University Partnership on Critical Issues Defined by Black Student Leaders

We have clearly communicated to all departments that increasing diversity among faculty, staff and students is a priority and are developing financial incentives to enable us to compete with other employers. Our goal is to be a clear leader among AAU universities in the diversity of our faculty, staff and student body. The university has continued to seek out and make offers to underrepresented faculty. [Sustained Commitment]

The University of Maryland launched the FAMILE (Faculty Advancement at Maryland for Inclusive Learning and Excellence) faculty diversity hiring initiative in March 2021. Through FAMILE, the University will invest $40 million over 10 years to diversify its tenured and tenure track faculty. As of April 2024, 32 faculty members (19 assistant professors, nine associate professors and four full professors) from underrepresented populations have been hired through the FAMILE initiative. This is more than a 50% increase since last reported on this site. This hiring initiative will continue.

The number of tenured/tenure track faculty who identify as Black/African American has increased from 89 in Fall 2022 to 103 in Fall 2023, for an increase of 15.7%. Since Fall 2015, the number of tenured/tenure track faculty who identify as Black/African American has increased from 72, for an increase of 43.1%. [Sustained Commitment]

We are strengthening our efforts to increase the number of Black Ph.D. students, including initiatives led by the Office of Graduate Diversity and Inclusion to recruit and support students from underrepresented populations; the new President’s Fellowship, for which 40 award offers were made this spring (23 to Black students); and a program to match college/department enhancements to students from underrepresented groups. The number of Black Ph.D students has grown from 241 in Fall 2015 to 295 in Fall 2023, for an increase of 22.4%. [Sustained Commitment]

The TerrapinSTRONG onboarding program has been developed and officially launched in July 2021 for new faculty and staff and August 2021 for students. The onboarding program includes resources in bias incident reporting, counseling services and additional resources for BIPOC. [Sustained Commitment]

In addition, the Office of Diversity & Inclusion (ODI) is: working with the Diversity Education Task Force to provide content focused on racial bias for incorporation into courses; working with Faculty Affairs and other units on implicit bias training; and sponsoring a series of anti-racism teach-ins featuring faculty, staff and students. [Sustained Commitment]

President Pines established the University of Maryland Task Force on Community Policing to provide recommendations to enhance public safety and community policing that help the UMD campus move toward more collaborative and trusting partnerships between our public safety officials and the university community. The Task Force produced the Public Safety and Community Policing Report with 23 recommendations. President Pines announced in March 2022 that UMD would begin implementation of the recommendations with two modifications. [In Progress]

When threatening and intimidating action takes place, the university will seek to impose sanctions and involve the Office of Student Conduct, Office of Civil Rights and Sexual Misconduct, or University of Maryland Police Department, as appropriate. The Division of Student Affairs (DSA) has formed a workgroup with the Office of Diversity and Inclusion (ODI) to review DSA policies and protocols involving bias and hate incidents and work to establish a common language amongst all DSA departments. The workgroup has created the DSA Hate-Bias Response Guide which will assist departments in educating employees about free speech protections, enhance awareness, and quicken response time on staff addressing hateful speech and instill the responsibility of reporting unwanted behavior and actions that oppose our campus values. This guide has been widely distributed across campus. DSA and the Bias Incident Support Services (BISS) will continue to work in collaboration to offer educational opportunities for staff and students to increase their understanding of freedom of speech, student activism, BISS services, and hate-bias incidents. DSA will also continue to be in partnership with Academic Affairs to keep them informed of the development of our policies to aim for uniformity, including updated chalking and posting policies. BISS also has a Hate-Bias Response Team Student Advisory Group, which advises and provides recommendations to improve the overall effectiveness of BISS. [Sustained Commitment]

The counseling center and behavioral health services of the health center have always been intentional in keeping diversity considerations central to any hiring decisions. The staff at the centers are diverse in terms of ethnic backgrounds, cultural backgrounds, sexual identities, gender identities, neurodiversities, and other aspects of diversity. The centers will continue to be intentional as they conduct searches for additional staff. [Sustained Commitment]

Recruiting and retaining a diverse student body is a top priority for the university. The University of Maryland has implemented many new efforts and programs to build strong partnerships with Prince George's County and Washington DC to recruit Black students.

