Concerns of #NotAgainSU Students

Concern #1: "Different punishments for different levels of involvement, including expulsion, for every student involved with the hate crimes committed in Day Hall, and any other incidents of racism that have occurred since, that are found to violate the student code of conduct."

Lead Responsible Party
Robert Hradsky, Vice President for the Student Experience

University Response to Original Concern
We agree that revisions to the Student Code of Conduct are appropriate to make even more clear the serious consequences for hate speech. We believe the current code of conduct already permits the punishment discussed, and both the text and communication about the code need to be improved. Current policies governing faculty, including the Faculty Handbook, already provide serious consequences for racial discrimination.

Revisions to the Student Code of Conduct will commence immediately and will be fully implemented no later than August, 2020.

University Response to Expansion/Addendum
The University is actively revising the Code of Student Conduct and associated procedures to make clearer that bias-motivated conduct will be sanctioned more severely than non-biased conduct. The University also committed to revising the code to hold bystanders and accomplices of bias-related incidents accountable. The University reiterated its desire for student organizers to participate on campus engagement committees looking at these policies. These policies will be revised and published no later than August 2020.

Status Complete

Progress

August 2020

• The revised Student Code of Conduct was issued, and students signed it, acknowledging the code as they returned to campus in August.

July 2020

• The Dean of Students Office is preparing the process to have students sign the Know Your Code and other University policies when they return in August.

May 2020

• The revised Student Code of Conduct was reviewed and approved by the University's Executive Team. The code will be prepared and distributed for student sign-off in the fall. The student Handbook, which does not need Executive Team approval, is still being revised due to new Title IX regulations issued by the Department of Education. The handbook will be ready by fall as a part of a full roll-out of the revised Student Code of Conduct.

April 2020

• After several meetings of the student, faculty and staff policies campus engagement committee and subcommittees between February and April, final drafts of the code of conduct and anti-harassment policy were circulated to committee members for review. Feedback from the Crouse-Hinds Hall student organizers was incorporated into the draft document. The draft of the anti-harassment policy was shared with the chairs of the Free Speech Working Group.

February 2020

• An engagement strategy was developed for students, faculty and staff to provide input and feedback on policy revisions. The first engagement with students at the College of Law was held on Feb. 5. Other engagements are scheduled for mid-February through mid-March.
• On Feb. 18, the student members of the Policies Campus Engagement Committee met with the committee leads, Marianne Thomson, Sheriah Dixon, Sheila Johnson-Willis, Abby Perer and Todd Berger. During the meeting, participants discussed the scope and purpose of the committee, reviewed the timeline for engagement, reviewed the relevant campus commitments, reviewed the current conduct code and handbook and proposed revisions, and reviewed the current Anti-Harassment Policy and proposed revisions. The group formed three working groups (conduct code and handbook, sanctioning guidelines and anti-harassment policy). The goal of the working groups will be to create final drafts of each document to then review with the entire student engagement committee. After that, the committee will move forward with engagement with faculty and staff in early March.

January 2020

• The process is underway to revise the Student Code of Conduct to more clearly state the serious consequences of hate speech.
• Research is being done to look at the wording of conduct codes and policies regarding hate speech at other ACC schools.
• Students, faculty and staff who signed up for the Policies Student Engagement Committee will be contacted shortly to serve on the workgroups. Committee members will work together to review and discuss new language, which will be fully implemented no later than August 2020.

Concern #2: "SEM 100 reform led by a diverse group of students and faculty to curate a curriculum that accurately addresses diversity issues in the 21st century and how they are influenced by history."

Lead Responsible Party
Chris Johnson, Associate Provost for Academic Affairs

University Response to Original Concern
The Provost agrees to this recommendation for the Fall 2020 SEM1OO course. SEM1OO was always intended to be a short term initiative, to be replaced in 2021 with a more comprehensive diversity and inclusion curriculum reform. The University acknowledges that the Fall 2020 SEM1OO course needs to fix the deficiencies of the Fall 2019 SEM1OO course. We will work to achieve that for 2020, investing more resources in pursuit of better learning outcomes. The Provost will include a diverse group of students and faculty in leading this work.

With regard to the more comprehensive diversity and inclusion reform, the existing senate ad hoc committees will increase their work with students and faculty to develop a robust and comprehensive set of credit­ bearing, required courses to meet these learning objectives. The Provost calls upon schools and colleges and the University Senate-the bodies that control curriculum changes—to work constructively and proactively on this and quickly pass these reforms when they are fully developed.

University Response to Expansion/Addendum
The University previously agreed to allocate $1 million to this expansion and presented students with a budget breakdown to show how the $1 million is being spent. The University agreed to the remaining portions of this request as well, subject to the qualifications that (a) curriculum issues are governed by the faculty, and faculty must ultimately approve any changes to curriculum; and (b) the requested oversight committee will more specifically be an advisory panel consisting of students nominated by #NotAgainSU who directly advise the SEM 100 coordinators on content and course effectiveness. The University is implementing some changes for the fall of 2020 and more changes for the fall of 2021.

Status Complete

Progress

October and November 2020

• The SEM 100 curriculum was approved by the University Senate in October. SEM 100 will become a full one-credit course in fall 2021.

July 2020

• SEM 100 will be delivered online this semester. The curriculum has been revised to focus on inclusion, equity and racism. To facilitate the efforts, 165 lead facilitators and more than 180 peer facilitators have been hired for the 165 sections that will be delivered this fall. All facilitators are required to participate in two three-hour online training sessions.

February 2020

• A hiring plan is in place for fall facilitators. The curriculum will be re-visited after feedback from spring 2020. The inclusion of diverse group of students and faculty in leading this work includes participation of ad hoc committee members and input from students and faculty arising from the fall 2019 events.
• Current SEM 100 students will attend performance of “Fragile White Guy,” based on the book “White Fragility.” This will be evaluated for possible inclusion in future programs.
• The recruitment strategy for facilitators has been finalized; a two-day training program is under development, including recruitment of trainers. An information session for prospective facilitators was held on Feb. 4; about 60 people attended. Planning is underway for another session.
• The ad hoc committee conducted an open forum on Jan. 31 to receive input on the structure and curriculum of a new first-year seminar course. The committee met with the University Senate Committee on Diversity and Inclusion. The ad hoc committee reported to the University Senate on Feb. 19, including on a finalized draft syllabus and curriculum, and met with the Senate Curriculum Committee.

January 2020

• Curriculum revisions are complete for the spring 2020 SEM 100 course.
• New training for facilitators is under development and will be complete for upcoming facilitator training sessions.
• Additional curriculum changes are under consideration for fall 2020.

Concern #3: "Institute a clause in new faculty and staff contracts that requires mandatory diversity trainings, as well as new diversity hires. Current faculty and staff who are not tenured should have to attend new diversity trainings."

Lead Responsible Party
LaVonda Reed, Associate Provost for Faculty Affairs

University Response to Original Concern
We agree that the terms and conditions of employment for all new faculty and staff will require diversity and inclusion training. All faculty and staff also will complete an annual training in discrimination and unconscious bias as part of required training under state law. In addition to mandatory training, we will continue to enhance programs open to faculty and staff to promote diversity and inclusion.

University Response to Expansion/Addendum
The University agreed to this request as written, including requiring newly hired faculty to attend diversity training within one year of hire.

Status Complete

Progress

March 2020

The University is exploring the platform to deliver professional development in diversity. Many of the events planned for March and April have been cancelled due to the pandemic. Administrators are continuing to explore how to engage virtually on this matter.

February 2020

• Faculty training spring sessions on diversity and inclusion have been held on the topics of Problematizing Identity and Intersectionality on the College Campus and Navigating Challenges of Diversity in the Classroom. Other sessions—Transparent Teaching: An Evidence-Based Inclusive Practice and Dialogues on Diversity: A Panel Discussion on Inclusive Classroom Practices—will be held in March.

January 2020

• The University has expanded its diversity training for all faculty and staff, including the Midwinter Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility advanced institute on Jan. 9. Five topical Inclusive Teaching and Learning workshops for faculty will be offered in 2020. A student advisory group will be established to participate in training development.
• The Office of Faculty Affairs is working with academic leadership to include references to these and other mandatory trainings and professional development in new faculty appointment letters by March 15. A new clause in staff offer letters requiring diversity training within 30 days of hire has been implemented.
• Along with other resources already in place for diversity hiring, the newly created Diversity Opportunity Hires initiative will bolster faculty diversity by increasing funding aimed at competitive recruitment of faculty from underrepresented minority groups.

Concern #4: "The university agrees that there will be no consequences or sanctions arising for students who are participating in the sit in as a result of their participation in the sit in."

Lead Responsible Party
Robert Hradsky, Vice President for the Student Experience

Response
The University agrees. As Chancellor Syverud has indicated in interactions with the students, there will be no student disciplinary action in the current circumstances for Barnes Center student participators who have participated in nonviolent protest and constructive dialogue on these vital concerns.

