Some developments on the "Diversity Statement" front ... or "DEI Statement" or "DEIA Statement" or whatever they are calling it this week.
How do you connect the U.S. Naval Academy to the University of South Carolina, Florida, VMI, and the University of North Carolina System?
Let's check in where the other school's are, and then we'll finish up what is happening at our Navy's undergrad institution.
Thanks to John Sailer we have a look behind the curtain at the not so innocent "Diversity Statements" that so many colleges are making people fill out when applying for a teaching or tenure track position. Sure, they may tell you that there is no correct answer ... but ...
The rubrics punish candidates who espouse race neutrality.
— John Sailer (@JohnDSailer) March 1, 2023
They dictate a low score for anyone who states an “intention to ignore the varying backgrounds of their students and ‘treat everyone the same.’” pic.twitter.com/TuQD31NAWG
Oh, how about those sectarian "Affinity Groups" our Navy is so in love with?
The rubrics likewise punish candidates for failing to embrace controversial DEI practices.
— John Sailer (@JohnDSailer) March 1, 2023
They dictate a low score to candidates who object to the practice of racially-segregated "affinity groups." pic.twitter.com/fk4LVog4ku
As Sailer points out, this is being pushed via the federal government grant system - so you're paying for it to the tune of a quarter billion dollars.
In Florida, Governor DeSantis is going right after that part of issue - paying for it. As we've covered on Thursdays for almost two decades, the costs are huge.
“As the Executive Office of the Governor prepares policy and budget proposals ahead of the 2023 Legislative Session, it is important that we have a full understanding of the operational expenses of state institutions,” Spencer wrote in the memo.
The memo said colleges and universities are required to “provide a comprehensive list of all staff, programs and campus activities related to diversity, equity and inclusion and critical race theory.”
In addition, they are directed to detail “costs associated with the administration of each program or activity,” including a description of the activities, paid positions and how much of the money is provided by the state.
...and at one public university - the first of hopefully many moves was made;
New College of Florida's Board of Trustees abolished the office handling diversity, equity and inclusion programs during a contentious and emotional meeting Tuesday ... only recently was the faculty handbook revised so that prospective hires are asked to submit a statement in their job application outlining how they will promote diversity.
Oh, did they? Well, so much for that.
Under the new regulation, DEI will be defined to include "any effort to manipulate or otherwise influence the composition of the faculty or student body with reference to race, sex, color, or ethnicity."
The definition of DEI also would include: "Any effort to promote as the official position of the administration, the college, or any administrative unit thereof, a particular, widely contested opinion referencing unconscious or implicit bias, cultural appropriation, allyship, transgender ideology, microaggressions, group marginalization, anti-racism, systemic oppression, social justice, intersectionality, neo-pronouns, heteronormativity, disparate impact, gender theory, racial or sexual privilege, or any related formulation of these concepts."
I do love the gnashing of teeth and rending of clothes due to the Greatest Governor in the USA;
If DeSantis gets his way—and he likely will—diversity, equity and inclusion efforts will be eliminated from every public college and university in Florida. https://t.co/JEvIHzhANa
— VICE News (@VICENews) March 1, 2023
The Free State of Florida leads the way!
Heading up to the Mid-Atlantic, there is a quasi-civil war going on at VMI. The weapon of choice is one the left has used for a long time - money. Things got so bad, the mass of alumni are rising up;
The Virginia Military Institute continues to face intense pushback from an alumni group that opposes the military school’s ongoing diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
The activists in recent months upped their efforts by seeking to redirect the institute’s alumni fundraising in an effort to persuade campus leaders to pull back on critical race theory policies and programs.
“The only way you can influence them is by hurting their pocketbook,” alumnus Gene Rice told The College Fix in an interview.
In a Jan. 23 letter to their fellow “Brother Rats of the great VMI Class of ’74,” concerned alumni requested that for their 50th reunion class gift, they do not donate to VMI Alumni Agencies but instead to the Cadet Foundation.
