Though the numbers of minorities have increased in University of
California faculty in recent decades, diversity remains a pressing
issue for many UC leaders.
The UC President’s Task Force on Faculty Diversity,
composed of 11 UC academic and administrative leaders, presented
the findings of its recent report at the President’s Summit
on Faculty Diversity in Oakland on Tuesday.
The report found that as the numbers of underrepresented
minority scholars have grown in recent years, the UC faculty has
failed to represent the changing demographics. Underrepresented
minorities include faculty who are American Indian, Latino/Chicano,
black and Asian.
In the face of this growing divide, UC officials have begun
discussing measures to increase the numbers of underrepresented
minorities among the university’s faculty.
“Faculty diversity is one of the most pressing issues
facing the University of California today,” UC President
Robert Dynes said in a press release. “UC will remain
competitive as a leading institution of higher education only if it
is successful in addressing the underrepresentation.”
The task force made several recommendations to increase
diversity. It suggested that administrators begin issuing annual
reports on faculty diversity and provide “resource-based
incentives for diversity efforts,” according to the
report.
Another recommendation revolved around making diversity a major
component in the planning of faculty hiring, curriculum development
and other areas.
In the 2004-2005 academic year, non-white faculty made up 27
percent of the new appointments for the entire UC. During that same
period, 26 percent of UCLA’s new appointments were
non-white.
Most individual UC campuses have committees designed to address
faculty diversity. At UCLA, the Office of Faculty Diversity manages
projects and provides access to resources that contribute to
faculty diversity.
The university has taken steps to differentiate its diversity
efforts from affirmative action, which was rendered illegal in the
mid-1990s by Proposition 209. Affirmative action is the use of race
or gender as a factor in personnel or admissions decisions.
Jennifer Ward, a spokeswoman for the UC Office of the President,
said the UC has received “nothing but support” for its
diversity efforts and it would not avoid the issue because it might
be associated with affirmative action.
“Diversity is not a bad word and diversity is not
something the university wants to shy away from,” she said.
“It’s something we want to embrace.”
The UC has a Web site explaining the mission and findings of the
diversity task force, including a link to the university’s
policy on affirmative action.
The task force has emphasized that faculty diversity is a
concern in universities across the nation.
“The lack of faculty diversity is not unique to the
University of California and is a growing concern across our
nation’s institutions of higher learning,” said the
group’s chairwoman, Rosina Becerra, in a press release.
Becerra is an associate vice chancellor of faculty diversity at
UCLA.
“As the most diverse state in the nation, we have the
opportunity to take the leadership in creating the most diverse
faculty among institutions of higher education,” she
said.