Status Complete

Progress
Resolved

Concern #5: "We would like to engage with the administration to strengthen or clarify the current anti-harassment policy regarding the use of abusive, threatening, or harassing hate speech to deliver the message that targeted use of hate speech is unacceptable."

Lead Responsible Party
Steve Bennett, Senior Vice President, Academic Operations, and Chief of Staff

Response
We agree. While the current anti-harassment policy addresses hate speech, we will engage promptly with students on how to clarify the policy.

Status Substantially Complete

Progress

February 2021

• The Senate Committee for Academic Freedom, Tenure and Professional Ethics is providing recommendations on the draft anti-harassment policy.

August 2020

• The Office of the Provost will take leadership of moving the draft anti-harassment policy through the University Senate process.

July 2020

• The Anti-Harassment Policy continues to be under review after feedback from the University Senate.

May 2020

• The draft anti-harassment policy was submitted to various University Senate committees, the Chancellor’s Council on Diversity and Inclusion and Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer Keith A. Alford for review and comment. After receiving feedback, the Policy Committee will finalize the policy by mid-July.

April 2020

After several meetings between February and April of the student, faculty and staff policies campus engagement committee and subcommittees, final drafts of the code of conduct and anti-harassment policy were circulated to committee members for review. Feedback from the Crouse-Hinds Hall student organizers was incorporated into the draft document. The draft of the anti-harassment policy was shared with the chairs of the Free Speech Working Group.

February 2020

• An engagement strategy was developed for students, faculty and staff to provide input and feedback on policy revisions. The first engagement with students at the College of Law was held on Feb. 5.
• On Feb. 18, the student members of Policies Campus Engagement Committee met with the committee leads, Marianne Thomson, Sheriah Dixon, Sheila Johnson-Willis, Abby Perer and Todd Berger. During the meeting, participants discussed the scope and purpose of the committee, reviewed the timeline for engagement, reviewed the relevant campus commitments, reviewed the current conduct code and handbook and proposed revisions, and reviewed the current Anti-Harassment Policy and proposed revisions. The group formed three working groups (conduct code and handbook, sanctioning guidelines and anti-harassment policy). The goal of the working groups will be to create final drafts of each document to then review with the entire student engagement committee. After that, the committee will move forward with engagement with faculty and staff in early March.

January 2020

• Benchmarking of ACC schools’ conduct codes and policies for specific mentions of hate speech has begun. The Education Advisory Board has been contacted to identify other institutions with hate speech conduct charges and policies.
• Student engagement and legal reviews will continue during the spring semester with a project target completion of April.
• Additionally, the Division of Enrollment and the Student Experience approved an Invest Syracuse proposal of over $80,000 to expand the Bias Response and Education Program. This additional funding will increase the bias response program’s ability to reach additional audiences through presentations by adding one coordinator and increasing peer educators from three to six.

Concern #6: "A housing portal (such as My College Roomie or Roomsync) should be implemented as an option in the roommate selection process to allow future residents to choose a roommate based on mutual interests and ideRaties, as well as the expansion and promotion of multicultural learning communities (LCs) to more residence halls on campus, including upper division and mixed ­population communities."

Lead Responsible Party
Jennifer Uryniak, Interim Director, Auxiliary Services, and Rob Hradsky,Vice President for the Student Experience

University Response to Original Concern
The University commits to working with students on this issue and on the future development of multicultural learning communities. There are legal aspects of roommate selection by identity that will constrain any solutions; selection of a roommate based on mutual interests can be enhanced in our process.

University Response to Expansion/Addendum
B. In the fall, the University purchased roommate-matching software My College Roomie to allow students to have greater control over the selection of their roommates. Students will be able to select roommates based on common responses to survey questions and student profiles that include photos. The University offered to do a demo of the software for any students who desire to learn how it works. The software is being piloted this spring, and the University committed to soliciting student feedback on how it’s working in the fall of 2020, after roommate assignments are made and experienced for a period of time.

C. The University agreed to expand multicultural learning communities. For fall 2020, the University is adding one new learning community for first-year students in Day Hall, and one new learning community for sophomores, juniors and seniors in Ernie Davis Hall. The University commits to better advertising these learning communities to incoming and current students. Based on student interest, the University will add learning communities or identity-based housing communities to as many residence halls as possible.

Status Complete

Progress

May 2021

• The application deadline for first-year Living Learning Communities (LLCs), including Multicultural Living Learning Communities, is June 20, 2021. If requested by a student, the Office of Learning Communities will work with the Housing Office to continue to place upper class students in LLCs and MLLCs throughout the summer.

March 2021

• The Living Learning Communities (LLC) and Housing Office websites were updated to reflect new room selection process. The housing contract for LLC was updated to reflect the participation level and appropriate behavior expectations of students living in LLCs.

February 2021

• This spring the University will solicit feedback from students who participated in the Upperclass Multicultural Living and Learning Communities (UMLLC).
• The University will add Brewster Hall (33 spaces) to the MLLC portfolio for a total of 140 spaces for fiscal year 2022. Additionally, the University will add 40 spaces in Watson Hall to the portfolio for UMLLCs for a total of 112 spaces.
• The hiring of resident advisors to serve the Living and Learning Communities is underway.
• To further enhance recruitment to MLLCs, student testimonial videos and quotes are being solicited, work is being done to embed the application process within the housing selection process in April and each school and college admissions recruiting office is adding information to student recruitment and welcome information.

December 2020 and January 2021

• Preliminary quantitative data is available from the My College Roomie survey from fall 2020. The My College Roomie Satisfaction Survey was developed by the Office of Student Living; Housing, Meal Plan and I.D. Card Services; and Institutional Research to collect data on student experiences using the My College Roomie system in advance of the Fall 2021 semester.

The survey was sent to students who were eligible to use the system, regardless of whether they had used the system or not. (Records from the My College Roomie system showed that 86.5 percent of eligible students had logged into the system at least once.) There were 3,479 students who received the invitation to take the survey. The survey opened on Nov. 5, 2020, and was closed on Nov. 23, 2020.

A total of 733 students responded to the survey, for a rate of 21.1 percent. The response rate was somewhat higher for students who had used the system (21.8 percent) than those who had not used the system (16.6 percent). More qualitative data is expected during spring 2021.

October and November 2020

• Based on student interest, the University will add learning communities or identity-based housing communities to as many residence halls as possible and continue with advertising and marketing enhancements. An essay will not be required to be placed in a first-year Multicultural Living Learning Communities (MLLCs).

August 2020

• Due to some students changing their fall attendance plans this year, there were changes in the number of students enrolled in the Multicultural Living Learning Communities (MLLCs) compared to numbers reported earlier this summer. At the end of August, the following students are living as a part of the MLLCs: 17 first-year students living in the Day Hall MLLC, 14 first-year students living in the Lawrinson Hall MLLC and 43 upperclass students living in the Ernie Davis Hall MLLC.

July 2020

• CARE Speaks will be offered to students in the Upperclass Multicultural Living Learning Community (UMLLC). Ongoing meetings are being held to secure faculty partners for the MLLCs.

June 2020

• Forty-six first-year students have been placed in a Multicultural Living Learning Community (MLLC) for the fall semester. Fourteen are international students. Staff members are working with schools and colleges to identify faculty advisors for the Upperclass MLLC.

May 2020

• The newly created Upperclass Multicultural Living Learning Community will be on the fifth and sixth floors of Ernie Davis Hall; 63 students have been placed there for the fall. The expanded First-Year MLLC in Lawrinson Hall has 27 students for the fall and the one in Day Hall has 80 students. Additional marketing is being done with admissions and the schools and colleges to recruit more students to live in an LLC, including a direct mail to incoming students, virtual recruitment sessions and Parents and Family Newsletter posts. Outreach to faculty members is continuing to support MLLCs.

March 2020

My College Roomie went live, as planned, effective March 15. There are currently 303 active users who are completing their profile and filling in their interests.