“All contributions directed to the Cadet Foundation would be used to fund programs and projects that directly benefit cadets but not those that would impose divisive changes derived from political agendas and policies on the Corps, Ratline and Honor System,” the letter stated.
“…We desire to take a stand and save what is left of the VMI experience,” the letter added. “… DO NOT fund programs and policies that force changes on the Corps, Ratline, and Honor system, resulting from political agendas and ideologies such as CRT, a divisive DEI Program, and others.”
The donation disruption effort is the latest in an ongoing campaign by a large and vocal company of alumni, cadets, parents and friends of VMI calling for the discontinuation of DEI programs at the school.
Last week there is an even stronger pushback in the University of North Carolina System - which is a lot more than just Chapel Hill;
The University of North Carolina (UNC) System announced plans to ditch diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) as well as compelled speech requirements from hiring decisions following a board of governors meeting on Thursday.
The System, which includes 17 public universities serving nearly a quarter of a million students, will no longer “solicit nor require an employee or applicant for academic admission or employment to affirmatively ascribe to or opine about beliefs, affiliations, ideals, or principles regarding matters of contemporary political debate or social action as a condition to admission, employment, or professional advancement,” the resolution reads.
The statement added that hiring practices will further prohibit “statements of commitment to particular views on matters of contemporary political debate or social action contained on applications or qualifications for admission or employment included as criteria for analysis of an employee’s career progression.”
How does this circle back to the U.S. Naval Academy?
Well, there are a lot of things going on in the background there - a few we've covered here before - and others involving hiring which are off the hook bad that are not my place to publish ... but notice all the concern about the "Diversity Statements" - especially the South Carolina example above? Remember how that shows how they is operationalized.
"Diversity Statements" are already thick in the hiring decisions at Annapolis.
If you want to teach Midshipmen - depending on your academic area of expertise - you will be required to;
"... submit a ... diversity statement" or send "A diversity statement that gives applicant’s experience with or commitment to diversity in service, research and/or teaching."
At the link above you can hunt around all the job openings, but in my brief review I saw a pattern ... a little hint of an internal civil war. Inconsistency.
If you are interested in teaching or applying to an tenure track position in English, Russian/Eastern European History, Mechanical Engineering, Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering, you may get variations of the above such as;
(provide) A description of the candidate’s experiences and approach to working with students from diverse backgrounds. For more information on the range of student backgrounds our faculty interact with daily, please see the USNA 2025 Class Portrait (https://www.usna.edu/Admissions/Apply/Class-Portrait.php)
They are already well trenched even in some of the hard sciences and Rickoverian majors - which though not calling them "diversity statement" even Aerospace Engineering is asking for one.
In the teaching or research statements as appropriate, candidates should describe their experiences and approach to working with students from diverse backgrounds, as doing so is integral to success as an educator at USNA.
Sailing Instructors, Wrestling Coaches, and those teaching Math will have to read "diversity" a few times in the job posting, but no statement required. You will have to suffer through this;
Applicants are encouraged to submit a Demographic Information on Applicants Form to the Academy's Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion by emailing the form to Renee Sharps at rsharps@usna.edu. Your responses are optional and will not be shared with the search committee or anyone else involved in the selection process for this position.
I guess the kind would say this is just to feed the metrics that need reporting ... but really ... do you really believe that statement? "Optional" ... "not shared" ... ummm. Sure.
If you don't know where to start in writing your Woke Shahada, universities are nice enough to provide a bevy of examples of correct thinking and goodthink.
Will the USNA alumni grow the spine of the VMI alumni? We'll see.
There is an action point here, and Governor DeSantis is showing the way. At some point, a (R) will be in charge of the Executive Branch and will be Commander in Chief.
All (R) looking to have that job need to be asked at some point if they are willing to go after the diversity industry in the military service academies as Florida has at its public institutions?
If not, they really don't know what time it is and (R) inclined voters should be encouraged to look elsewhere for someone who does.
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