The University Office for Equal Opportunity, the Center for GLBT Programs and Services and the Women’s Center are set to combine under the University’s realignment initiative – though those affected by the merger see a silver lining in the plan.
According to Joanne Woodard, vice provost for the Office for Equal Opportunity, the merge would combine the Office of Equal Opportunity, diversity and inclusion and multicultural affairs with student affair groups such as the GLBT Center and Women’s Center, without any expected job losses.
“The new unit encompassing all these separate areas would be called the Office of Institutional Equity and Diversity. I would be the director of this area, as the vice provost of the new office,” Woodard said.
Change is something that will be synonymous with the University in the coming months, as it tries to streamline operations and departments to save money wherever possible. Sometimes this change leads to lost jobs, a cut in funding or cancelation of an entire program.
But negative effects are not something synonymous with the merge of the Women’s Center, the GLBT Center and the Office for Equal Opportunity.
Justine Hollingshead, the director of the GLBT Center, said the merge is viewed as a positive change.
“The details of the merge are still in talks. There is currently a discrepancy about which department is moving where, and where each department will report, but overall it will promote equity and diversity,” Hollingshead said. “And any move where all units related to diversity are going to be combined seems like a logical one.”
The current plans include combining all three offices under the Office for Equal Opportunity, but unknowns still exist, including number of jobs retained.
According to Woodard, however, the new office shouldn’t be subject to staff changes.
“This merge is not going to cause these units to lose their identity. It’s a realignment of units that work together in similar areas, so that they can transcend the individual programs and pool resources to better serve as a large unit,” Woodard said.
Hollingshead said she doesn’t think the move will damage the centers’ ability to help students.
“We’re currently under the Office of Student Affairs, and that’s exactly what we’ll continue to do, be involved with students,” Hollingshead said.
In respect to the GLBT’s position, Hollingshead said it is willing to be as flexible as necessary, as long as it is grouped with other diversity resources.
“As far as the GLBT Center is concerned, we don’t care whether we are under Student Affairs, as long as we are in the same place as all the other diversity units,” Hollingshead said. “With the University’s position to realign, I’m in support of it. We just want to make sure the GLBT community alliance has the same seat at the table of student leaders as it has had.”
The target date for the combination of units is July 1, when the merged offices will be collectively called the Office of Institutional Equity and Diversity.
According to Woodard, Multicultural Student Affairs and the GLBT and Women’s Centers, will remain under the provost and reporting to the new Office of Institutional Equity and Diversity.
“Right now all of those offices report up through the provost, the new office will only change how they get to the provost,” Woodard said.
In addition to merging the units, Woodward said the Women’s Center will be hiring a director.
“The director of the Women’s Center search has been recently put on hold, but we hope to resume that search and have them on staff by July 1, and in place as the new department comes together in July,” Woodward said.
Provost Warwick Arden and other administrators are debating details of the merger. The details are open to feedback and input, and several final decisions have yet to be made.