While the Office of Undergraduate Admissions (OUA) is not allowed to establish numeric enrollment goals by race, and abilities were further hindered as a result of the Supreme Court Decision from June 2023, it is the university’s clear intention to improve the recruitment, admission, and enrollment of African American students from our home county. While there is much work to be done, the previous and current efforts have begun to have an impressive impact. From the fall of 2017 to the fall of 2023, the number of Black/African American freshmen admitted for the fall semester has increased by 73%. While we are encouraged by the increased admission volume, the number of students who have chosen to enroll has increased by 46% from Fall 2017 to Fall 2023 . OUA continues to focus its efforts on improving the yield rate among the students who have been successfully recruited and admitted to the university. [Sustained Commitment]

In addition to the approaches already in place (all of which continue), OUA has undertaken and/or enhanced a number of efforts to target outreach efforts in Prince George’s County. For example:

• Terps on Tour Reception for Admitted Students: Evening reception on campus designed to encourage freshman enrollment for Prince George’s County residents, with primary outreach to students from African American and Latinx communities. In 2024, a financial aid component was added to the programming for the reception by adding a presentation to discuss the FAFSA changes and other financial aid concerns. A strategy for personalized outreach was utilized through phone calls, emails, and coordinated outreach through high school counselors and community based organizations.

• Enrollment defense efforts: personalized outreach efforts designed to address student questions or rectify any outstanding issues that may be hindering enrollment for county residents, as well as prevent summer “melt” of students who intend to enroll at UMD.

• Maryland Ascent Program: in Fall 2023, MAP returned to in-person programming. As part of the programming, staff from the Office of Undergraduate Admissions worked directly with students to develop their college applications, college essays, and resumes to help support student applications. The cohort of MAP Fellows in Fall 2023 (who applied for Fall 2024 admission) was the largest ever cohort from Prince George’s County.

• College Access Conference: While not restricted to Prince George’s County, this day-long college application workshop for rising high school seniors, rising juniors, and their families has returned to an in-person format. The program targets African American, Latinx, and Native American Maryland residents, and has enhanced outreach efforts for Prince George’s County residents.

• Customized college readiness workshops held at the request of school counselors and community based organizations throughout the county

• Through a collaborative partnership with the Prince George’s County Office of College Readiness and Student Services, OUA conducted a College Admissions Panel in the Fall to assist with increasing the number of Early Action applications. This effort assists with increasing the number of students who will be eligible for merit scholarships and living and learning programs.

• Campaign for Application Completion: Conducted an extensive telephone campaign to encourage student application completion prior to the Early Action deadline.

• High school visits for prospective students and Admitted Student Visits for newly admitted students to counsel students regarding the next steps for enrollment. A special high touch approach to encourage the enrollment of students from PGCPS.

The Career Center (CC) continues to convene diversity, equity and inclusion partners on campus to gather input on what is needed to improve our career resources for Black students, and have engaged the Black Student Union and Black Alliance Network in these discussions as well. The CC has established regular meetings on this topic with Black student leaders and created the Inclusivity, Diversity, and Equity Advisory (IDEA) Board with a budget of $10,000 to fund new proposals for programs and resources dedicated towards addressing the career development needs of Black students. There are several existing career programs that can be coordinated with Nyumburu, such as the Working While Black series. We will continue to work on coordinated efforts that will lead to actionable items to enhance engagement with Black students related to career opportunities. Partners for those efforts include MICA, OMSE, IAP, AAP, Nyumburu, Student Success Initiative, Black Honors Caucus, and Center for Minorities in Engineering. [Sustained Commitment]

On May 16, 2022, UMD dedicated the Lt. Collins Plaza. Read the Maryland Today story on the dedication ceremony: Hundreds Gather to Dedicate Lt. Richard Collins III Plaza

We created this public resource to provide updates on all of these critical issues. The website went live in March 2021. [Completed]