February 2020

• The My College Roomie (MCR) marketing plan development is in progress and software testing will begin March 1. Students will be invited to join MCR beginning March 15 upon completion of their housing application.
• The Office of Learning Communities has announced a new Multicultural Living Learning Community (MLLC) for sophomores, juniors and seniors. This expanded living learning community (LLC) was created in alignment with the recommendations made by students in the fall semester and feedback received from more than 220 students via survey and in-person conversations. The feedback from students helped the Office of Learning Communities in establishing the Upperclass MLLC’s purpose, location, room type and activities and in identifying potential faculty/staff advisors.
• The Upperclass MLLC will focus on multicultural education, cross-cultural dialogue and community building and will be located in Ernie Davis Hall. In addition to the Upperclass MLLC, the Office of Learning Communities has expanded the Indigenous LLC, International LLC and the LGBTQ+ LLC. These options are now available to juniors and seniors, in addition to sophomores.
• Sophomores are also eligible for the MORE in STEM LLC, Whitman Leadership LLC and Substance Free Theme Housing. Details about each of the upperclass LLCs are available on the Learning Communities website lc.syr.edu/join-a-learning-community/current-students/current-students-lc-choices.html. The deadline for current students to apply for the Upperclass LLCs was Sunday, Feb. 23. Students will be notified of their LLC placement in early March. Those who are registered for an LLC for their sophomore, junior or senior year do not need to participate in the housing registration process.
• The Housing and Residential Experience Campus Engagement Committee held two meetings on Feb. 10. The committee formed five sub-committees: Housing Portal, Multicultural Learning Communities Expansion, OSL Staff Training (RAs and full-time staff), OSL Staff Recruitment and Selection (RA and full-time staff), and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Initiatives for Residential Students.
• The committee began reaching out to faculty, who were identified by students in the MLLC survey, to serve as potential partners working with the Upperclass MLLC.

January 2020

• My College Roomie was purchased Dec. 1 and is currently being implemented. The “go-live” for the software, which assists in roommate selection, will be later in the spring semester.
• The University received student feedback on the Multicultural Living Learning Community (MLLC) by survey and “drop-in” meetings in December and January. A final decision on expanding the MLLC is expected in February when applications open for upperclass learning communities.  

Concern #7: "The Chancellor will strongly urge the Board of Trustees to create an open forum for students to share their student experience and express the expectations of their university to the Board of Trustees of Syracuse University. This forum should be held twice a year, along with monthly updates written by students for Trustees."

Lead Responsible Party
Steve Bennett, Senior Vice President, Academic Operations, and Chief of Staff

University Response to Original Concern
The Board of Trustees is and has been committed to the core values of diversity and inclusion at Syracuse University. The Board, led by Chair Kathy Walters, does engage in periodic updates on the University's diversity and inclusion efforts. As the University implements these responses, the Board will focus on progress in this area. In addition, the Board of Trustees—through its Student Affairs Committee and through student representatives to the Board—regularly engages with student leaders, including from the Undergraduate Student Association and the Graduate Student Organization.

We encourage students to participate with these shared governance bodies, including through their regular reports and interactions with the board. We will facilitate education and involvement of students with the SA and GSO board representatives.

University Response to Expansion/Addendum
So far this semester, the Special Committee on University Climate, Diversity and Inclusion of the Board of Trustees held more than 20 dialogue sessions on campus, including with student organizers participating in the Crouse-Hinds Hall sit-in. The special committee is scheduled to return to campus in April 2020 and students will be invited to speak to them. (Postponed due to COVID-19.) The Independent Advisory Committee has also been meeting with students and met with #NotAgainSU Student organizers on March 9, 2020. The University encouraged students to raise the issue of student representation on the Board directly to the Board in discussions with these specially appointed committees.

Status Complete

Progress

October 2021

• Dean, faculty and student representatives to the Syracuse University Board of Trustees provide an important link to the University’s faculty and students. The current student representatives can be found on the Representatives webpage.
• Board committees dedicated to DEIA and Campus Climate have had an ongoing and active presence with the campus community, including the release of the Board of Trustees Special Committee on University Climate, Diversity and Inclusion’s report.

February 2021

• The Board of Trustee Special Committee on University Climate, Diversity and Inclusion's report was released to the campus community on March 4.

August 2020

• The Board of Trustees Special Committee on University Climate, Diversity and Inclusion continues its work, as outlined in the letter to campus dated Aug. 20.  This summer, work continued on developing recommendations for improving campus climate, to be delivered by the end of the calendar year.  This semester, work will include the climate pulse survey and a full inventory of campus assets, investments and activities related to diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility.

May 2020

• A Board Special Committee has been established to engage with students.

April 2020

• Lisa Dolak, senior vice president and university secretary to the Board of Trustees, hosted a virtual session on the role of the Board of Trustees on Tuesday, April 28, via Zoom. The presentation focused on the Board of Trustees role, the ways in which the Board provides oversight to the administration, and student, faculty and staff representation on the Board.

March 2020

• The Board Special Committee met five times, and was on campus for engagements with student groups, faculty and staff on Feb. 12 and 13. Members of the Board-commissioned Independent Advisory Panel was on campus for engagements starting the week of Feb. 17, and again the week of March 9. Damon Williams, a panel member on the Independent Advisory Panel and founder of the Center for Strategic Diversity Leadership & Social Innovation, was on campus for planning with administrators and members of the Inclusive Leadership Assembly and the Council on Diversity and Inclusion on Jan. 23 and 24.
• Due to COVID-19, the pulse survey of campus climate, planned for late February, has been delayed in order to maximize its effectiveness. The committee is in the process of redefining its goals given the COVID-19 crisis, and to ensure appropriate campus stakeholder engagement, the committee will likely issue a report of preliminary findings this fiscal year, and will look to finish its work by the end of the fall 2020 semester.

February 2020

• The Board of Trustees Special Committee has met three times, and was on campus for engagements with student groups, faculty and staff on Feb. 12 and 13. Members of the Board-commissioned Independent Advisory Panel, a group of nationally renowned experts were on campus for engagements the week of Feb. 17. Damon Williams, a member of the Independent Advisory Panelist and the founder of the Center for Strategic Diversity Leadership & Social Innovation, was on campus for planning with administrators and members of the Inclusive Leadership Assembly and the Council on Diversity and Inclusion on Jan. 23 and 24.

January 2020

• The Board of Trustees Special Committee on University Climate, Diversity and Inclusion has been appointed. 
• Stakeholder engagement is planned for campus in early February and March.

Concern #8: "In order for the Office of Student Living to properly implement housing changes, OSL should be allocated more funding for RA training, programming and other multicultural events."

Lead Responsible Party
Robert Hradsky, Vice President for the Student Experience

University Response to Original Concern
We agree that, as our housing changes­ including in response to the housing study due to be completed in May, 2020-there will need to be greater resources allocated to these areas. We will work with appropriate student representatives, including the Residence Halls Association and others, to identify and allocate these resources starting in spring 2020.

University Response to Expansion/Addendum
The University committed to increasing the Office of Student Living (OSL) budget by $500,000 for diversity and inclusion priorities, including for resident advisor diversity programming and hiring a new assistant director of diversity and inclusion within OSL.

Status Complete

Progress

December 2020 and January 2021

• The new assistant director of diversity, equity and inclusion in the Office of Student Living began their new role on Feb. 1.

October and November 2020

• Three candidates for the position of assistant director of diversity, equity and inclusion in the Office of Student Living made presentations to leadership with the Division of Enrollment and the Student Experience the week of Nov. 17.

August 2020

• The University has allocated $500,000 for diversity and inclusion priorities in student experience/Office of Student Living, including for resident advisor diversity programming. Recruitment of an assistant director of diversity in the Office of Student Living continues to move forward. This is the final item to be completed.

July 2020

• The recruiting process for an assistant director of diversity the Office of Student Living (OSL) continues. The schedule, content and learning outcomes for the diversity, equity and inclusion training has been set for full-time and student OSL staff. The office is exploring virtual options for student leadership retreats.

May 2020

• Pending the hiring of an assistant director of diversity in the Office of Student Living (OSL), the standing OLS committee structure and student engagement committee will help to plan for fall. The committee is currently reviewing all diversity, equity and inclusion goals/framework/expectations across campus and how they intersect with the OSL Blueprint, the residential education model focused on community connections, intercultural competence, personal responsibility and academic engagement. Planning is continuing for fall training and leadership sessions for students given physical distancing requirements.

April 2020

• Alternative retreat and training formats for OSL are being assessed given social distancing guidelines. Feedback from Crouse-Hinds Hall student protestors in March was incorporated into plans moving forward.

February 2020

• The Office of Student Living hosted JonPaul Higgins on Jan. 30 for a full-day training for all full-time staff. Forty-six staff members attended. The primary outcomes included introduction of common language to critically assess current practices, idea generation for action items and cultural competence training with a focus on race and intersectionality.
• The Housing and Residential Experience Campus Engagement Committee held two meetings on Feb. 10. The committee formed five sub-committees: Housing Portal, Multicultural Learning Communities Expansion, OSL Staff Training (RAs and full-time staff), OSL Staff Recruitment and Selection (RA and full-time staff), and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Initiatives for Residential Students.

