to support diversity, equity, and inclusion in Bard College Athletics. With this dedicated cadre of student athletes, athletics staff members, and interested partners from across the institution, Bard College Athletics will further its commitment to diversity in permanent and sustainable ways.

2019–20 Progress Report

New Dean of Inclusive Excellence

In January 2020, the College successfully concluded its fall 2019 search to fill the six-month vacancy in this post by hiring Dr. Kahan Sablo. Dr. Sablo brings to the position over 20 years of experience in higher education administration, most recently at George Mason University where he was assistant vice president for university life. He has headed diversity work at two public universities in New York State, Canton and Fredonia, and at another state institution, Edinboro University of Pennsylvania, where he was senior administrator of student life. His background in equity and inclusion work in postsecondary institutions is extensive and varied. Dr. Sablo has been charged with creating a strategic plan for diversity, equity, and inclusion at Bard, and is heading the recently named President's Commission on Racial Equity and Justice, which will report on its findings by January 2021.