WCSU Diversity Council

The Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, in partnership with the Office of the Provost/Vice President for the Division of Academic Affairs and the Office of the President, launched the first Diversity Council in December 2017.  The Western Connecticut State University (“WCSU” or “University”) Diversity Council (“the Council”) is comprised of representation from Management/Confidential staff, AAUP, Clerical, Police, Maintenance and Student representatives to utilize the experience and expertise of Council Members to develop and support methods for advancing the presence of diversity, equity and inclusion of underrepresented minority groups within the university community.

 

MISSION AND VISION OF THE WCSU DIVERSITY COUNCIL

The Council will develop recommendations and initiatives to recruit and retain underrepresented minority groups in the identified community groups of the WCSU community.  Council members will partner with other groups in the WCSU community for the purposes of: promoting mutual gain through activities like student/employee recruiting, mentoring, consulting arrangements, internship opportunities, arranging for guest speakers from industry, supporting University-wide outreach operations, and bringing students and employees into direct contact with members of the Danbury community. The Council will assist the Office of Diversity and Equity on key trends, changes, and developments so that Western Connecticut State University can more readily integrate “real world” matters into curriculum and other university activities

 

University Diversity Council Bylaws

 

The members of the Diversity Council are as follows:

Council Member	Represented WCSU Region	Title/Department
Dr. Hasan Arslan	Ancell School of Business/AAUP	Associate Professor Justice and Law Administration
Dr. Carol Huang	Ancell School of Business/AAUP	Associate Professor Finance Department
Jennifer Labate, J.D.	Management/Conf.	Chief Diversity, Equity, Inclusion Officer Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Lorri-Ann Monte	School of Professional Studies/AAUP	Assistant Professor Education and Education Psychology
Elisabeth Morel	SUOAF	Director Office of AccessAbility Services
Robert Pote	SUOAF	Director Pre-Collegiate and Access Department
Julie Pryor-Bennett	SUOAF	Major Gifts Officer, Institution Advancement Member At Large
Sara Risko	WCSU Student	BS Health Promotion Studies
Paul Steinmetz	Management/Conf.	Director of Sponsored Research, Academic Affairs
Keisha Stokes	Clerical	Office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Council Liaison
Joshua Sumrell	SUOAF/Office of Intercultural Affairs	Director of Inclusion & Belonging
Scott Towers	SUOAF/Pride Center	Pride Center/ Deputy IX Coordinator