Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

The School of Education and Human Development values diversity, equity and inclusion in all of its complexity and richness. We engage our students with multiple perspectives to prepare them to be active agents of change in a complex global society. We intentionally seek opportunities to expand diversity at our school through recruitment, retention, teaching, research, and service. Our goal is the development of a community that promotes and values diversity and equity.

The school is deeply committed to the daily work of equity and inclusion. There are many ways to get involved in this work. Explore the resources on this page as well as those initiatives led by the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (ODEI).

 

Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

EHD Inclusive Excellence Plan

DEI at EHD

Group of students performing in the courtyard outside of the school

DEI Programming

At EHD, we have many opportunities to connect, learn, and engage in collaborative learning and community-building around DEI topics and themes. Through programming and events, EHD cultivates an inclusive culture of learning and discovery that embraces a broad range of ideas and approaches, supports dialogue, and strives to engage the entire community. EHD urges diverse representation and participation of people from all backgrounds, experiences, abilities, and skillsets.

Learn More
Two students speaking to each other at the welcome table at a student welcome event

Student Engagement

Our EHD students have distinguished themselves by being involved in work at the nexus of diversity, equity, and inclusion advocacy and education. Our student-started and student-led groups and committees uniquely contribute to the cadence of life in our School by fostering a more justice-minded learning and communal environment. Learn more about their histories, their programming, and their members.

Learn More
Dean Rowley speaking from a podium to a room full of people

Diversity Action Committee (DAC)

Our Diversity Action Committee (DAC) has served as a bedrock for our diversity efforts, promoting actions that lead to a culture and atmosphere where all faculty, staff, and students can reach their full potential. Composed of faculty, staff, and students, DAC works closely with the Faculty Council and the school's Office of DEI to enact the school’s equity-minded mission.

University DEI Resources

Topic

Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility

Committed to building diverse and inclusive communities.

Explore This Topic

Three older Black educators participate in a panel discussion
Center for Race and Public Education in the South

CRPES conducts and supports research and scholarship on issues that lie at the intersection of race, education and schooling in the southern United States. 

  • ODEI
  • Administrative Office

Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

We engage in policy, initiatives, programming, funding opportunities and professional development aligned with the diversity and equity goals of the school.

Buffering Effects of Racial Discrimination on School Engagement: The Role of Culturally Responsive Teachers and Caring School Police

We considered both the protective and promotive effects of culturally responsive teachers and caring school police on school engagement for students exposed to racial discrimination across settings.

  • CRPES
  • Research Project

Teachers in the Movement

The project focuses on oral history interviews with elementary, secondary, and university teachers and educators about their participation in and efforts during the Civil Rights Movement.  The Civil Rights Movement was not racially monolithic. The project embraces a multicultural mindset to conduct interviews with educators of different races, ethnic backgrounds, class and social backgrounds.

Acknowledgements

Before I/we begin, please join me/us in acknowledging the Monacan People as the traditional custodians of the land in and around the lands we are on today. Dispossessed from these lands and continuing to live with that legacy, I/we pay respects to their elders past and present. My/Our acknowledgment of the Monacan People reflects a commitment to respect and greater inclusion through a formal recognition of those who were here first and whose continued presence is important to our future.

I/We also acknowledge and pay respect to the individual lives of the African peoples and their descendants who were forced to dedicate their labor to the construction of what is now the University of Virginia. Scholars estimate that at least 5,000 enslaved Black enslaved laborers worked on the Grounds, with many in residence, starting with the construction of the Lawn in 1817 and lasting through the end of the Civil War in 1865. These enslaved people built and then sustained the everyday life of the University.

These acknowledgments are but one form of a public intervention, but serve a necessary step toward honoring the Monacan People and Enslaved Laborers. I/We reflect on the injustices committed to these native communities and enslaved peoples. I/We honor their stories, told and untold, and their descendants past, and leaders, present and emerging.

Resources:

Research

We believe that the study of equity, inclusion, and race is an integral part of the study of education. Below are just a few examples of the research centers, labs, or projects that are actively researching how to address the needs of a culturally diverse society.

  • CRPES
  • Research Center

Center for Race and Public Education in the South

We conduct and support research and scholarship on issues that lie at the intersection of race, education and schooling in the southern United States. 

  • Research Center

Youth-Nex

Youth-Nex is a trans-disciplinary center with a translational approach to scholarship and innovation that is central to its work. 

  • CRPES
  • Research Project

Teachers in the Movement

The project focuses on oral history interviews with elementary, secondary, and university teachers and educators about their participation in and efforts during the Civil Rights Movement.  The Civil Rights Movement was not racially monolithic. The project embraces a multicultural mindset to conduct interviews with educators of different races, ethnic backgrounds, class and social backgrounds.

  • Partner

Blue Ridge LEND

The mission of the Blue Ridge LEND is to improve the health and well-being of individuals with autism and other developmental disabilities through interdisciplinary training, technical assistance, knowledge generation, collaboration, and dissemination.

DEI News

Contact Us