January 2020

• The Office of Student Living (OSL), in partnership with Office of Multicultural Affairs (OMA) and relevant student organizations, is doubling the capacity for the Students of Color Leadership Retreat to now serve 80 students annually, beginning March 6-8.
• The University will establish a new International Students Leadership Retreat to serve 80 students annually beginning in fall 2020.
• To provide additional support for full-time and student staff to dive deeper on issues of diversity and inclusion, there will be a daylong professional development session for all full-time OSL staff on Jan. 30 and a two-day retreat for RAs in August.
• OSL and Dean of Students Office hosted a webinar and conversation on Jan. 22, “Supervision with a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Lens.” All supervisors in OSL were required to attend.
• The University will hire an assistant director of diversity and inclusion initiatives in OSL this spring.
• Over $135,000 in funding has been approved for expansion of the Students of Color Leadership Retreat, OSL staff development and the hiring of diversity and inclusion lead staff person for OSL.

Concern #9: "Agree to hire more counselors that better represent all marginalized identities on campus and more counselors with language fluency before the Fall 2020 semester begins, allow students to select their own counselor and enhance any current diversity & inclusion training, mandatory for both new and current counselors."

Lead Responsible Party
Rob Hradsky, Vice President for the Student Experience

University Response to Original Concern
The University has now opened four additional counselor positions (and has hired four counselors in the past year who self-identify as people of color). Three of our existing counselors speak multiple languages.

For the open positions, the University agrees to be attentive to experience and training in mental health issues of marginalized communities. They will be hired before the fall 2020 semester begins. New and current counselors will attend, as is currently the practice, at least five on-campus events and trainings on diversity and inclusion each year. The University will carefully work to identify appropriate enhancements to diversity and inclusion training for counselors.

The University's faculty hiring plan will continue to include emphasis on enhancing diversity.

University Response to Expansion/Addendum
The University agreed to expand counseling services by hiring five new counselors, bringing the total FTE of counselors to 32. The University emphasized its commitment to continue hiring counselors of diverse identities. The University agreed counselors will undergo more training on working with students from marginalized communities. The University encourages students to provide feedback on counseling resources and services during the 2020-2021 academic year, once they have an opportunity to experience some of these changes.

Status Complete

Progress

June 2021

• An offer has been accepted by an Indigenous healer for a position at the Barnes Center. The healer will begin mid-July.

December 2020 and January 2021

• In reaching the University’s commitment of 32 clinical staff in the Counseling Center, the following progress has been made: The University has 32 clinical positions in the Fiscal Year 2021 budget. There are 30 positions filled, including the five new positions committed to by the University. The associate director of diversity and inclusion began in January. Of the remaining two replacement positions, one is being allocated to add a native healer to the clinical staff in fulfillment of the Indigenous student concerns.

October and November 2020

• In reaching the University’s commitment of 32 clinical staff, with current offers as of Jan. 4, the Barnes Center will have all five of the newly committed positions in place. Fifty percent of the staff identify as white, and 50 percent of the staff identify as a person of color. Six staff members speak an Asian language, and at least two staff members speak Spanish. There are two replacement positions to be filled.

August 2020

• The University has 32 clinical positions in the FY21 budget; there are 27 staff hired or offers accepted. There are five vacancies: three due to transition of staff this summer, with ongoing recruitment; one ongoing recruitment of an associate director of diversity with clinical experience; and one position to be created in response to indigenous student concerns. Since last spring, Counseling staff members have attended over 80 training sessions.

May 2020

• Since the spring, 10 counseling positions have been hired and/or offered to begin in time for the fall semester. These positions include, but are not limited to assistant director, staff therapists, staff psychologist, and graduate and post graduate positions. The new hires and offers represent a diverse array of backgrounds and identities, including by race, languages spoken, sex, gender and gender identity, and sexual orientation. Counseling staff have also completed additional training sessions, including anti-racism training, racial disparity and COVID-19 training, trauma-informed care related to race, and how to offer inclusive programming.

February 2020

• In January, counseling staff attended the NASPA Strategies conference with sessions on racism and mental health, LGBTQ support, trauma informed campus communities, and relationship violence in black communities on PWI campuses.
• Spring semester therapy groups in counseling include two therapy groups for students of color, one therapy group for international students and one therapy group for LGBTQ identified students.
• The Barnes Center will be able to provide tele therapy to students on the Aetna insurance plan, which includes therapists who speak multiple languages and represent multiple identities.
• Screening and interviews continue for multiple positions in the Barnes Center. The University continues to be attentive to candidates with experience and training in mental health issues of marginalized communities.
• On Feb. 12 and 13, Cory Wallack, executive director of the Barnes Center at The Arch presented information on a protocol to elevate mental health of marginalized communities and sought collective feedback and input from the Campus Engagement Committee on Health and Wellness. Committee members agreed to a follow-up meeting in the coming weeks to discuss further.

January 2020

• Four additional counseling positions were created and posted. Applicants are being screened and interviews are expected to begin the week of Jan. 27.
• The Barnes Center is working with the Office of Human Resources to be attentive to experience and training in mental health issues of marginalized communities
• The option for students to select their counselor currently exists.
• Barnes Center supervisors attended “Supervision with a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Lens,” on Jan. 22. Dr. Jamie Washington presented.
• Additionally, the University is seeking to hire an associate director for diversity and inclusion for the Barnes Center by next fall.

Concern #10: "Agree to the development of a building for multicultural offices, including scholarship offices, organizations, and programs, moving the existing offices for students of color to this new location. This building should exist as a headquarters for these programs and offices; however, we would like to see these offices and programs represented across campus."

Lead Responsible Party
Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer and Pete Sala, Vice President and Chief Campus Facilities Officer

Response
The University agrees to address these concerns, and indeed University leaders have been working on this for the past several months. As new and renovated buildings open in 2020, new and vacated spaces will become available to provide both central hubs and distributed programs across campus. Working with student representatives, the Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer, Vice President and Chief Campus Facilities Officer, the Diversity and Inclusion Council and the Campus Facilities Advisory Board, the University will appropriately meet these concerns.

Status Complete

Progress

October 2021

• Until the Intercultural Collective space in the Schine Student Center was complete and open in February 2021, space was allocated in Bird Library for multicultural students. The Office of Diversity and Inclusion relocated to Steele Hall.
• The building at 119 Euclid Ave. was renovated for use by Black students.
• The building at 113 Euclid Ave. has been renovated and is used by the Native Student Program.

July 2021

• A new elevator is being installed and an ADA accessible restroom is being renovated at 119 Euclid Ave. The work is expected to be completed in the fall.
• The work at 113 Euclid Ave., in a joint effort with the work at 119 Euclid Ave., is underway to install a new elevator and an ADA accessible entrance and ramp. The work is planned to be finished in the fall.

March 2021

• Additional improvements at 113 Euclid Ave. are planned for construction in the summer of 2021. A new accessible entry door with ramp and snowmelt is being constructed on the east side of the building. An elevator is being added to the building with stops on all three floors.

February 2021

• At 113 Euclid Ave., upgrades to the student gathering environment, including a kitchen and accessible restroom are complete. An elevator study is in progress.
• The 119 Euclid Ave. working group has begun a series of meetings to review the results of the focus groups and denote next steps. Programing and conceptual design meetings with the OIR user group are 50 percent complete, with the goal of executing an accelerated design process to start construction on the majority of renovations as soon as possible. An elevator installation is planned for summer 2021.

October and November 2020

• The Native Student Program will be housed at 113 Euclid Ave. A meeting was held on July 8 with students and University representatives to discuss planning and design. Upgrades to the student gathering environment, including a kitchen and accessible restroom, are complete. An accessible entry will be constructed in spring 2020, and an elevator study is in progress.
• The 119 Euclid Ave. working group has begun a series of meetings to review the results of the focus groups and note next steps. Programing and conceptual design meetings with the Office of Institutional Research user group are 50 percent complete, with the goal of executing an accelerated design process to start construction on the majority of renovations as early as December. An elevator installation is planned for summer 2021.
• Schine Student Center: The Office of Multicultural Affairs will be co-located on the main level atrium floor (the first floor) with other cultural centers.

August 2020

• Eight focus groups have been meeting to help determine future use of 119 Euclid Ave. Alumni, students, faculty and staff have participated.

July 2020

• The Multicultural Facilities, Programs and Services Committee, made up of 208 students, faculty and staff, has made significant progress. Regular updates have been provided via listserv from Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer Keith A. Alford and Vice President and Chief Campus Facilities Officer Pete Sala to committee members.
• A collaboration is underway with the Office of Disability Services (now called the Center for Disability Resources) for expansion to develop a dedicated Exam Center that will more than double the University’s space for alternate testing facilities. Improved space for the OnTrack at SU program and the Learning Assessment Center was provided.
• In addressing the Physical Access Plan and Accessibility Improvements, a consensus was reached regarding completing and implementing formal guidance to designers and creating design standards for all renovation and new construction. Collaboration and analysis of the Physical Access Plan is complete for ranking multiple prioritization factors related to existing barriers to access documented by United Spinal consultants. A final report has been issued, and the Disability External Review Steering Committee Chairs plan to provide recommendations to University leadership in fall 2020.