Under current campus policies, allegations of discrimination by faculty are investigated and adjudicated by the Office of Civil Rights and Sexual Misconduct (OCRSM), and allegations of hate bias by faculty are handled by the Office of Faculty Affairs, pursuant to the University's Policy of Threatening and Intimidating Conduct, which is overseen by the Office of Diversity & Inclusion (ODI). Just as students are, faculty can be sanctioned only after a process that comports with due process and the First Amendment. In addition, just as student discipline matters are privacy protected, faculty sanctions are also protected as confidential personnel matters. An oversight committee to evaluate and monitor faculty discriminatory behavior is inconsistent and unnecessarily duplicative of these established processes and procedures, which were approved by our University Senate after input from students, faculty and staff. [Completed]

In November 2021, President Pines announced the opening of five new cultural centers that will welcome Black students with intersecting identities. The campus community was engaged in the design of the five cultural centers and the shared multipurpose space. The DICE (Diversity & Inclusion in Computing Education) Lounge is a community space on the first floor of the Brendan Iribe Center for Computing Science and Engineering for students in computing to meet, study and connect. The Department of Fraternity and Sorority Life officially opened The Agora House, a programming and gathering space for members of the Multicultural Greek Council and National Pan-Hellenic Council, on September 19, 2022. The Dedication Ceremony to celebrate this accomplishment took place on February 18, 2023. When complete in 2026, Zupnik Hall will provide flex space and a new home for identity-based student organizations in the School of Engineering. [In Progress]

Recruiting and retaining a diverse student body is a top priority for the university. The University of Maryland has implemented many new efforts and programs to build strong partnerships with Prince George's County to recruit Black students. In addition to efforts with students in the county, the Office of Undergraduate Admissions has established a number of efforts with community based organizations within the county and with the Prince George’s County Public Schools’ Office of College Readiness and Student Services and directly with school counselors. Among these efforts are included:

• Annual Counselor Breakfast to connect with and inform counselors

• Counselor Conference - biannual event to invite school counselors to campus to learn more about the admission process and campus offerings

• Featured speaker at events such as the Lunch at Your Laptop

• Monthly meetings with Prince George’s County Central Office

• Participation in and information/updates delivered through Counselor Quarterly Meetings

• Develop and maintain relationships and partnerships with community-based organizations, faith-based organizations, and federally funded TRIO programs. Relationships include such organizations as College Track at the Durant Center, First Generation College Bound, Upward Bound and PeerForward.

• Currently developing partnership agreements to be executed with community based organizations with whom we will continue to work closely.

• Successfully launched a new position in the Office of Undergraduate Admissions to help newly admitted freshmen ease the transition from high school to college and to make appropriate campus connections.

• Prince George’s County students compete for all appropriate UMD freshman scholarships; however, there are thirty (30) $5,000 President’s Scholarships that are reserved for the most competitive admitted freshmen from Prince George’s County Public Schools. These scholarships are renewable for each year, for four (4) years.

As shared previously, UMPD deactivated from the 1033 program in 2021. The Task Force on Community Policing report includes recommendations that are being acted upon which will move toward more collaborative and trusting partnerships between our public safety officials and the university community. [In Progress]

The UMD Department of Public Safety conducts impartial policing training annually for all department employees and new officers. A module on Fair and Impartial Policing is included. The department's Manual of Rules and Procedures, Section 2.431 affirms this commitment to impartial policing and provides detailed guidance. [Sustained Commitment]

The university will continue to study the relationship with Maryland Correctional Enterprises. We will also invite informed speakers and experts to offer our community a collective understanding about the prison system and how it interacts with Maryland higher education. We have already begun this effort with our Grand Challenges of our Time Presidential Distinguished Forum with Reginald Dwayne Betts '09, a critically acclaimed writer, public speaker and advocate for incarcerated people. [Sustained Commitment]

Facilities Management Incident Response, Residential Facilities and the Department of Public Safety respond immediately upon report of incidents to cover or remove offensive material. In addition, FM Incident Response staff walk the campus daily looking for issues that need to be addressed, including graffiti, and carry out permanent removal as required. [Sustained Commitment]

The Office of Diversity and Inclusion's Bias Incident Support Services (BISS) and the Counseling Center met with Black Terps Matter leaders, and agreed that the existing hotline was satisfactory in meeting this demand. [Completed]

