FAS EDI Committee Update
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Dear Colleagues,
After Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Darrell Bazzell issued his Diversity Commitment to Financial and Administrative Services (FAS) staff, partners, and customers, he created the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) Committee. We began meeting in February 2021 with a focus on ensuring that FAS provides an inclusive environment. Our goal for the first year has been to promote education about and awareness of EDI. The committee is excited to engage everyone in the portfolio and share our experience this far. To that end, we invite you to explore the resources below.
Our key accomplishments include:
- Laying the groundwork for how the committee functions, including approving a charter and expectations.
- Publishing a glossary of terms.
- Finding ways to discover and measure the current perception of staff related to EDI.
- Hosting "How to Build Inclusive Workspaces for Diverse Abilities” and “More than Just Pronouns: Achieving Gender Equality at Work”.
- Sharing opportunities for staff to explore diversity topics and encouraging them to do so.
Committee members expanded our knowledge and formed a cohesive team through diversity training and are now better prepared to support the work we are doing for the wide array of staff within FAS. Some of the opportunities we found most valuable are listed below for your review and exploration.
- Implicit Bias Training (part of the Diversity Education Certificate available to all UT staff)
- The University of South Florida Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Workplace Certificate
- Lectures from the Othering and Belonging Institute at UC Berkeley
Upcoming...
The EDI Committee is committed to learning about what FAS staff members experience in the course of their work through:
- Surveys.
- Meetings.
- Focus groups.
- Personal engagement with FAS community members.
- Examining human resources data.
We are focused on supporting every staff member in FAS. If you have suggestions, concerns, or event recommendations, please send an email or event invitation to FAS.EDI@austin.utexas.edu. We also invite you to use the Idea Catcher. Everyone’s opinion is valuable and can help form the next steps in the portfolio’s efforts to better serve a diverse workforce.
Thank you,
FAS EDI Committee
- Binta Brown, Director of Diversity and Talent Management (Chair)
- Tatiana Calliham, Assistant Vice President, FAS Business Services
- Blanca Gamez, Associate Director, Parking and Transportation Services
- Kate Haenchen Jimenez, Planning & Design Manager, Facilities and Planning Management
- Nicole Holland, HR Consultant, Human Resources
- Rabindra Kar, Senior Software Engineer, ITS Campus Solutions
- Mary Kemp, Administrative Manager, FAS Business Services
- Marlo Kibler, Director, Human Resources Service Center
- Quentin Rodriguez, Finance Manager, Facilities Services
- Sylvester Ruffin, Police Officer, University Police Department
- Elizabeth Schaub, Program Coordinator, UT Staff Council
- Denis Semenov, Administrative Assistant, Travel Management Services