April 2020

Regarding the physical access plan and accessibility improvements, a consensus was reached regarding completing and putting in place formal guidance to designers and creating design standards for all renovations and new construction. Collaboration is in process for ranking multiple prioritization factors for the analysis of existing barriers to access documented by United Spinal consultants.

February 2020

• The following multicultural units, among other student organizations, will have space in the renovated Schine Student Center: the Office of Multicultural Affairs, LGBT Resource Center, Disability Cultural Center and the Native Student Program.
• The Native Student Program is currently located in 113 Euclid Ave. The Native Student Program and associated student groups will also utilize 113 Euclid Ave. for meetings and gatherings.
• Keith Alford and Pete Sala, co-chairs of the Campus Engagement Committee on Multicultural Facilities, Programs, and Services, are planning a town hall to share information and seek input from their committee members.
• The Office of Diversity and Inclusion has relocated from Falk College to the third floor of Steele Hall, utilizing space formerly occupied by Institutional Effectiveness and Assessment. The Arthur O. Eve Higher Education Opportunity Program and Student Support Services will also relocate to Steele Hall later this year.

January 2020

• Event space in 550 Bird Library has been converted to a student lounge, providing a dedicated space for gathering, meeting, studying or taking a break between classes. This space is also connected to the cultural centers’ suite in Bird Library, which houses the Office of Multicultural Affairs, Disability Cultural Center and LGBT Resource Center. The space will be available during the same operating hours as the fifth floor of the library until the new cultural centers’ suite opens in Schine Student Center.
• The University continues to evaluate additional spaces that may be responsive to this concern.

Concern #11: "Agree to allocate necessary funds to support current students of color in alleviating financial burdens."

Lead Responsible Party
Ryan Williams, Vice President for Enrollment Services, and Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer

University Response to Original Concern
The University agrees with this goal. The University agrees that this is a priority in budgeting and fundraising.

University Response to Expansion/Addendum
The University agreed to reinvest and recommit at least $5 million in programs and scholarships that directly benefit marginalized students, such as, but not limited to, Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP), Student Support Services (SSS) and Our Time Has Come. The University agreed to expand funding for need-based and culturally based scholarships by $5 million. The University also reiterated its commitment to the Miami POSSE program and agreed to explore Los Angeles and Atlanta POSSE programs for future years. The University agreed to double free printing services from $20 worth of printing to $40. The University was unable to agree to free laundry. The University is also not able to agree to the demand related to financial aid for resident advisors due to federal regulations that would prohibit such action.

Status Substantially Complete

Progress

October 2021

• The Our Time Has Come Scholarship has grown from $5 million to just over $9 million, with a goal of $10 million, and was the the fundraising focus for the CBT fundraising gala during CBT weekend (Sept. 9-12).
• The agreement to extend the University’s relationship with Posse Miami was finalized in September 2021.

February 2021

• An initiative is underway to grow the Our Time Has Come scholarship endowment from $5 million to $10 million. Through donor gifts, the fund has increased to $8.1 million. This represents a $1 million-plus increase since early fall 2020.

September 2020

In the University’s commitment to expand funding for need-based and culturally based scholarships by $5 million, a total of $4.1 million has been raised so far. The following are included in the funding that has been raised.

• An initiative is underway to grow the Our Time Has Come scholarship endowment from $5 million to $10 million. Through donor gifts, the fund has increased to $7.1 million since spring 2020.
• The University has received over $2 million for new programs that directly benefit first-generation students, including the Kessler Presidential Scholars Program and the Herbert Lotman Book Award.

July 2020

• In reference to the student concern expansion, the printing service allowance has been increased from $20 to $40.

February 2020

• Generally, need-based domestic undergraduate financial aid is determined at the start of every year a student is enrolled at the University. Year to year the family’s circumstances may change and awarded financial aid attempts to reflect these changes. Undergraduate students are welcome to discuss their financial aid award, changes in circumstances or concerns with affordability with a dedicated financial aid counselor in the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarship Programs. Graduate students must discuss concerns with their graduate departments.  

January 2020

• Need-based financial aid and certain scholarship are being used on a case-by-case basis to alleviate financial burdens of current students. As of Jan. 23, 13 students have been supported.
• In the Forever Orange Fundraising Campaign, the University is committed to raising additional scholarships for the Our Time Has Come Scholarship Program to assist African American and Latinx students to alleviate financial burdens. The goal is to double the endowment to $10 million during the campaign.
• The Division of Enrollment and the Student Experience has committed $500,000 for the summer of 2020 to support internships for undergraduates with financial need. This amount will increase to $1 million for the 2020-2021 academic year.

Concern #12: "Individual Diversity be added to the factors considered when admitting students to colleges through the intra-university transfer process."

Lead Responsible Party
Chris Johnson, Associate Provost for Academic Affairs

Response
Intra-university transfer policies vary by school and college. The University commits to working with the Deans to address this concern. The Provost will report on changes to the intra-university transfer process by the end of spring semester.

Status Complete

Progress

July 2020

• Diversity factors have been included in the intra-university transfer decision process.

February 2020

• Several meetings have been held this month, on Feb. 14, 17, 21, 25 and 28, to discuss issues with curriculum interest groups. Participants have totaled more than 70 stakeholders.

January 2020

• Demographic information is already available as part of the intra-university transfer process. Although the form itself is very short, the receiving school/college has access to the full student record where such information is available. The form will be evaluated and amended for improvement.

Concern #13: "Agree to the allocation of a minimum of $1 million for the creation of a unified, required curriculum that educates the campus on diversity issues, specifically anti-racism."

Lead Responsible Party
Steve Bennett, Senior Vice President, Academic Operations

University Response to Original Concern
The University agrees that the curricular change envisioned in the response to these concerns, including in connection with the changes to SEM 100 in fall 2020 and the new course in fall 2021, will require substantial resources. We believe those resources will be no less than $1 million. The University commits to allocating at least $1 million and whatever additional appropriate resources are needed.

University Response to Expansion/Addendum
The University agreed in principle to this request (curriculum changes), except for the typographical error referring to the requested dollar amount as $5 million instead of $1 million, and except that the faculty must ultimately approve curriculum changes. If approved by the faculty, then the University will implement the concepts in this demand through its SEM 100 course to begin in fall 2021.

Status Complete

Progress
January 2020—Resolved

• A $1 million budget has been allocated for FY21 to enhance the SEM 100 programming.
• A budget assurance of $2 million has been made for FY22 and beyond for the purpose of required courses dedicated to diversity, inclusion and accessibility.

Concern #14: "Monthly updates about every long-term demand be sent via email, publicized through Syracuse University media outlets, and the development of a website where demand updates can be tracked by the public."

Lead Responsible Party
Dara Royer, Senior Vice President, Chief Marketing and Communications Officer

University Response to Original Concern
The University will post monthly updates for this year, including in SU News and SU Today. Beginning in January 2020, a page will be added to the diversity.syr.edu site to track progress on all goals. Going forward the University will assess improvements to all communications so that all in our community receive timely information about all efforts to support our values of diversity and inclusion.

University Response to Expansion/Addendum
The University will continue publishing on the DPS website bias incident reports that are reported to DPS. The University will publish bias incident reports to the DPS website within 48 hours of receipt, unless publishing would impede an investigation, or unless the report is determined to be unfounded. DPS will send a monthly email to the campus community summarizing all bias reports for a given month. The University also established an opt-in subscription feature on the bias incidents website for anyone who wishes to receive an email every day that the bias website is updated.

Status Complete

Progress

March 2020

• The second meeting of the Campus Commitments Communications Committee was held on Feb. 28, with about 30 campus community members in attendance. Sarah Scalese, senior associate vice president for communications, along with Brian Konkol, dean of Hendricks Chapel, and Michael Meath, faculty member in the Newhouse School, hosted the discussion. The session included a Q&A period, a general discussion of campus communications and feedback. Initial action to be taken includes crafting communications that inform the campus about the University’s various channels; collaborating with ITS to place Campus Commitments on Blackboard and MySlice; making emails more succinct with a focus on facts; and driving consistently to the same website.
• The all-campus monthly email from Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer Keith Alford regarding the many updates to the Campus Commitments was sent on Feb. 28.
• The progress of student concerns and recommendations was updated on the Campus Commitments page for February.
• Information on a Feb. 20 bias incident was posted to the Bias Incident Reports page, within the 48-hour timeframe.
• Communications regarding the recent student protest at Crouse-Hinds Hall have been shared on SU News, the Campus Commitments page and social media.
• A live video stream of the ongoing discussions regarding concerns raised by students protesting in Crouse-Hinds Hall was posted on Syracuse.edu.