Additionally, BISS and the Counseling Center have created a formal referral process between the two offices to ensure cohesive support for students with student consent. [Completed]

Counseling Center director Dr. Chetan Joshi continues to meet with student group leaders from the Black, APIDA, and Latinx communities to engage them in conversations about barriers to their care and ways to address those barriers. Conversations also allow for brainstorming and input on how to set up tailored services for minoritized students. [Sustained Commitment]

There is consistent communication between Nyumburu and the Division of Student Affairs (DSA), which ensures that student resources and health services provided by both Nyumburu and DSA are widely communicated and made available to students. A dyadic relationship exists between the Counseling Center and Nyumburu, which allows for information sharing about available services and related updates. The Vice President for Student Affairs (VPSA) has been meeting with Nyumburu staff each semester and has invited Nyumburu staff to join monthly VPSA meetings. [Sustained Commitment]

The Multicultural Involvement and Community Advocacy Office (MICA) in the Division of Student Affairs works with Nyumburu on Black History Month programming and has co-sponsored a Black Male and Black Woman Leadership series. MICA staff will continue to support key events including Student Welcome, Juke Joint, Nyumburu's 50th Anniversary Celebration and Homecoming Tailgate in the fall. [Sustained Commitment]

The relationship between UMD and Prince George's County continues to grow stronger. UMD participates in a wide range of partnerships and groups aimed at fostering relationships with the community. These include monthly meetings with College Park and County officials, College Park City-University Partnership, Discovery District work group, City Multi-Agency Services Team regarding quality of life matters, UMD Health Center/County Public Health meetings regarding public health matters. Hundreds of university community members are engaged with schools and non-profit organizations in greater College Park, in activities including tutoring, translation, volunteer efforts and sports. Annual events include Good Neighbor Day (the 12th annual event was held in November 2023) and A College Education is Within Your Reach/Estudios Universitarios a su Alcance, held in September 2023. [Sustained Commitment]

In collaboration with the 1856 Project, we will provide support in examining and understanding the relationship between the University of Maryland and historically Black communities in Prince George's County, including Lakeland, North Brentwood, Rossville and Muirkirk. We will provide assistance in creating scholarly activities, outreach and engagement opportunities for faculty, staff, students and other community stakeholders for examining Black histories around slavery and segregation and its familial ties to UMD. [Sustained Commitment]

A working group of students, faculty and staff worked closely with Native and Indigenous Elders to develop an official UMD Land Acknowledgement. [Complete]

A partnership with Bowie State University and the Richard Collins Foundation - the Social Justice Alliance (SJA) - honors the memory and legacy of 1st Lt. Richard Collins III through joint programming including symposia and an annual conference. Information regarding scholarships honoring Lt. Collins is available through the SJA as well as UMD, BSU, and MHEC. Information regarding the murder of Lt. Collins has been incorporated into TerrapinSTRONG onboarding. On May 16, 2022, UMD dedicated the Lt. Richard Collins III Plaza. [Sustained Commitment]

Bias Incident Support Services currently has three staff members, and its processes/actions are supplemented by the Hate-Bias Response Team, which includes members from OCRSM, Student Conduct, the Counseling Center, Resident Life, UMPD and the Health Center. Staffing needs for the unit will be reviewed consistently, and new staff will be added as deemed appropriate for the unit's workload. [Sustained Commitment]

Per Senate Document #16-17-24, the Course Evaluation Advisory Group spent a considerable amount of time drafting items for a new course evaluation instrument, based on the recommendations from the Senate APAS committee. That instrument was piloted in Spring of 2021 in a small number of courses, and the results are currently being evaluated. Following that analysis and the deliberation of the Advisory Group, next steps will be determined, which could include a larger pilot, or the finalization of the instrument as is for approval and implementation. [In Progress]

The TerrapinSTRONG onboarding program has been developed and officially launched in July 2021 for new faculty and staff and August 2021 for students.The onboarding program includes resources in bias incident reporting, counseling services and additional resources for BIPOC. [Sustained Commitment]