February 2020

• On January 30, the Board of Trustees Special Committee on University Climate, Diversity and Inclusion page and the Independent Advisory Panel page were published to the Campus Commitments section of Syracuse.edu.
• Multiple campus communications and an SU News story communicating about the University’s commitments have been drafted. They have been emailed to the campus community, posted to the web page and shared on social media.
• The first meeting of the Campus Commitments Communications Committee was held on Feb. 14, with about 40 campus community members in attendance. The meeting—with Dean Brian Konkol; Michael Meath, faculty member in the Newhouse School; and members of the communications team—included a discussion of the commitments; a small group session with feedback on the University’s communication efforts in the fall; and the University’s channels for communications. Plans are underway for further sessions.
• The February all-campus email update regarding the campus commitments is being prepared.
• An update to the Bias Incident Reports page on Feb. 8 was reported within the 48-hour timeframe.
• A campuswide message was sent regarding recent hate incidents and with information about the work of the Board of Trustees Special Committee on University Climate, Diversity and Inclusion and the Independent Advisory Panel. The message was posted to the Campus Commitments page and shared on social media.
• An SU News story was posted about members of Independent Advisory Panel meeting with students, faculty and staff, with a link on the Campus Commitments page and shared on social media.
• A campuswide email was sent from the Special Committee on University Climate, Diversity and Inclusion about their dialogue sessions on campus, with a link to the email on the Campus Commitments page and shared on social media.

January 2020

• The Commitments webpage has been created and is being updated at least once a month.
• Updates on the students’ concerns will be shared on the SU News website and in the SU Today email.
• A monthly email from Chief Diversity and Inclusion Office Keith A. Alford will communicate key updates.

Concern #15: "Make the diversity training Progress of tenured professors readily available through this public website up to the extent permitted by law. And make the completion of the required diversity and inclusion training part of the requirements for tenure."

Lead Responsible Party
Associate Provost for Faculty Affairs

Response
We agree that the terms and conditions of employment for all new faculty and staff will require diversity and inclusion training. All faculty and staff also will complete an annual training in discrimination andunconscious bias as part of required training under state law. In addition to mandatory training, we will continue to enhance programs open to faculty and staff to promote diversity and inclusion. The University will commit to making public aggregate data by school and college each academic year. The University will not violate privacy law by identifying faculty by name, but rather will use accountability measures to enforce compliance. The Provost will hold deans accountable for the performance of their faculty.

Status Complete

Progress

October 2021

• DiversityEdu.com, an asynchronous learning platform that focuses on building inclusion skills has launched at the University. A total of 945 faculty and staff have participated in training so far and the University will continue to offer the training.

February 2021

• The implementation of DiversityEdu, a series of asynchronous learning modules that focuses on building inclusion skills, is nearing completion. Work is being done to complete the single sign-on authentication implementation.

March 2020

• May 15th is the new target completion date for publication of aggregate data.

February 2020

No change

January 2020

• More than 7,000 faculty and staff have completed training covering prevention of sexual and relationship violence, unconscious bias, micro-aggressions and discrimination within the last 12 months.
• The mandate for faculty training will be published by March 15.
• The University is committed to making public aggregate training data by school and college each academic year (target deadline Dec. 31). Planning has begun with the Office of Institutional Research and others for a reporting tool.

Concern #16: "Syracuse takes initiative to equalize treatment of multicultural Greek Life and acknowledge the unique challenges multicultural Greek life faces."

Lead Responsible Party
Rob Hradsky, Vice President for the Student Experience

Response
The University agrees with this objective. We will consult with the Multicultural Greek Council on progress on steps to implement this objective.

Status Complete

Progress

August 2020

• After other departments return to the Schine Student Center following renovations, Fraternity and Sorority Affairs will be reallocated additional space in the Women's Building to support all six councils.

May 2020

• The University clarified this demand with students and the outcome is that there are two areas of main concern: physical space and equity issues in discipline. Related to the first concern, FASA and the Real Estate Office will continue to search for and identify possible physical spaces in which to locate FASA staff and the six Greek councils, including NPHC, NALFO, and MGC. The current occupied University-owned space is scheduled to open up in a year if space cannot be found before. Related to the second concern, if a future incident occurs in the Greek community, the University will consider the impact of system-wide disciplinary action on all Greek organizations versus individual organizations before taking action.

March 2020

The Panhellenic Council hosted lecturer Rachel Cargle, who speaks on unpacking white feminism, on Feb. 26.  The program was attended by 1,000 Panhellenic women.

February 2020

• On Feb. 8, members of the National Pan-Hellenic Council, the National Association of Latin Fraternal Organizations and Interfraternity Council held a roundtable to discuss their experiences at the University and strategize around way in which they could reach across councils and chapters to get to know one another better. Since the roundtable, members have invited each other to attend events.

January 2020

• University leadership began meeting with members of the Greek community in December and will continue during the spring semester to better understand the concern and create a plan to implement this objective.

Concern #17: "The university agrees that when racially-motivated incidents which impacts the larger campus community occur, Administration will respond within a maximum of 48 hours."

Lead Responsible Party
Tony Callisto, Senior Vice President, Campus Safety, and Chief Law Enforcement Officer

University Response to Original Concern
The University is committed to overhauling our historic reporting process. Pursuant to protocol to be further developed in consultation with all stakeholders, and unless disclosure to the community would impede an investigation, the Department of Public Safety and the Syracuse University administration will inform the community of concerning racially motivated incidents within a maximum of 48 hours.

University Response to Expansion/Addendum
The University will continue publishing on the DPS website bias incident reports that are reported to DPS. The University will publish bias incident reports to the DPS website within 48 hours of receipt, unless publishing would impede an investigation, or unless the report is determined to be unfounded. DPS will send a monthly email to the campus community summarizing all bias reports for a given month. The University also established an opt-in subscription feature on the bias incidents website for anyone who wishes to receive an email every day that the bias website is updated.

Status Complete

Progress
January 2020—Resolved

• The Department of Public Safety has established a Bias Incident Reports page on its website. Bias incidents are posted within 48 hours, unless posting would compromise an investigation into the incident.

Concern #18: "We demand consistent levels of engagement from the Chancellor with minority communities, specifically a mandatory annual State of the University Address as it relates to the student of color experience."

Lead Responsible Party
Chancellor Kent Syverud

Response
Chancellor Syverud will address issues of diversity and inclusion in his January address as well as in update messages at the start of each semester. The Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer will also provide an annual report and update.

Chancellor Syverud and University leaders also commit to working collaboratively with students to create regular opportunities for engagement during the spring semester 2020.

Status Complete

Progress

August 2020

• Chancellor Syverud has communicated several messages to the community, on June 9, June 15, July 9 and Aug 21.

In his Aug. 21 message, Chancellor Syverud provided an update on U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch’s review of the University’s Department of Public Safety. Chancellor Syverud stated, “By the second week of September, Ms. Lynch and her team will provide preliminary recommendations to form a Public Safety Citizen Review Board that will hear, review and recommend actions regarding complaints made by University community members. That will be followed by a series of listening sessions between Ms. Lynch’s team and members of our community comprising students, faculty and staff, including DPS personnel. Listening sessions will be held virtually and, if health protocols allow, on campus. With those recommendations and input, we will establish the Review Board, whose members will be drawn from the University community. The listening sessions will also in part inform Ms. Lynch’s final independent review and recommendations.”

February 2020

• At the Feb. 19 University Senate meeting, Chancellor Kent Syverud announced the lifting of suspensions for student protestors at Crouse-Hinds Hall, the shifting of campus spaces to benefit students and academics, and the suspension of some students who have been found and punished following hate incidents on campus.
• In a campuswide email, Chancellor Syverud addressed recent events during the student protests at Crouse-Hinds Hall and directed action steps be taken, including engaging former United States Attorney General Loretta Lynch from the Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison law firm to lead an independent, expedited review of the Department of Public Safety. He has also directed an independent review of the Student Experience function be implemented.
• Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer Keith A. Alford will provide his February message the week of Feb. 24.

January 2020

• Chancellor Kent Syverud addressed issues of diversity and inclusion to the campus community in his 2020 Winter Message on Jan. 13 in Dineen Hall. In his address, Chancellor Syverud discussed four key topics that are important for the University to become “a world-class model of an academic powerhouse that truly embraces, welcomes and values all people,” including the institution’s commitments to diversity, inclusion and safety. He addressed the hate, fear, racism and anti-Semitism that students and the community were exposed to at the end of the fall semester and discussed the commitments the University has made to address students’ concerns and many actions that have been taken so far, including $5.6 million allocated for diversity and inclusion initiatives, interim steps to address space issues for multicultural students, a new Diversity Opportunity Hires initiative to bolster faculty diversity and allocation of $400,000 to expand the Center for International Services’ programming. A video and text of his remarks are available on SU News.
• The Chancellor will provide update messages at the start of each semester.
• Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer Keith A. Alford will provide monthly emails with updates on the progress of students’ concerns and a yearly report. The first monthly email will be sent Jan. 24.
• Planning is underway to organize opportunities for students to engage with Chancellor Syverud and University leaders during the spring semester.

Concern #19: "Syracuse University expands and invests in student volunteer opportunities to better serve underserved and low-income communities in the city of Syracuse."

Lead Responsible Party
Cydney Johnson, Vice President of Community Engagement

University Response to Original Concern
The University is committed to making significant investments in student volunteer opportunities to better serve the underserved and low-income communities in the city of Syracuse.

University Response to Expansion/Addendum
The University agreed to these requests (funding for volunteer programming) as written, including the allocation of $600,000 for volunteer programming in the City of Syracuse.

Status Complete

Progress

• The University has allocated $600,000 for volunteer programming in the City of Syracuse. As they are identified, initiatives will be funded.
• Coming out of the pandemic, the University will continue to offer students sustainable, long-term engagement opportunities in the community.

February 2021

• As part of a virtual tutoring initiative, over 200 students have connected to tutors and workshop leaders through the program, and over 300 tutors have volunteered to provide support, including a mix of professionals, retired teachers, college students, staff and professors, and experts nationwide.

August 2020

• Community organizations in the City of Syracuse and nonprofit organizations have been surveyed to establish current active volunteer capacity under COVID-19 restrictions.

June 2020

• The Office of Community Engagement and the Office of Engagement Programs at Hendricks Chapel have developed a number of community volunteer opportunities, including, this summer, a Virtual Girls Who Code event with the North Side Learning Center, a service challenge and a summer program with the Dunbar Association.

May 2020

• On May 6, to inform the Student Engagement Committee about community engagement initiatives and to solicit feedback on the best ways to engage faculty, staff and students in the City of Syracuse, a Zoom presentation was hosted by Syeisha Byrd, director of the Office of Engagement Programs, titled, “Engaging students, faculty and staff in sustainable, long-term engagement opportunities to serve communities in the City of Syracuse.” Mark Jackson, executive director of the Office of Community Engagement, and Emily Winiecki, community engagement coordinator, joined Byrd for the presentation. The presentation was followed by Q&A. Several committee members expressed interest in connecting with Byrd to become more involved in her office’s work. Forty-five staff, faculty and student members of the committee attended the Zoom. Byrd, Jackson and Winiecki are working on a survey to distribute to the committee to solicit additional feedback on community engagement.

April 2020

• Hendricks Chapel, the Office of Community Engagement and the Division of Enrollment and the Student Experience are planning a virtual session on community engagement in the greater Syracuse area.

February 2020

• The Office of Community Engagement is collaborating with the Student Association’s community engagement co-chairs to put on an internship fair for community-based organizations and government agencies for students to find opportunities.
• The Office of Community Engagement is also working with Handshake to expand volunteer and internship opportunities with nonprofits for students. Additionally, the office is working with CUSE Works to expand work-study positions with nonprofits.  

January 2020

• The University is investing over $300,000 in volunteer opportunities to better serve underserved and low-income communities in the City of Syracuse.

A public statement will be emailed to the student body, parents, and alumni by Syracuse University administration that acknowledges that hate crimes committed on our campus are not simply individual acts of hatred, but indicative of larger systemic and institutional violence and that the University is complicit in perpetuating these oppressive systems, specifically white supremacy. This process will begin effective immediately.

University Response
No agreement has been reached at this time. We will not issue a statement saying that the University is complicit in perpetuating oppressive systems, specifically white supremacy. The University will continue discussions on this topic.

Due to their inadequate performances as well as their negative track record in relation to student safety and anti-racism, Syracuse University’s Board of Trustees will remove the following constituents: Chancellor Kent Syverud, Senior VP for Enrollment and Student Experience Dolan Evanovich, DPS Chief Bobby Maldonado, and Deputy Chief John Sardino. This process will begin effective immediately.

University Response
The University will not ask for or support the resignations of individuals as demanded by this group of students.

Syracuse University’s tuition will be frozen and will not rise above $52,210 U.S. Dollars, which is the current tuition for students enrolled after the Fall of 2018. Any increase in tuition will be due to adjustment for inflation only, and not for reinvestment into the University. This will be implemented by the start of the Fall 2020 semester.

University Response
The Board of Trustees sets tuition for the University through a careful and methodical process each year. A tuition freeze is highly unlikely, as it would not allow the University the flexibility it needs to meet the ever-evolving needs of students, faculty and staff. That said, the Board each year seriously considers whether tuition should remain static or increase, and this year will be no different. The special committee of the Board will raise the students’ concern to the Board as part of the Board’s established budget and tuition decision-making processes.

The identity of those found responsible for committing a bias-related incident will be shared with the campus community in order to ensure campus safety. Bias-related incidents are forms of violence and will be recognized as such by the University. This permanent policy must include all perpetrators found responsible for bias-related incidents since the Fall 2019 semester. In order to properly disclose the identity of said individuals, DPS will file criminal complaints against all perpetrators of racial bias incidents now and in the future. This process will begin effective immediately.

University response
Under the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), the University cannot disclose identities of students found responsible for violating the Code of Student Conduct. There are some exceptions, none of which apply to the racist and anti-Semitic incidents from the fall. DPS will refer all potential hate crimes, pursuant to section 485.05 of the New York State penal law, to the Syracuse Police Department.

The Syracuse University Department of Public Safety will make their code of conduct and operating procedures publicly available via their website. This will be enacted effective immediately.

Lead Responsible Party
Chief Financial Officer and General Counsel

University response
DPS posted its code of ethical conduct to its website. The University committed to reviewing whether any DPS Standard Operating Procedures could also be posted to the website without compromising sensitive information

Status Complete

Progress

October 2021

• This concern has been completed as part of the implementation of the Loretta Lynch Report Recommendations.

February 2021

• The Use of Force policy has been posted. Reviewing whether any DPS standard operating procedures could also be posted without compromising sensitive information.

August 2020

• The Department of Public Safety (DPS) has posted the use of force policy to the DPS website.

Syracuse University Department of Public Safety Peace Officers will cease to carry firearms. This will be put into effect immediately.

Lead Responsible Party
Chief Financial Officer and General Counsel

University Response
The University appreciates the question of whether DPS should be disarmed, and agrees it is an important question. However, the answer to the question is not one the University is prepared to negotiate. The University will not disarm DPS peace officers at this time. The University will continue to explore this question with the student organizers, other student leaders, safety experts and the wider University community, and will explore the possibility of a roundtable discussion on this topic. The University encourages anyone with a complaint against a DPS officer to file it through EthicsPoint, through the DPS reporting portal, through Human Resources, or to the Office of Equal Opportunity, Inclusion and Resolution Services.

Status  While there was not a commitment made to the specific request, the University is committed to engagement by the Special Committee of the Board and the Independent Advisory Panel.

Progress

August 2020

• The Department of Public Safety (DPS), in collaboration with the Student Association, will host a series of student focus groups regarding DPS. Students will be invited to share their feedback on the department and recommend changes to enhance their experience with the DPS staff.

The focus groups will be facilitated by InterFaith Works Central New York, a local nonprofit, via Zoom. Each focus group will have a maximum of 15 students, including a student notetaker from the Student Association, and will each run for one hour. These sessions will ensure student anonymity, but there will be student note takers so that recommendations can be formed as a result of these focus groups.

July 2020

• While there was not a commitment made to the specific request, the University is exploring the possibility of roundtables and/or forums.

Housing services will prioritize students with disabilities in the housing selection process. Students in ODS should be able to rank their preferences for the type of room and/or specific halls. This will be implemented by the start of the Fall 2020 semester.

Lead Responsible Party
Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer

University response
The University explained its process for prioritizing students with disabilities in its housing process. The University recommitted to this priority and agreed to increase and improve communication to all students regarding disability services and housing. The University confirmed that the Disability Review Committee will also examine current practices. Individual student complaints may be referred to Williams Myhill, ADA compliance coordinator, in the Office of Equal Opportunity, Inclusion and Resolution Services (EOIRS).

Status: No Agreement Reached

Progress
October 2021

• While there was no commitment made to the specific request, the University is committed to hiring students in an advisory capacity to contribute to the discussion on the campus climate.
• The diversity, equity and inclusion student advisor positions for the Office of Diversity and Inclusion were hired in fall 2020.

July 2020

A consensus was reached regarding completing and putting in place formal guidance to designers and creating design standards for all renovation and new construction.

There is a collaboration underway for ranking multiple prioritization factors for the analysis of existing barriers to access documented by United Spinal consultants. The next step is to perform an analysis to aid in the development of the first-year scope of work of a Physical Access Plan.

First, a representative from the Housing Office met with the staff at Office of Disability Services, now the Center for Disability Resources, (ODS/CDR) weekly to review ADA housing needs and a committee determined the appropriate recommendation based on documentation collected by ODS/CDR from the student and/or medical providers. The goal was to notify students of their assignments by May.

Second, students who worked with the Office of Disability Services (ODS), now CDR, and had an approved accommodation on file did one of two things:

1. Participated in the online room selection process and selected a room that met their needs. This was either a single room or a room/suite with a friend(s).
2. Did not participate in the online room selection process and were assigned by the Housing Office based on the recommendation on file from the ODS/CDR. Specific rooms were held out of the online room selection process and students were assigned to a specific room type/location based on special need approved by ODS/CDR.

A formal and public acknowledgment and apology explicitly addressing the heinous treatment such as starvation, refusing medical and hygiene supplies, and denying religious counsel for peaceful student protestors from February 17th onward will be issued by Syracuse University sent via email to students, faculty, staff, parents, and alumni and shared with Syracuse University News, as well as be public record. This will be completed immediately.

University response
During discussions, the Chancellor and other administrators apologized for the way the University treated students during the early days of the sit-in. These apologies were offered in addition to the written apology the Chancellor issued on Feb. 24, 2020.

Student protestors occupying Crouse-Hinds Hall from February 17th and for the duration of the #NotAgainSU protests will have their records expunged of suspensions. This will be accomplished immediately.

University response
The University expunged conduct records related to the interim suspensions issued to student organizers on Feb. 17-18, 2020.

Status Complete

Student protestors occupying Crouse-Hinds Hall from February 17th and for the duration of the #NotAgainSU protests will not be penalized for late or missing coursework or absences. This will be put into effect immediately.

University response
Faculty have discretion as to whether to forgive late or missing coursework or absences according to principles of academic freedom. The interim vice chancellor and provost sent an email encouraging faculty to forgive late or missing coursework or absences for students directly and indirectly involved in the Crouse-Hinds Hall sit-in. This offer is contingent upon the expedited conclusion of these negotiations.

Status Complete

Graduate students, faculty, and staff will not be penalized for direct action in solidarity with #NotAgainSU, including but not limited to a labor strike. This will be put into effect immediately.

University response
The University agreed graduate students, faculty and staff would not be disciplined for supporting the students leading the Crouse-Hinds Hall sit-in. Specifically, the University agreed no graduate students would lose scholarships or stipends as a result of their support or participation. This offer is contingent upon the expedited conclusion of these negotiations.

Status Complete

A new policy will be implemented that the Campus Disruption policy does not apply to peaceful student protest now and in the future. The Campus Disruption policy explicitly states that “Syracuse University is committed to the principle that freedom of discussion is essential to the search for truth and, consequently, welcomes and encourages the expression of dissent.” According to the Free Speech Working Group created by Chancellor Syverud in 2015, “The WG recognizes that an assembly occupying a campus building is itself an act of speech. That speech should be protected, if it occurs in a public forum space, unless and until it interferes with the educational mission of the institution.” During #NotAgainSU’s efforts to peacefully express dissent, we were neither welcomed nor encouraged by the administration. Students are never again to be denied access to food, medical supplies, or hygiene products. This will be put into effect immediately.

University response
The University committed to reviewing this policy, including how to limit its application to peaceful protests on campus. The interim vice chancellor and provost will lead this effort.

Status In Progress

Progress

August 2020

• A Student Activism Engagement Team has been created, composed of faculty, academic leaders, student support leaders and students to navigate challenges presented by demonstrations and protests.

A meeting with the Board of Trustees’ executive board in the presence of legal counsel chosen by #NotAgainSU will be held to confirm the accuracy of the “Concerns of Student Protestors” website as well as additional demands proposed beginning February 17th, 2020. Executive board members must sign off on a concrete timeline for implementing each of the already agreed upon demands in full by March 31st, 2020.

University response
The special committee will return to campus in April 2020 (subject to public health measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic), and students will be invited to speak to them. The Independent Advisory Committee has also been meeting with students and #NotAgainSU organizers were invited to meet with the Independent Advisory Committee on March 9, 2020. The advisory committee will report its findings to the special committee of the Board.

Status  While there was not a commitment made to the specific request, the University is committed to engagement by the Special Committee of the Board and the Independent Advisory Panel.

Progress

February and March 2021

• The reports from former U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch and the Special Committee were released to the campus community in February and March 2021.

The administration will agree to a formal external investigation into the Department of Public Safety and specifically the Associate Chief of the Department of Public Safety John Sardino. An external investigator will also be agreed upon by both #NotAgainSU and Syracuse University administration. This will be put into effect immediately.

University response
The University retained former U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch to conduct an external review of DPS. The scope of the review will include the conduct of DPS during the February 2020 student sit-in in Crouse-Hinds Hall, as well as DPS policies and procedures. Students will have access to speak with Lynch, and subject to legal limitations, the University will make public the findings of the review.

Status While there was not a commitment made to the specific request, the University is committed to a review of the Department of Public Safety by former U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch.

Progress

February 2021

• Former U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch released her report Feb. 22, 2021, in a message to the University community.

September 2020

• Loretta Lynch and her team have been working to assist the University in developing a community review board for the University’s Department of Public Safety (DPS). On Sept 18, they presented a proposed framework for the University’s Public Safety Community Review Board, which was developed based on suggestions and concerns expressed by members of the University community.

August 2020

• In a Aug. 21 message to the campus community, Chancellor Syverud provided an update on U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch’s review of the University’s Department of Public Safety. By the second week of September, Lynch and her team will provide preliminary recommendations to form a Public Safety Citizen Review Board that will hear, review and recommend actions regarding complaints made by University community members. There will also be a series of listening sessions between Lynch’s team and members of our community. With the community recommendations and input, a Review Board will be established, with members drawn from the University community. The listening sessions will also in part inform Lynch’s final independent review and recommendations.

July 2020

• While there was not a commitment made to the specific request, the University is committed to a review of the Department of Public Safety by former U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch.

A paid Oversight Committee made up of students, faculty, and staff will be established and they will oversee general campus climate and progress of demands and have the authority to determine the progress that the Board of Trustees and administration are making to systematically address systemic oppression. The administration will not have decision-making power over the members of this committee. The first iteration of this committee will be made up of student organizers from #NotAgainSU; subsequent committees will be elected by the student body. This will be accomplished by the end of the Spring 2020 semester.

University response
The University agreed to solicit feedback from students in an advisory capacity regarding campus climate, and to establish paid student positions in the Office of Diversity and Inclusion; one responsibility of these positions would include contributing to discussions on campus climate.

Status Complete

Progress

July 2020

While there was not a commitment made to the specific request, the University is committed to hiring students in an advisory capacity to contribute to discussion on the campus climate.

The diversity, equity and inclusion student advisor positions for the Office of Diversity and Inclusion (ODI) have been posted on Handshake. The student advisors will foster an inclusive environment providing experiences related to diversity, inclusion, equity and accessibility and value the diverse social identities that constitute the entire university community under the direction of the diversity and inclusion specialist. They will also provide individual and shared guidance that promote a sense of community and encourage campus engagement; facilitate thought-provoking and respectful discussions leading to multicultural awareness and intentional actions; and understand the importance of responsible leadership in the realm of diversity and inclusion

In addition, student advisors will advise on processes and issues in the social justice, inclusive excellence, accessibility and equity spaces on campus; share perspectives and presentations with campus groups and committees such as, but not limited to, the Senate Committee for Diversity, Council on Diversity and Inclusion, etc.; actively seek feedback from students about their campus experiences and identify opportunities for collaboration with student organizations and/or campus units; work collaboratively with the Office of Diversity and Inclusion staff on assigned programming, initiatives and awareness projects; participate in ODI ambassador orientation and training; via training provided and knowledge gained from the ODI, serve as an ambassador and help build strong, diverse  relationships with campus partners; serve as an ODI ambassador at student events, as necessary; support and promote ODI and other diversity, equity and inclusion campus programs as assigned; and complete additional administrative and delegatory duties as assigned by the chief diversity and inclusion officer and other ODI team members.

A section of SEM100 will be dedicated to the full history of protest at Syracuse University including but not limited to the Black Panther protest, Syracuse Eight, Denny’s protest, General Body, #RecognizeUs, and #NotAgainSU approved by organizers involved. This will be instituted by the start of the Fall 2020 semester.

University response
The University agreed in principle to this request, including expanding the SEM 100 curriculum to include the history of protest at Syracuse University, provided that the faculty approve this change to the curriculum.

Status Complete

Syracuse University will divulge the use of facial recognition software that was used to identify protesting students and target them for suspension. The university will also admit that this racial profiling led to the wrongful suspension of students and the university will cease to utilize facial recognition software. This will be completed immediately.

University response
The University confirms that DPS and ESE do not own facial recognition software, and that facial recognition software was not used to identify protesting students.

Status Complete